London: Mark Wahlberg has apologised for his comment that he would have carried out a Hollywood-style rescue aboard one of the hijacked September 11 aircraft.
‘The Departed’ star was scheduled to take United Airlines flight 93, which crashed in a Pennsylvania field as passengers fought to overpower four al-Qaeda hijackers who intended to use the plane to attack Washington DC.
The 40-year-old actor made the revelation in an interview.
“If I was on that plane with my kids, it wouldn’t have went down like it did,” the Telegraph quoted Wahlberg as saying.
“There would have been a lot of blood in that first-class cabin and then me saying, ‘OK, we’re going to land somewhere safely, don’t worry.’
The comment drew immediate criticism from Deena Burnett-Bailey, whose husband Tom was among a group of passengers who charged the cockpit in an attempt to retake the plane.
“The plan for Flight 93 was foiled by heroes,” she told TMZ.com.
“For him to speculate that his presence on board could have stopped everything is silly and disrespectful.
“Sounds like someone is grandstanding,” she said.
Wahlberg later issued an apology on his insensitive comment.
“I deeply apologize to the families of the victims that my answer came off as insensitive, it was certainly not my intention,” he said.
ANI