Stunt
Encyclopedia
Theatre
Theatre is a collaborative form of fine art that uses live performers to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place. The performers may communicate this experience to the audience through combinations of gesture, speech, song, music or dance...
, or cinema
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
. Stunts are a big part of many action film
Action film
Action film is a film genre where one or more heroes is thrust into a series of challenges that require physical feats, extended fights and frenetic chases...
s.
Before computer generated imagery special effect
Special effect
The illusions used in the film, television, theatre, or entertainment industries to simulate the imagined events in a story are traditionally called special effects ....
s, these effects were limited to the use of models, false perspective and other in-camera effects, unless the creator could find someone willing to jump from car to car or hang from the edge of a skyscraper
Skyscraper
A skyscraper is a tall, continuously habitable building of many stories, often designed for office and commercial use. There is no official definition or height above which a building may be classified as a skyscraper...
: the stunt performer
Stunt performer
A stuntman, or daredevil is someone who performs dangerous stunts, often as a career.These stunts are sometimes rigged so that they look dangerous while still having safety mechanisms, but often they are as dangerous as they appear to be...
or stunt double
Stunt double
A stunt double is a type of body double, specifically a skilled replacement used for dangerous film or video sequences, in movies and television , and for other sophisticated stunts...
.
Practical effects
One of the most-frequently used practical stunts is stage combatStage combat
Stage combat is a specialized technique in theatre designed to create the illusion of physical combat without causing harm to the performers. It is employed in live stage plays as well as operatic and ballet productions. The term is also used informally to describe fight choreography for other...
. Although contact is normally avoided, many elements of stage combat, such as sword fighting, martial arts
Martial arts
Martial arts are extensive systems of codified practices and traditions of combat, practiced for a variety of reasons, including self-defense, competition, physical health and fitness, as well as mental and spiritual development....
, and acrobatics
Acrobatics
Acrobatics is the performance of extraordinary feats of balance, agility and motor coordination. It can be found in many of the performing arts, as well as many sports...
required contact between performers in order to facilitate the creation of a particular effect, such as noise or physical interaction.
Stunt performances are highly choreographed and may be rigorously rehearsed for hours, days and sometimes weeks before a performance. Seasoned professionals will commonly treat a performance as if they have never done it before, since the risks in stunt work are high, every move and position must be correct to reduce risk of injury from accidents.
Examples
- Tripping and falling down
- High jump
- Extreme sports
- Acrobatics
- High diving
- HK spin, Gainer falls, suicide backflips and other martial artsMartial artsMartial arts are extensive systems of codified practices and traditions of combat, practiced for a variety of reasons, including self-defense, competition, physical health and fitness, as well as mental and spiritual development....
stunts seen in martial arts filmMartial arts filmMartial arts film is a film genre. A sub-genre of the action film, martial arts films contain numerous fights between characters, usually as the films' primary appeal and entertainment value, and often as a method of storytelling and character expression and development. Martial arts are frequently...
s
Mechanical effects
A physical stunt is usually performed with help of mechanics.For example, if the plot requires the hero to jump to a high place, the film crew could put the actor in a special harness, and use aircraft high tension wire to pull him up. Piano wire is sometimes used to fly objects, but an actor is never suspended from it as it is brittle and can break under shock impacts. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is a 2000 wuxia film. An American-Chinese-Hong Kong-Taiwanese co-production, the film was directed by Ang Lee and featured an international cast of ethnic Chinese actors, including Chow Yun-Fat, Michelle Yeoh, Zhang Ziyi, and Chang Chen...
(2000) is a kung-fu film that was heavily reliant on wire stunts
Wire fu
Wire fu is an element of Hong Kong action cinema. It is a combination of two terms: "wire work" and "kung fu". Wire fu is used to describe a sub-genre of Kung-Fu movies where the stuntmen's skill is augmented with the use of wires and pulleys, as well as other techniques, in many cases to perform...
.
Vehicular stunts
Performers of vehicular stunts require extensive training and may employ specially adapted vehicles. Stunts can be as simple as a hand brakeHand brake
In cars, the hand brake is a latching brake usually used to keep the car stationary, and in manual transmission vehicles, as an aid to starting the vehicle from stopped when going up an incline - with one foot on the clutch , the other on the accelerator In cars, the hand brake (emergency brake,...
turn, also known as the bootleg turn
Bootleg turn
A bootleg turn is a radical driving maneuver intended to reverse the direction of travel of a forward-moving automobile by 180 degrees in a minimum amount of time while staying within the width of a two-lane road...
