A Disney on Ice stunt known as the headbanger went wrong during a live performance in San Jose, leaving both skaters on the ice before they waved off the crowd and exited.
The incident unfolded Sunday, October 25, at the SAP Center in San Jose, California, during a routine featuring characters from The Little Mermaid. The male skater, portraying Prince Eric, had been swinging his partner, playing Ariel, by her ankles in a move that brings a skater’s head within inches of the ice surface.
The headbanger is formally prohibited under International Skating Union rules for competitive figure skating, though the ban does not extend to professional exhibition performances. The move requires the male partner to maintain precise grip and balance while rotating his partner at high speed.
During the performance, the male skater appeared to lose his footing, causing him to release his partner’s leg. Both performers fell to the ice, with footage showing the woman portraying Ariel holding her head in her hands immediately after impact.
The pair remained on the ice only briefly before recovering and waving to the audience as they left the rink. The show continued on schedule without further interruption.
Feld Entertainment, the production company behind Disney on Ice, addressed the incident in a statement to media. “Thankfully both skaters were uninjured and continued performing as scheduled,” the company said.
The footage has drawn nearly nine million views on TikTok, where users have debated both the dangers of the choreography and the performers’ professionalism. One commenter questioned the necessity of including the move: “Why does that move need to be part of the choreography?”
Another user expressed similar skepticism: “And why would they even need to do all that?”
A third commenter, identifying as someone familiar with skating, offered a defense of the performers and the production. “For those who aren’t skaters, the head banger is something that lots of skaters in Disney on Ice do week in week out. As performers unfortunately sometimes things go wrong. I would expect she has severe concussion after hitting her head with that force – please be respectful!” they wrote.
The ISU has shown willingness to reconsider its prohibitions on high-risk elements. The governing body lifted its nearly fifty-year ban on the backflip in 2024, a move that allowed American skater Ilia Malinin, 21, to become the first to legally land the element at the Winter Olympics. Malinin’s successful backflip contributed to a program score of 98.00.
During the backflip ban, several competitors had performed the move illegally, most notably French figure skater Surya Bonaly, who landed a one-footed backflip at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano and received a points deduction for the violation.
The Disney on Ice tour continues its scheduled performances across North America.