Gwyneth Paltrow’s Ski Accident Accuser Testifies: ‘No One Believed How Serious My Injuries Were’

Meredith Woerner
·3 min read
14
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.

The retired optometrist who is suing Gwyneth Paltrow over a 2016 ski crash took the stand on Monday, telling the jury that he heard a “blood-curdling scream” just before being struck in the back.

Terry Sanderson is suing Paltrow for $300,000, and alleges that he was left with a concussion, four broken ribs and a brain injury.

More from Variety

Paltrow was the first to testify, telling the Utah jury last week that it was Sanderson who crashed into her. She said she became very upset and yelled “you skied directly into my fucking back.” Paltrow is countersuing for $1 and attorneys’ fees.

Sanderson testified on Monday that he was having an easy day on the hills until he heard the scream.

“I just remember everything was great and then I heard something I’ve never heard at a ski resort and that was a blood-curdling scream,” Sanderson said. He remembered thinking that it was “like somebody was out of control and going to hit a tree and was gonna die.”

“And then boom!” he said. “I got hit in my back so hard — right at my shoulder blades.”

He said he went “flying” and that everything went black.

Sanderson remembered the first thing he focused on after the collision was an “mad, angry,” male voice.

“I heard him say, ‘Do you realize that you weren’t skiing under the rules?'”

He said he mouthed the words “I’m sorry,” but no sound came out. He said he was not apologizing for the accident, but was just trying to placate the man.

He said he had no memory of Paltrow screaming at him. He said he did not learn that he had crashed with Paltrow until later, when he was getting medical treatment.

“I’m not into celebrity worship, so I didn’t care at that point,” he said.

At times, Sanderson appeared to have difficulty focusing on the questions. His attorney, Kristin VanOrman, had to ask him “How did you get up?” multiple times before she got an answer.

When asked how he has changed physically since the accident, Sanderson said “I’m like living another life now.”

He said that he was told he cannot ski anymore, because if he had another crash he could end up in a nursing home. Sanderson did try skiing on his own with a new helmet and in an “ungodly” fluorescent ski suit but he had to stop because, “I’d have to stop every 30 yards and look back behind me to make sure no one is right behind me.”

He said he has struggled with communication, has sometimes felt disoriented, and has experienced changes to his personality since the crash.

When asked by VanOrman why he filed the suit, Sanderson said, “I realized, after a period of time, that no one believed how serious my injuries were.”

“I knew there were damages,” he said. “And then there were lots of insults added to that singular incident. Lots of insults along the way, dozens of other times where everything went contrary to my value system.”

Sanderson was also asked about an email he wrote to his three daughters after the crash, with the subject line “I’m famous.”

“I was really trying to add a little levity to a serious situation,” he said.

During cross-examination, Paltrow’s attorney Steve Owens asked him if he agreed that saying “I’m famous” was “a crazy thing to say.”

“Absolutely. It’s not me, I don’t buy into that,” Sanderson said.

Paltrow’s lawyer then pressed on Sanderson to get him to confirm that despite disagreeing with the statement, it was in fact him that said those words.

The plaintiff answered that these past words were actually coming from, “the other personality that’s inhabiting my body right now.”

“And you blame Gwyneth Paltrow for that,” Owens said.

“Yes, no question,” Sanderson concluded.

The trial is still ongoing.

Best of Variety

Sign up for Variety’s Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Click here to read the full article.