, or as advanced as car chases, jumps and crashes involving dozens of vehicles. Rémy Julienne
Rémy Julienne
Rémy Julienne is a pioneering French driving stunt performer, stunt coordinator, assistant director and occasional actor. He is also a former rallycross champion and 1956 French motorcross champion.He is a veteran of over 1,400 films...
is a well known pioneering automotive stunt performer and coordinator.
Another well known vehicular stunt specialist is Englishman Ian Walton, who was the helicopter stunt pilot and stunt designer for many 1980s films, notably the Bond
James Bond
James Bond, code name 007, is a fictional character created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short story collections. There have been a six other authors who wrote authorised Bond novels or novelizations after Fleming's death in 1964: Kingsley Amis,...
film Never Say Never Again
Never Say Never Again
Never Say Never Again is a 1983 spy film based on the James Bond novel Thunderball, which was previously filmed in 1965 as Thunderball...
.
Streetbike stunts, also known as "stunting" gained wide spread popularity in the early 2000s and continues to grow. It is based on wheelies but now goes much further than that.
Computer generated effects
In the late 20th century stunt men were placed in dangerous situations less and less as filmmakers turned to relatively inexpensive (and much safer) computer graphicsComputer graphics
Computer graphics are graphics created using computers and, more generally, the representation and manipulation of image data by a computer with help from specialized software and hardware....
effects using harnesses, fans, blue- or green screens, and a huge array of other devices and digital effects. The Matrix
The Matrix
The Matrix is a 1999 science fiction-action film written and directed by Larry and Andy Wachowski, starring Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, Carrie-Anne Moss, Joe Pantoliano, and Hugo Weaving...
(1999) is an example for a film that extensively "enhanced" real stunts through CGI post production. The Lord of the Rings film series and the Star Wars
Star Wars
Star Wars is an American epic space opera film series created by George Lucas. The first film in the series was originally released on May 25, 1977, under the title Star Wars, by 20th Century Fox, and became a worldwide pop culture phenomenon, followed by two sequels, released at three-year...
prequel films often display stunts that are entirely computer generated.
Stars who do stunts
In the early days of cinemaFilm
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
, some actors such as Buster Keaton
Buster Keaton
Joseph Frank "Buster" Keaton was an American comic actor, filmmaker, producer and writer. He was best known for his silent films, in which his trademark was physical comedy with a consistently stoic, deadpan expression, earning him the nickname "The Great Stone Face".Keaton was recognized as the...
and Charlie Chaplin
Charlie Chaplin
Sir Charles Spencer "Charlie" Chaplin, KBE was an English comic actor, film director and composer best known for his work during the silent film era. He became the most famous film star in the world before the end of World War I...
did most of their own physical stunts. However, as these performances were usually very dangerous and many film stars were not so athletic, filmmakers and insurance
Insurance
In law and economics, insurance is a form of risk management primarily used to hedge against the risk of a contingent, uncertain loss. Insurance is defined as the equitable transfer of the risk of a loss, from one entity to another, in exchange for payment. An insurer is a company selling the...
companies turned to hiring stunt double
Stunt double
A stunt double is a type of body double, specifically a skilled replacement used for dangerous film or video sequences, in movies and television , and for other sophisticated stunts...
s to do them.
Most western film actors today use stunt doubles, though some of them do a few of their own stunts to please film fans. In Asian cinema
Asian cinema
Asian cinema refers to the film industries and films produced in the continent of Asia, and is also sometimes known as Eastern cinema. More commonly however, it is used to refer to the cinema of Eastern, Southeastern and Southern Asia. West Asian cinema is sometimes classified as part of Middle...
, particularly in China, acting, singing and acrobatics are traditionally combined, e.g. in Chinese opera
Chinese opera
Chinese opera is a popular form of drama and musical theatre in China with roots going back as far as the third century CE...
. Thus, traditionally trained Asian actors receive a far more physical education as their western colleagues. One famous example is the Hong Kong action film
Hong Kong action cinema
Hong Kong action cinema is the principal source of the Hong Kong film industry's global fame. It combines elements from the action film, as codified by Hollywood, with Chinese storytelling and aesthetic traditions, to create a culturally distinctive form that nevertheless has a wide transcultural...
star Jackie Chan
Jackie Chan
Jackie Chan, SBS, MBE is a Hong Kong actor, action choreographer, comedian, director, producer, martial artist, screenwriter, entrepreneur, singer and stunt performer. In his movies, he is known for his acrobatic fighting style, comic timing, use of improvised weapons, and innovative stunts...
, who, as of yet, has performed all of his stunts himself. Other Hong Kong action
Hong Kong action cinema
Hong Kong action cinema is the principal source of the Hong Kong film industry's global fame. It combines elements from the action film, as codified by Hollywood, with Chinese storytelling and aesthetic traditions, to create a culturally distinctive form that nevertheless has a wide transcultural...
stars such as Chan`s former classmates from traditional opera school, Sammo Hung
Sammo Hung
Sammo Hung is a Hong Kong actor, martial artist, film producer and director, known for his work in many martial arts films and Hong Kong action cinema...
