Stars who died in tragic car accidents: From Princess Diana to Paul Walker | HELLO! (2025)

There's something particularly cruel about a premature death, especially when someone relatively young and full of potential passes away.

Road accidents are responsible for an estimated 1.19 million deaths each year. Additionally, between 20-50 million more people suffer non-fatal injuries, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

The rich and famous are by no means immune to car crashes. Many celebrities have suffered life-threatening injuries over the years, yet some have walked away unscathed, but a handful of high-profile cases have resulted in tragedy. We examine six fatal road accidents involving famous people.

James Dean

At the time of his death, aged just 24 on 30 September 1955, James Dean was on the verge of superstardom. Only one of his movies (East of Eden) had been released - Rebel Without a Cause and Giant were to follow. In 1956, Dean became the first actor to receive a posthumous Best Actor Oscar nomination for East of Eden.

The following year, he was nominated again forGiant, and to this day, he is the only actor ever to be nominated posthumously twice. The screen idol and petrolhead died instantly when his Porsche 550 Spyder collided with a Ford Tudor driven by a 23-year-old student near Cholame, California.

Princess Grace of Monaco

Oscar-winning actress and style icon Grace Kelly's transformation from Hollywood royalty to real-life princess captured the world's imagination. When she married Prince Rainier III in 1956, she retired from acting at the age of 26 and instead focused on her royal duties and charity work.

On 13 September 1982, Princess Grace suffered a stroke while driving back to Monaco with her daughter Stephanie. As a result, she lost control of her Rover P6 3500, which plunged off a mountain pass. Prince Rainier and their three children were at her hospital bedside when she died aged 52 the following day.

Marc Bolan

Born Mark Feld, singer-songwriter Marc Bolan died aged 29 on 16 September 1977 in south west London. He was a passenger in a Mini 1275 GT driven by his girlfriend, Gloria Jones, when the car crashed into a tree after hitting a fence.

It's said that he always feared he would die young, which is why he never learned to drive. A glam rock icon, Bolan and his band T.Rex had 11 consecutive Top 10 hits in the UK between 1970 and 1973, including four No. 1 singles: 'Hot Love', 'Get It On', 'Telegram Sam', and 'Metal Guru'.

Princess Diana

In the early hours of 31 August 1997, Diana, Princess of Wales, died aged 36 from injuries sustained earlier that night in a car crash in the Pont de l'Alma tunnel in Paris, France. Dodi Fayed, Diana's partner, and Henri Paul, who was driving the Mercedes-Benz S-Class, died at the scene. Fayed's bodyguard, Trevor Rees-Jones, was seriously injured but survived.

Diana's death was met with extraordinary public expressions of grief. Her funeral was estimated to have been watched by 31.5 million viewers in the UK and some 2.5 billion worldwide.

Paul Walker

Fast & Furious star Paul Walker died in a car crash on 30 November 2013, in Santa Clarita, California. The 40-year-old was a passenger in a Porsche Carrera GT driven by his friend, Roger Rodas, when the vehicle crashed and burst into flames. Police said the car was travelling at 94mph in a 45mph zone when it hit a lamp post. The investigation also found the Porsche had two nine-year-old tyres.

As well as his celebrated role as Brian O'Conner in the Fast & Furious franchise, Walker is remembered for his charity work, via Reach Out Worldwide (ROWW), which he founded with Rodas in response to the 2010 Haiti earthquake.

Jayne Mansfield

One of Hollywood's original blonde bombshells in the 1950s, Jayne Mansfield was born Vera Jayne Palmer on 19 April 1933. Married three times, her successful movies include The Wayward Bus (1957), Too Hot to Handle (1960), and Promises! Promises! (1963). Mansfield was a passenger in a 1966 Buick Electra when it collided with a truck near New Orleans on 29 June 1967. The 34-year-old actress died instantly along with two other adults in the front seats. Three of her five children, who were asleep in the back, miraculously survived.