Taiwanese actor Kai Ko injured after drone hits his face while filming Netflix series

Taiwanese actor Kai Ko was injured on set when a drone that was filming him up close hit his cheekbone area. The accident “caused serious disfigurement” to the actor’s face and required 20 to 30 stitches, said his manager.

The accident happened on Dec 27 on the set of the upcoming Taiwanese Netflix fantasy series, Agent From Above, which is produced by Singapore’s mm2 Entertainment and Taiwan’s Good Films Production.

Ko’s manager spoke to Taiwanese newspaper United Daily News, which broke the news on Monday (Jan 9). “A few days ago, an accident happened during filming, which caused serious disfigurement of the face and (Ko) is currently undergoing treatment.”

The statement continued: “Our artiste is not a superhero. He was focusing on his work, and could not react in time when a disaster occurred right next to him. We hope to be able to (resume) work safely and allow our lives to get back on track.”

In the series, the 31-year-old Ko plays a former drug addict-turned-supernatural crime fighter who is recruited to do the bidding of Chinese god San Tai Zi as redemption for his sins.

A spokesman for the production company said that safety precautions had been taken during the shoot with the drone’s blades shielded by a protective cover.

“Unfortunately, for unknown reasons, the drone accidentally hit the cheekbone area of Ko’s face and caused injuries,” said the spokesman. Investigations are under way.

The actor did not directly address the incident but he did post two Instagram Stories on Monday. The first was a picture of Yoda with the words “May the Force be with me” and the second is a picture of Slam Dunk’s Hanamichi Sakuragi with the words “I will be back very soon”.

Ko won the Best New Actor trophy at the 2011 Golden Horse Awards for his role in the movie, You Are The Apple Of My Eye. He made his directorial debut with the mystery-action film, Bad Education, in 2022.