, Yuen Biao
Yuen Biao
Yuen Biao is a Hong Kong actor, martial artist. He specialises in acrobatics and Chinese martial arts and has worked on over 80 films as actor, stuntman and action choreographer...
, and Donnie Yen
Donnie Yen
Donnie Yen is a Hong Kong actor, martial artist, film director and producer, action choreographer, and world wushu tournament medalist...
also perform their own stunts. In Thailand, Tony Jaa
Tony Jaa
Tatchakorn Yeerum , formerly Panom Yeerum , better known in the West as Tony Jaa, in Thailand as Jaa Panom, is a Thai martial artist, actor, choreographer, stuntman, director, and monk...
, an actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
who is highly skilled in martial arts, also does all his stunts without assistance. In Indonesia, Iko Uwais
Iko Uwais
-Early life:Born in Jakarta, Indonesia on February 12, 1983, Uwais Qorny is of the Betawi descent. He has been learning Indonesian traditional martial art, Pencak Silat, since he was 10 years old at his uncle's Silat school, Tiga Berantai, which uses the distinctive Betawi style of Silat. In...
performed his own stunts in Merantau
Merantau (film)
Merantau is an Indonesian martial arts film released on August 6, 2009, produced by Merantau Films, directed and written by Gareth H. Evans, and starring Iko Uwais...
. In India, action star Jayan
Jayan
Krishnan Nair , better known by his stage name Jayan , was an Indian film actor, former sailor, stunt performer and 1970s style icon. He worked in Malayalam cinema, a sector of the Indian movie industry...
did all his high risk physical stunts without stunt doubles, but he was killed in a helicopter crash while doing a stunt for a film in 1980. The Indian action film star Akshay Kumar
Akshay Kumar
Akshay Kumar is an Indian film actor, producer and martial artist who has appeared in over a hundred Hindi films. When he began his acting career in the 1990s, he primarily starred in action films and was particularly known for his appearances in feature films commonly called the "Khiladi series",...
performs all of his own stunts, while Hrithik Roshan
Hrithik Roshan
Hrithik Roshan is an Indian actor who appears in Bollywood films.After having appeared in films as a child actor in the 1980s, Roshan made his film debut in a leading role in Kaho Naa... Pyaar Hai for which Roshan earned his Filmfare Awards for Best Actor and Best Male Debut...
also did his own stunts for the films Krrish
Krrish
Krrish is a 2006 Indian superhero science-fiction film The film was directed, produced, and written by Rakesh Roshan, while the screenplay was written by Robin Bhatt, Sachin Bhowmick, Honey Irani, Akarsh Khurana, and Sanjay Masoom. The film is a sequel to Koi.....
and Dhoom 2
Dhoom 2
Dhoom 2: Back In Action is a 2006 Bollywood action film directed by Sanjay Gadhvi and produced by Aditya Chopra and Yash Chopra at an estimated budget of Rs 350 million. It is the second film in the Dhoom series. Abhishek Bachchan and Uday Chopra star in the film as buddy cops Jai Dixit and Ali,...
.
Notable among professional Hollywood stuntmen were Yakima Canutt
Yakima Canutt
Yakima Canutt , also known as Yak Canutt, was an American rodeo rider, actor, stuntman and action director.-Biography:...
(1895–1986) and Dar Robinson
Dar Robinson
Dar Allen Robinson was an American stunt performer and actor. Robinson broke 19 world records and set 21 "world's firsts." He invented the decelerator which allowed a cameraman to film a top-down view of the stuntman as he fell without accidentally...
(1947–1986). In his films, Tom Cruise
Tom Cruise
Thomas Cruise Mapother IV , better known as Tom Cruise, is an American film actor and producer. He has been nominated for three Academy Awards and he has won three Golden Globe Awards....
performs many of his own stunts without doubles, including the Mission: Impossible
Mission: Impossible
Mission: Impossible is an American television series which was created and initially produced by Bruce Geller. It chronicled the missions of a team of secret American government agents known as the Impossible Missions Force . The leader of the team was Jim Phelps, played by Peter Graves, except in...
Trilogy and Minority Report
Minority Report (film)
Minority Report is a 2002 American neo-noir science fiction film directed by Steven Spielberg and loosely based on the short story "The Minority Report" by Philip K. Dick. It is set primarily in Washington, D.C...
