Dylan O'Brien was dismissed as "difficult" when he raised concerns on the set of 'The Maze Runner'.
The 33-year-old actor suffered "concussion, a facial fracture and lacerations" after being hurled from a moving vehicle and hit by another car while shooting the movie in 2016, and he's admitted the "life-changing incident" has given him the strength to "stand [his] ground" when working and not be afraid to raise any issues.
He told Men's Health magazine: “It was a life-changing incident. I’ve approached everything differently, you could say, particularly with regards to standing my ground on set.
"It’s very commonplace in the culture for young actors to be controlled, and the way they strive to do that is by always being like, Oh, don’t become difficult. Don’t be a pain in the a**. Or Are you complaining, are you being difficult? Things like that."
Dylan doesn't feel he was "respected" when he spoke up on 'The Maze Runner' set but now, if he is dismissed as difficult or an "a******", he takes strength in knowing he's just standing up for himself.
He added: “I learned after the accident to not conflate taking care of yourself and looking after yourself. Don’t let them manipulate you into thinking that is being difficult, because I can look at that day and know I was a 24-year-old kid who was raising concerns about how we were approaching things, and they were not listened to, they were not respected.
"And then what happened happened. And by all accounts, it was all pretty gotten away with, I would say, as well.
“It’s taught me that, at the end of the day, in these spaces, you have your own back, and that’s the most you can rely on. I just turned 33. I’ve been doing this for 15 years. I know the person I am, and the character I bring to set, and the way I treat people and the way that I treat a workspace, and I know I’m not difficult. I know I’m not an asshole. I know I was trying to protect myself that day, and so I’ve just never forgotten that. That’s always rung true as being the thing to hold with me.”
