Actor Hired To Wear Donkey Kong Costume For Game Launch Sues Nintendo Over “Stressful” Experience

While getting the chance to get paid to play a beloved video game character all day might sound like a dream gig for some, one actor hired to climb into a Donkey Kong costume for the launch of a new Nintendo 3DS game is suing the company saying his time in the suit seriously stressed him out.

The actor was hired for an event at the Los Angeles Zoo last May, reports the Los Angeles Times, to dress as the eponymous primate in “Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D.”

His attorneys say that gig was from ideal, claiming the actor wasn’t allowed breaks and wasn’t given a required ice pack to cool him down in the hot California weather.

“It created a very stressful environment,” one of his attorneys said.

The lawsuit against Nintendo alleges that the company ambassador who was supposed to be in charge of the actor and oversee him on the job didn’t give the proper oversight. The actor claims he suffered an aortic dissection (a tearing of the aortic walls) as a result of the experience, and had to have surgery to get a permanent heart defibrillator implanted.

Nintendo hasn’t commented on the lawsuit yet.

Actor who wore Donkey Kong costume for L.A. Zoo event sues Nintendo [Los Angeles Times]

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