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Melissa McCarthy Talks $9,000 Jet Ski Accident on Chelsea Lately: Watch

It may be time for a stunt double! Melissa McCarthy recently got into a jet ski accident while filming her new movie Tammy—and it cost her $9,000. 

The actress, 43, stopped by Chelsea Lately this week in promotion of the comedy flick, and dished to Chelsea Handler about her trouble on the seas. 

Related: PHOTOS: Melissa McCarthy's style evolution

“We weren’t actually shooting yet, we were just doing a test,” McCarthy explained. “It’s hard to shoot on water because everything’s moving… so we did a test and I’m like, ‘Isn’t it a great idea if I’m in full wig and costume? Because if we shoot some stuff, maybe it’s usable.'”

Tammy, which also stars Susan Sarandon, Kathy Bates, and Allison Janney, among others, requires McCarthy to don an expensive strawberry-blonde wig and some less-than-fashionable duds. 

Related: PHOTOS: Summer movie preview

“I’m like, ‘I’m kind of amazing at this,’ because I’m really a couple steps ahead,” she continued. “I don’t really know how to ride a jet ski—I’ve never been on one before. The stunt coordinator is telling me, ‘give it a little more gas,’ and he said at the end, ‘really dig into the curve.'”

Melissa McCarthy on Chelsea Lately

Apparently the Gilmore Girls alum got a little too confident as she went rogue with her instructions. 

Related: PHOTOS: Melissa's Elle cover

“All I heard was ‘faster’ and ‘dig in,'” McCarthy said. “So I literally cranked it up. I’m going like 45 miles per hour, thinking, ‘Oh, god, I’m not skilled. I shouldn’t be doing this. But the camera’s getting it, so maybe it’ll look good and we’re ahead of schedule.’ I’m like, ‘Now I’ll dig in.’ And I flipped that thing at 45 miles an hour.” 

“I don’t remember ever leaving it. All of a sudden, I literally was like, ‘I’m in water,'” she added. “I didn’t know if I was up or down and I thought, ‘Holy god, I’ve got that wig on.’ We don’t have a huge budget and a wig’s like $9,000… I felt for the wig, which, by the way, had like 35 pins in it — you couldn’t rip it off my head — gone.” 

Related: PHOTOS: Melissa McCarthy's red carpet style

Some $9,000 later, McCarthy took unfounded solace in the scene making it on film. “Everybody was freaking out because I hit so hard and I was like, ‘But at least we got it!'” she said. “They’re like, ‘The cameras weren’t on!'” 

Watch McCarthy speak to Handler in the video above.

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