. In The Lord of the Rings
The Lord of the Rings film trilogy
The Lord of the Rings is an epic film trilogy consisting of three fantasy adventure films based on the three-volume book of the same name by English author J. R. R. Tolkien. The films are The Fellowship of the Ring , The Two Towers and The Return of the King .The films were directed by Peter...
, Viggo Mortenson as Aragorn
Aragorn
Aragorn II is a fictional character from J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium, one of the main protagonists of The Lord of the Rings. He is first introduced by the name Strider, which the hobbits continue to call him...
performed all of his own stunts, including swordplay, insisting it would look more authentic, and sustained several injuries as a result.
Notable film stunts
- Safety Last
Silent comedian Harold Lloyd
Harold Lloyd
Harold Clayton Lloyd, Sr. was an American film actor and producer, most famous for his silent comedies....
climbed the entire height of a Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
skyscraper without wires or nets. Harvey Parry Lloyd's stunt double dangled from a broken clock face on the topmost floor above moving traffic
- Steamboat Bill, Jr.
The front of a house fell down with Buster Keaton
Buster Keaton
Joseph Frank "Buster" Keaton was an American comic actor, filmmaker, producer and writer. He was best known for his silent films, in which his trademark was physical comedy with a consistently stoic, deadpan expression, earning him the nickname "The Great Stone Face".Keaton was recognized as the...
standing in the exact position of an open window, leaving him unharmed. His stone-faced expression remained unchanged.
- Stagecoach (1939)
Yakima Canutt
Yakima Canutt
Yakima Canutt , also known as Yak Canutt, was an American rodeo rider, actor, stuntman and action director.-Biography:...
dropped between the horses of a moving stagecoach, allowed the vehicle to run over him, then climbed on the back to attack the driver. He originated this stunt a couple years earlier, but this is its most famous performance.
- Ben-HurBen-Hur (1959 film)Ben-Hur is a 1959 American epic film directed by William Wyler and starring Charlton Heston in the title role, the third film adaptation of Lew Wallace's 1880 novel Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ. The screenplay was written by Karl Tunberg, Gore Vidal, and Christopher Fry. The score was composed by...
Joe Canutt, son of famed stuntman Yakima Canutt
Yakima Canutt
Yakima Canutt , also known as Yak Canutt, was an American rodeo rider, actor, stuntman and action director.-Biography:...
, doubled as Judah Ben-Hur when he rides his chariot
Chariot
The chariot is a type of horse carriage used in both peace and war as the chief vehicle of many ancient peoples. Ox carts, proto-chariots, were built by the Proto-Indo-Europeans and also built in Mesopotamia as early as 3000 BC. The original horse chariot was a fast, light, open, two wheeled...
over the wreck of a competitor. He was launched over the front of his chariot and barely managed to hang on to the front as he climbed back up.
- The Great EscapeThe Great Escape (film)The Great Escape is a 1963 American film about an escape by Allied prisoners of war from a German POW camp during World War II, starring Steve McQueen, James Garner, and Richard Attenborough...
Pursued by Germans, Bud Ekins
Bud Ekins
Bud Ekins was one of the foremost stuntmen of his generation. Born James Sherwin Ekins in Hollywood, California, he is known to most as the actor who jumped the fence on a disguised Triumph TR6 Trophy 650cc motorcycle in The Great Escape, and who drove the Ford Mustang 390 GT in Bullitt...
as Capt. Virgil “The Cooler King” Hilts jumped his motorcycle
Motorcycle
A motorcycle is a single-track, two-wheeled motor vehicle. Motorcycles vary considerably depending on the task for which they are designed, such as long distance travel, navigating congested urban traffic, cruising, sport and racing, or off-road conditions.Motorcycles are one of the most...
60 feet (18 m) over a barbed-wire fence.
- Butch Cassidy and the Sundance KidButch Cassidy and the Sundance KidButch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid is a 1969 American Western film directed by George Roy Hill and written by William Goldman...
Trapped by a posse, Butch and Sundance leaped off a cliff into raging waters knowing that the "fall will probably kill [them]". Mickey Gilbert doubled for Robert Redford
Robert Redford
Charles Robert Redford, Jr. , better known as Robert Redford, is an American actor, film director, producer, businessman, environmentalist, philanthropist, and founder of the Sundance Film Festival. He has received two Oscars: one in 1981 for directing Ordinary People, and one for Lifetime...
and Howard Curtis for Paul Newman
Paul Newman
Paul Leonard Newman was an American actor, film director, entrepreneur, humanitarian, professional racing driver and auto racing enthusiast...
.
- PapillonPapillon (film)Papillon is a 1973 film based on the best-selling novel by the French convict Henri Charrière.This motion picture was directed by Franklin J. Schaffner, starring Steve McQueen as Henri Charrière , and Dustin Hoffman as Louis Dega...
