Thrilling and daring acts have always been an essential part of the mesmerizing world of movies. Behind the scenes, a passionate team of experts work relentlessly to ensure that these jaw-dropping feats are performed flawlessly and without any harm. However, there are some actors who prefer to seize control of their destiny, while others trust in the expertise of skilled stunt performers to make them shine. The choice to perform these daring acts personally or entrust them to others varies from person to person and can even be influenced by past injuries or embarrassing blunders.
A myriad of famous actors have fearlessly shared their thoughts on the art of stunts. Some are enthusiastic about taking on the challenge themselves, while others hold reservations, concerned that it may limit opportunities for professional stunt performers. Regardless of their stance, these actors have candidly shared their experiences with these electrifying acts, whether they have taken the plunge themselves or sought the assistance of professionals. Take a moment to delve into their unique perspectives and make sure to show some love for your favorite actors as you enjoy this thrilling journey!”
1. Danny Trejo Hates It When Actors Do Their Own Stunts
Some actors enjoy doing their own stunts, while others don’t. It’s a personal choice and the reasons behind it can vary. However, when it comes to Danny Trejo, he is very clear about why he doesn’t do his own stunts.
During a Facebook live interview with Yahoo! Movies, Trejo shared his thoughts on actors doing their own stunts:
“I know that all the big stars hate me to say this, but I don’t want to risk 80 people’s jobs just to say I got big huevos on The Tonight Show. Because that’s what happens. I think a big star just sprained an ankle doing a stunt, and 80 or 180 people are out of a job… We have stunt people who do that stuff. And if they get hurt, I’m sorry to say, but they just need to put a mustache on another Mexican, and we can keep going. But if I get hurt, everybody’s out of a job. So I don’t choose to do that.”
Trejo has always been vocal about his decision to let the stunt people handle the dangerous scenes. In a 2014 interview with Fox News, he explained, “I wouldn’t want to risk 80 people’s jobs just so I can say I have big nuts. I don’t want to say that. Norm Mora is my stunt man; that’s his profession.”
In summary, Trejo believes that the risk of injury is not worth jeopardizing the livelihoods of the many people involved in a film production. He respects the expertise and professionalism of stunt performers and prefers to let them handle the dangerous aspects of the job.
2. Ryan Reynolds Got A Prescription From A Doctor To Stop Doing His Own Stunts
Ryan Reynolds, known for his roles in action movies, used to perform his own stunts throughout most of his career. However, things have changed for him. These days, he prefers to leave the stunts to the professionals. The decision came after a serious injury he sustained while filming Safe House in 2013. In an interview with Empire, Reynolds explained his decision:
“I’ve had some bad injuries doing stunts. I broke a couple of vertebrae in my neck. It was a bad situation. I remember sitting in the doctor’s office for the umpteenth time that year, and he scribbles something on a prescription pad, tears off the note, and it says ‘Stuntman.’ That really got the point across. Now I have four different guys who accompany me for stunts. Fortunately, nothing nerve-wracking happened during the filming of The Hitman’s Bodyguard.”
3. Brendan Fraser Traded Doing His Own Stunts For Tape, Ice, And Years Of Pain
In the 1990s and early 2000s, Brenden Fraser was a highly sought-after actor in Hollywood. He gained immense popularity as the star of The Mummy franchise and many other projects. However, he gradually faded from the spotlight for a number of years. One of the main reasons for this decline was the toll that filming action sequences took on his body.
During a conversation with GQ, Fraser opened up about his life and the challenges he faced in the early 2000s. He revealed, “By the time I filmed the third Mummy movie in China, my body was held together with tape and ice. I became quite obsessive about using ice packs. I would even wear downhill-mountain-biking pads under my clothes. It was like I was building an exoskeleton for myself every day.”
To recover from the accumulated injuries, Fraser required extensive medical treatment, including a laminectomy. He explained, “I needed a laminectomy. Unfortunately, the procedure didn’t bring the desired results, so I had to undergo it again a year later.” In addition to this, he also had to undergo a partial knee replacement and manage issues with his vertebrae. To add to the list, his vocal cords needed repair. It was definitely a challenging time for him.
Overall, Fraser’s journey in the early 2000s was marked by the physical toll of his work on his body. He faced numerous health issues and underwent multiple procedures to recover. It’s clear that he went through a difficult period, but he has since made a comeback and continues to be celebrated for his talent and contributions to the entertainment industry.