Papillon makes his final bid for freedom by leaping from a cliff into the sea. Dar Robinson
Dar Robinson
Dar Allen Robinson was an American stunt performer and actor. Robinson broke 19 world records and set 21 "world's firsts." He invented the decelerator which allowed a cameraman to film a top-down view of the stuntman as he fell without accidentally...
doubled for Steve McQueen, his first major stunt in a Hollywood film.
- Live and Let DieLive and Let Die (film)Live and Let Die is the eighth spy film in the James Bond series, and the first to star Roger Moore as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond. The film was produced by Albert R. Broccoli and Harry Saltzman...
Ross Kananga as James Bond
James Bond
James Bond, code name 007, is a fictional character created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short story collections. There have been a six other authors who wrote authorised Bond novels or novelizations after Fleming's death in 1964: Kingsley Amis,...
used four crocodile
Crocodile
A crocodile is any species belonging to the family Crocodylidae . The term can also be used more loosely to include all extant members of the order Crocodilia: i.e...
s as stepping stones to reach safety on the other side. Kananga, who owned the crocodile farm seen in the film, and after whom the main villain is named, did the stunt five times wearing the same crocodile skin shoes as his character had chosen to wear. During the fourth attempt, the last crocodile bit through the shoe and into his foot. The fifth attempt is one seen on film, with the tied-down crocodiles snapping at his feet as he passed over them.
- Live and Let DieLive and Let Die (film)Live and Let Die is the eighth spy film in the James Bond series, and the first to star Roger Moore as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond. The film was produced by Albert R. Broccoli and Harry Saltzman...
In the same film, Jerry Comeaux as James Bond
James Bond
James Bond, code name 007, is a fictional character created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short story collections. There have been a six other authors who wrote authorised Bond novels or novelizations after Fleming's death in 1964: Kingsley Amis,...
jumped his speedboat 70 feet (21 m) over a police car, a record that lasted for 15 years.
- The Man with the Golden GunThe Man with the Golden Gun (film)The Man with the Golden Gun is the ninth spy film in the James Bond series and the second to star Roger Moore as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond...
"Bumps" Willard as James Bond
James Bond
James Bond, code name 007, is a fictional character created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short story collections. There have been a six other authors who wrote authorised Bond novels or novelizations after Fleming's death in 1964: Kingsley Amis,...
driving a AMC Hornet
AMC Hornet
The AMC Hornet was a compact automobile made by the American Motors Corporation in one generation beginning with the 1970 model year and continuing through the 1977 model year. The Hornet replaced the compact Rambler American marking the end of the Rambler marque in the American and Canadian markets...
leaped a broken bridge and spun around 360 degrees in mid-air, doing an "aerial twist". Willard was paid £30,000 for the stunt, which was held under Eon Productions
EON Productions
Eon Productions is a film production company known for producing the James Bond film series. The company is based in London's Piccadilly and also operates from Pinewood Studios in the United Kingdom...
copyright
Copyright
Copyright is a legal concept, enacted by most governments, giving the creator of an original work exclusive rights to it, usually for a limited time...
for several years afterwards. He successfully completed the jump on the first take.
- The Man Who Would Be KingThe Man Who Would Be King (film)The Man Who Would Be King is a 1975 film adapted from the Rudyard Kipling short story of the same title. It was adapted and directed by John Huston and starred Sean Connery, Michael Caine, Saeed Jaffrey, and Christopher Plummer as Kipling .The film follows two rogue ex-non-commissioned officers of...
A major character dies when the rope bridge he is standing on is cut. British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
stuntman
Stunt double
A stunt double is a type of body double, specifically a skilled replacement used for dangerous film or video sequences, in movies and television , and for other sophisticated stunts...
Joe Powell volunteered for the stunt after the rest of the stuntmen refused. He fell 80 feet (24 m) onto cardboard boxes balanced on the edge of a ravine. If he had missed the boxes, no safety wire or parachute would have stopped him falling to the bottom of the ravine. The stunt was made more dangerous because the rope bridge caused Powell to spin as he fell.
- The Spy Who Loved MeThe Spy Who Loved Me (film)The Spy Who Loved Me is a spy film, the tenth film in the James Bond series, and the third to star Roger Moore as the fictional secret agent James Bond. It was directed by Lewis Gilbert and the screenplay was written by Christopher Wood and Richard Maibaum...
Rick Sylvester
Rick Sylvester
Rick Sylvester is a Hollywood stuntman, most famous for his BASE jump using skis and a Union Flag parachute from Canada's Mount Asgard for the James Bond movie The Spy Who Loved Me in July 1976. In 1973, he skied off the top of El Capitan and descended approximately 914 metres by parachute. This...
, playing James Bond, escaped the bad guys by skiing
Skiing
Skiing is a recreational activity using skis as equipment for traveling over snow. Skis are used in conjunction with boots that connect to the ski with use of a binding....
off a cliff on Mount Asgard
Mount Asgard
Mount Asgard is a twin peaked mountain with two flat-topped cylindrical rock towers, separated by a saddle. It is located in Auyuittuq National Park, on the Cumberland Peninsula of Baffin Island, Nunavut, Canada. The peak is named after Asgard, the realm of the gods in Norse mythology...
then releasing a parachute. Sylvester waited two weeks for the weather atop Mount Asgard to change. Finally he had a 15 minute window to make the jump. Five cameras were meant to record the stunt, but only the master shot worked. Sylvester was allegedly paid US$100,000 for the stunt. As he fell, one of his skis hit the parachute on its way down.
- MoonrakerMoonrakerMoonraker is the third novel by British author Ian Fleming featuring the fictional British Secret Service agent Commander James Bond. The book was first published by Jonathan Cape on 5 April 1955, bearing a cover based on Fleming's own concept...
The initial freefall stunt sequence was done with the stuntmen's clothing modified with special breakaway patches to conceal lightweight parachutes.
- HooperHooper (film)Hooper is a 1978 action-comedy motion picture starring Burt Reynolds, based loosely on the experiences of director Hal Needham, a one-time stuntman in his own right...
A.J. Bakunas as Hollywood stuntman Hooper, leaped from a helicopter onto an airbag 232 feet (71 m) below, a record that endures to this day.
- Highpoint
The hero fights the villain atop the world's then tallest freestanding structure, Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
's CN Tower
CN Tower
The CN Tower is a communications and observation tower in Downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Standing tall, it was completed in 1976, becoming the world's tallest free-standing structure and world's tallest tower at the time. It held both records for 34 years until the completion of the Burj...
, and the villain loses. Doubling the villain was Dar Robinson who opened his parachute just 300 feet (91 m) from the ground after a fall lasting six seconds. Robinson was paid US$100,000 (£61,862.04).
- Chandrahasam (Moonsword)
In this Indian action film, action star Jayan
Jayan
Krishnan Nair , better known by his stage name Jayan , was an Indian film actor, former sailor, stunt performer and 1970s style icon. He worked in Malayalam cinema, a sector of the Indian movie industry...
hangs on to a ship crane and is elevated to a height of around 200 feet.
- Conan the Barbarian
Corrie Jansen leaped 182 feet (55 m) from a cliff, a record freefall for a woman.
- Raiders of the Lost ArkRaiders of the Lost ArkRaiders of the Lost Ark is a 1981 American action-adventure film directed by Steven Spielberg, produced by George Lucas, and starring Harrison Ford. It is the first film in the Indiana Jones franchise...
Indiana Jones
Indiana Jones
Colonel Henry Walton "Indiana" Jones, Jr., Ph.D. is a fictional character and the protagonist of the Indiana Jones franchise. George Lucas and Steven Spielberg created the character in homage to the action heroes of 1930s film serials...
climbs underneath a moving truck and is dragged along behind it before climbing back on board. The stunt was performed by Terry Leonard. Leonard agreed to do the stunt only if his good friend, stuntman Glenn H. Randall Jr., was driving the truck.
- Smokey and the Bandit IISmokey and the Bandit IISmokey and the Bandit II is a comedy film released on August 15, 1980 in the United States. It is the sequel to the 1977 film Smokey and the Bandit. The film stars Burt Reynolds, Sally Field, Jerry Reed, Jackie Gleason, and Dom DeLuise...
The Bandit leaps his Pontiac Trans-Am motorcar from the back of trailer, setting a record that has not been broken.
- Sharky's MachineSharky's Machine (film)Sharky's Machine is a 1981 motion picture directed by Burt Reynolds, who stars in the title role. The movie is an adaptation of William Diehl's first novel Sharky's Machine , with a screenplay by Gerald Di Pego....
Sharky (Burt Reynolds
Burt Reynolds
Burton Leon "Burt" Reynolds, Jr. is an American actor. Some of his memorable roles include Bo 'Bandit' Darville in Smokey and the Bandit, Lewis Medlock in Deliverance, Bobby "Gator" McCluskey in White Lightning and sequel Gator, Paul Crewe and Coach Nate Scarborough in The Longest Yard and its...
) shoots the villain, who then falls back through the window of the Hyatt Regency Atlanta
Hyatt Regency Atlanta
The Hyatt Regency Atlanta, located on Peachtree Street in downtown Atlanta, Georgia, is an award winning hotel which opened in 1967. The John C. Portman, Jr. designed building was the first hotel constructed around an atrium, and has influenced hotel design since...