4. Keanu Reeves Refuses To Say He Does Stunts, Claiming He Does ‘Action’ Instead
Keanu Reeves is well-known for his roles in action films throughout his career. He started with movies like Speed and Point Break, and then gained fame as a genre icon with the Matrix and John Wick franchises. To accurately portray his characters, Reeves has taken the time to learn how to fight, shoot, and move. However, when asked if he does his own stunts, his response might surprise you.
During an appearance on the Smartless podcast, Reeves explained his perspective, stating, “I do action. It’s a big difference.” According to him, getting hit by a car is a stunt that requires the expertise of a professional, but engaging in a fight with a villain is considered “action” rather than stuntwork. When further questioned about how he continues to make action films, Reeves shared his thoughts:
“That’s the joy of it. It’s not easy, man. But if you have the ability to do it, if you have the determination to climb that mountain, who really cares how hard it is? Hard, schmard! Whatever, let’s go!”
5. Jackie Chan Nearly Perished Due To His Perfectionist Nature
If you’re a fan of Jackie Chan, you probably know that he takes his movie-making very seriously. Not only is he an amazing actor and martial artist, but he’s also one of the best stunt performers in the world. For decades, Chan has been doing all his own stunts, which is quite impressive. However, it can also be quite risky.
In many of his films, Chan includes bloopers during the credits, showing moments where he got injured. But out of all the stunts he’s done, the most dangerous one happened when he was 32 years old, while filming “Armour of God” in 1986. This stunt was so risky that it almost cost him his life, and he did it more than once.
The first take went perfectly fine, but Chan, being the perfectionist that he is, wanted to do it again. During his second attempt at jumping onto a tree from a ledge, disaster struck. He grabbed onto a branch that snapped, causing him to crash onto his back with his head hitting a rock. In an interview with Role Recall, Chan explained what happened.
According to Chan, the first take “wasn’t fast enough… I wanted to swing like a monkey.” So, he decided to give it another shot. Unfortunately, this time he came crashing down and his whole body went numb. He even admitted that he “almost died.” Thankfully, the medics were quick to respond and rushed him to the hospital, where emergency surgery saved his life.
6. Chris Pine Was Happy To Not Do Any Action Scenes For ‘Dungeons & Dragons’
Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves was released in early 2023 and received widespread critical acclaim, which is a significant achievement considering the previous adaptations of the fantasy role-playing game did not quite capture the public’s imagination as fans had hoped.
The film boasts an impressive all-star cast, with Chris Pine taking on the role of Edgin Darvis. Throughout the movie, Pine can be seen engaging in various physical activities such as running, jumping, and fighting. However, in reality, Pine himself did not perform any of the stunts. During a conversation with Pinkvilla at the film’s premiere, Pine revealed that he preferred to leave the stuntwork to the professionals:
“In this film, I didn’t do any stunts. None at all. I had no action scenes. All I did was run. Just ran away from things. Meanwhile, all these poor guys had to undergo intense martial arts training on weekends, while I was simply taking leisurely walks on the beach. I spent my time reading and catching up on Netflix. It was a great experience for me.
7. Joseph Gordon-Levitt Hates It When Actors Pretend They Do All The Stunts
Joseph Gordon-Levitt has been acting since he was a kid and has starred in numerous action movies throughout his career. Despite taking his work seriously and putting his body through intense training, he rarely does his own stunts. In fact, during the filming of Premium Rush, he suffered an injury that required 30 stitches.
In a candid conversation with Vanity Fair, Levitt discussed the physical toll his preparation for the movie took on his body. He mentioned waking up sore every day but emphasized that it was all part of the job and that he found it fun. As he put in the effort, he gradually got into shape and was able to perform the required actions throughout the day. However, he made it clear that he wasn’t the one doing the stunts:
“Let’s be clear: I didn’t do my own stunts in this movie. I don’t like it when actors say that they did their own stunts. I rode the bike all day, every day, but there’s me and four other guys who all had different specialties on the bike. One of them is a real bike messenger, one of them is a Hollywood stuntman, one’s good at tricks on a trials bike, and one’s good at tricks on a fixed-gear track bike. And they’re all in the movie, and they’re all brilliant. And you know, the thrills in Premium Rush don’t come from big C.G. sequences. They come from watching these really talented, skilled athletes do crazy things on two wheels.”