. To achieve the effect, stuntman Dar Robinson
Dar Robinson
Dar Allen Robinson was an American stunt performer and actor. Robinson broke 19 world records and set 21 "world's firsts." He invented the decelerator which allowed a cameraman to film a top-down view of the stuntman as he fell without accidentally...
ran at the window, then at the last moment, spun around to go backwards through the glass and land on an airbag
Airbag
An Airbag is a vehicle safety device. It is an occupant restraint consisting of a flexible envelope designed to inflate rapidly during an automobile collision, to prevent occupants from striking interior objects such as the steering wheel or a window...
. It is the highest freefall (220 feet (67 m)) from a building without a cable or parachute.
- Blue ThunderBlue ThunderBlue Thunder is a 1983 feature film that features a high-tech helicopter of the same name. The movie was directed by John Badham and stars Roy Scheider...
Renegade cop Roy Scheider
Roy Scheider
Roy Richard Scheider was an American actor. He was best known for his leading role as police chief Martin C...
, flying the state-of the-art “Blue Thunder” helicopter
Helicopter
A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by one or more engine-driven rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forwards, backwards, and laterally...
, is chased by a police helicopter down storm drain
Storm drain
A storm drain, storm sewer , stormwater drain or drainage well system or simply a drain or drain system is designed to drain excess rain and ground water from paved streets, parking lots, sidewalks, and roofs. Storm drains vary in design from small residential dry wells to large municipal systems...
s in Los Angeles, weaving between bridge supports until his pursuer eventually crashes.
- Project AProject AProject A is a 1983 Hong Kong martial arts action comedy film written and directed by Jackie Chan, and starring Chan, Sammo Hung and Yuen Biao....
A stunt featured Jackie Chan
Jackie Chan
Jackie Chan, SBS, MBE is a Hong Kong actor, action choreographer, comedian, director, producer, martial artist, screenwriter, entrepreneur, singer and stunt performer. In his movies, he is known for his acrobatic fighting style, comic timing, use of improvised weapons, and innovative stunts...
hanging off a real clock tower and falling through three ripped canopies used to break his fall before hitting the ground. Chan has described the stunt as a homage to Harold Lloyd in the film Safety Last.
Romancing the Stone
Romancing the Stone is a 1984 American action-adventure romantic comedy. Directed by Robert Zemeckis, it stars Michael Douglas, Kathleen Turner and Danny DeVito. The film was followed by a 1985 sequel, The Jewel of the Nile....
Vince Deadrick Jr. and Terry Leonard as Joan Wilder and Jack Colton jumped from a car as it fell over an 80 feet (24 m) waterfall.
Back to the Future
Back to the Future is a 1985 American science-fiction adventure film. It was directed by Robert Zemeckis, written by Zemeckis and Bob Gale, produced by Steven Spielberg, and starred Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Lea Thompson, Crispin Glover and Thomas F. Wilson. The film tells the story of...
During the skateboard
Skateboard
A skateboard is typically a specially designed plywood board combined with a polyurethane coating used for making smoother slides and stronger durability, used primarily for the activity of skateboarding. The first skateboards to reach public notice came out of the surfing craze of the early 1960s,...
chase, Marty McFly
Marty McFly
Martin Seamus "Marty" McFly, Sr. is the protagonist in the Back to the Future film trilogy, and is portrayed by actor Michael J. Fox. Marty was also the protagonist in the animated series where he was voiced by David Kaufman...
runs over the top of Biff Tannen
Biff Tannen
Biff Howard Tannen is a character in the Back to the Future trilogy, serving as the primary antagonist of the first two films. He is played by Thomas F. Wilson in all three films as well as the ride, and Wilson voiced the character in the animated series....
's convertible, front to back, and rejoins his skateboard behind the car.
Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure
Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure is a 1989 American science fiction–comedy buddy film and the first film in the Bill & Ted franchise in which two metalhead slackers travel through time to assemble a menagerie of historical figures for their high school history presentation.The film was written by...
While rampaging through a mall, Genghis Khan
Genghis Khan
Genghis Khan , born Temujin and occasionally known by his temple name Taizu , was the founder and Great Khan of the Mongol Empire, which became the largest contiguous empire in history after his death....
rides up to a trampoline
Trampoline
A trampoline is a device consisting of a piece of taut, strong fabric stretched over a steel frame using many coiled springs. People bounce on trampolines for recreational and competitive purposes....
, does a somersault off of it, and lands back on his skateboard.