It’s evident that Levitt acknowledges and appreciates the expertise of the stunt performers involved in the film. He believes that the excitement and adrenaline rush audiences experience while watching Premium Rush come from witnessing the incredible feats performed by these skilled athletes on their bikes, rather than relying on computer-generated effects.
8. Burt Reynolds Called One Of His Stunts A ‘Dumb Macho Thing To Do’
Burt Reynolds, known for his daredevil stunts, fearlessly risked life and limb to capture the perfect shots throughout his career. One particular scene stands out as extremely perilous, which Reynolds himself described as a “dumb macho thing to do” in a conversation with Business Insider.
During the filming of Deliverance, I went over the falls and unfortunately hit a rock, resulting in a cracked tailbone. Prior to the mishap, I boasted about being a fit 31-year-old. Once I went over, they couldn’t locate me. The stuntman had given me advice, saying that if I got stuck in the hydrofoil, I should head to the bottom and it would shoot me out. However, he failed to mention that it would feel like being shot out of a torpedo. I emerged from the river about a mile away, completely naked. The force of the falls had ripped off my clothes, shoes, and socks. It was quite a terrifying stunt.
Despite the injuries he sustained during the filming of Deliverance, Reynolds holds great admiration for actors who take on similar risks. He commends Tom Cruise, acknowledging him as someone who is “very brave with the stuff that he does.” Nevertheless, Reynolds admitted to Business Insider that he regrets not allowing his longtime stuntman, Hal Needham, to take on more of the dangerous tasks.
Whenever I find myself shivering in the cold and struggling to move, I can’t help but wonder why I didn’t let Hal make some money while I took a break. But, as they say, hindsight is 20/20, and it’s impossible to turn back time.
9. Joe Pesci Sustained ‘Serious Burns’ While Shooting ‘Home Alone’
Home Alone is about a young guy who gets left behind when his family goes on a Christmas trip. He spends his time setting up traps to catch a pair of burglars and puts them through a crazy obstacle course full of danger. If you’ve seen the movie, you’ve probably wondered how they survived all of that!
The stunts in the movie were pretty intense. The actors and their stunt doubles had to throw themselves around and take a lot of punishment. Joe Pesci, who played Harry, got seriously burned when a rigged flamethrower set his head on fire. He talked about this in an interview with People for the film’s 30th anniversary:
“I got some serious burns on the top of my head when Harry’s hat was set on fire. It was definitely not fun, but I have to give credit to the stunt performers who did most of the hard work. They were professionals and made the really dangerous stunts look easy. Doing this kind of physical comedy was a nice change of pace for me. The Home Alone movies were more physically demanding, but it was all worth it in the end.
10. Chris Pratt Admits The Stunt People Are ‘Way Better’ Than He Is
Chris Pratt, known for his adventurous spirit, often takes on his own stunts when possible, including during the filming of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. In a recent appearance on Late Night with Seth Meyers, Pratt shared some insights into the filming process and discussed the stuntwork involved. According to Pratt, they were suspended from wires and performed a variety of stunts.
When Meyers asked about the outcome of these stunts, Pratt candidly admitted that not everything went smoothly. In fact, he confessed, “Yeah, no. I got my bell rung pretty good one time. I got essentially knocked out.” Though he didn’t go into further detail about the incident, Pratt did acknowledge the inherent risks associated with stuntwork.
Despite the potential dangers, Pratt expressed his intention to continue doing his own stunts for now. However, he also recognizes that he won’t be able to do so indefinitely. Reflecting on this reality, Pratt remarked, “I am getting to that point now… where it’s like you gotta stop doing that because stunt people are way better than me at it.”
11. Margot Robbie Claims Filming Stunts Made Her Body Think It Was In A ‘War Zone’
Margot Robbie is no stranger to doing her own stunts, and she’s certainly pushed her body to its limits. In order to prepare for her role in Suicide Squad, she underwent intense training to be able to hold her breath underwater for an impressive five minutes. It was all for just one scene, but that’s the level of dedication she brings to her work.
Playing the iconic character Harley Quinn has brought about a whole new set of challenges for Robbie. The action sequences she’s had to tackle have taken a toll on her physically. In an interview with British Vogue, she opened up about just how much it affects her body.
With explosions and guns firing off, even though they may be blanks, Robbie’s body reacts as if it’s the real deal. Her adrenaline shoots through the roof, making it hard for her to unwind and get a good night’s sleep. As she puts it, her body feels like it’s been in a war zone.