Many dangerous and real life stunts in this Jackie Chan film were done without wires. Scenes include Chan hanging on to a double-decker bus
Double-decker bus
A double-decker bus is a bus that has two storeys or 'decks'. Global usage of this type of bus is more common in outer touring than in its intra-urban transportion role. Double-decker buses are also commonly found in certain parts of Europe, Asia, and former British colonies and protectorates...
window by an umbrella handle, as well as a mall fight scene at the end featuring many stunt team members performing tumbles, falls and flips through various objects including glass window displays, stairs, escalators, etc. The finale featured Chan jumping and sliding down a mall post covered with wired lights before smashing through a wooden canopy.
- StickStick (film)Stick is a 1985 crime film directed by and starring Burt Reynolds, based on the novel of the same name by Elmore Leonard.-Plot:Ernest "Stick" Stickley, a former car thief, has just been released from prison. He meets up with an old friend, Rainy, whose "quick stop" near the Florida Everglades...
Dar Robinson
Dar Robinson
Dar Allen Robinson was an American stunt performer and actor. Robinson broke 19 world records and set 21 "world's firsts." He invented the decelerator which allowed a cameraman to film a top-down view of the stuntman as he fell without accidentally...
asked to play the part of the albino killer so the audience would be more shocked by the villain's death. Without cutting away, Robinson was filmed falling backwards off a hotel balcony emptying his revolver at Reynolds' as he fell. A thin cable ran up Robinson's leg to a harness around his waist to arrest his fall just feet off the ground.
- The Living DaylightsThe Living DaylightsThe Living Daylights is the fifteenth entry in the James Bond series and the first to star Timothy Dalton as the fictional MI6 agent 007. The film's title is taken from Ian Fleming's short story, "The Living Daylights"...
This was the third variation on a stunt that had appeared first in Moonraker and then in Octopussy
Octopussy
Octopussy is the thirteenth entry in the James Bond series, and the sixth to star Roger Moore as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond. The film's title is taken from a short story in Ian Fleming's 1966 short story collection Octopussy and The Living Daylights...
; James Bond battles a bad guy while they are both hanging outside a plane. In this case, Bond and the villainous Necros fight as they cling to a cargo net filled with bags of opium hanging out the rear of a Soviet cargo plane. All three stunt sequences were done with ace parachutists Jake Lombard and B.J. Worth. Lombard, who had previously doubled for Roger Moore
Roger Moore
Sir Roger George Moore KBE , is an English actor, perhaps best known for portraying British secret agent James Bond in seven films from 1973 to 1985. He also portrayed Simon Templar in the long-running British television series The Saint.-Early life:Moore was born in Stockwell, London...
, took the part of Necros here, while Worth finally got to play Bond by doubling Timothy Dalton
Timothy Dalton
Timothy Peter Dalton ) is a Welsh actor of film and television. He is known for portraying James Bond in The Living Daylights and Licence to Kill , as well as Rhett Butler in the television miniseries Scarlett , an original sequel to Gone with the Wind...
.
- AmsterdamnedAmsterdamnedAmsterdamned is a 1988 Dutch horror movie about a serial killer who hides in the canal system of Amsterdam. The film was directed and written by Dick Maas, and stars Huub Stapel, Monique van de Ven, and Serge-Henri Valcke....
Nick Gillard as Eric Visser jumped his speedboat over a bridge in Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
, breaking the record set in Live and Let Die.
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade is a 1989 American adventure film directed by Steven Spielberg, from a story co-written by executive producer George Lucas. It is the third film in the Indiana Jones franchise. Harrison Ford reprises the title role and Sean Connery plays Indiana's father, Henry...
Vic Armstrong
Vic Armstrong
Victor Monroe Armstrong is a BAFTA winning British film director and stunt double -- the world's most prolific according to the Guinness Book of Records...
as Indiana Jones
Indiana Jones
Colonel Henry Walton "Indiana" Jones, Jr., Ph.D. is a fictional character and the protagonist of the Indiana Jones franchise. George Lucas and Steven Spielberg created the character in homage to the action heroes of 1930s film serials...
rode his horse onto a ledge and jumped onto a moving tank
Tank
A tank is a tracked, armoured fighting vehicle designed for front-line combat which combines operational mobility, tactical offensive, and defensive capabilities...
.
Terminator 2: Judgment Day
Terminator 2: Judgment Day is a 1991 science fiction action film directed by James Cameron and written by Cameron and William Wisher Jr.. It stars Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton, Robert Patrick, and Edward Furlong...
The killer robot
Robot
A robot is a mechanical or virtual intelligent agent that can perform tasks automatically or with guidance, typically by remote control. In practice a robot is usually an electro-mechanical machine that is guided by computer and electronic programming. Robots can be autonomous, semi-autonomous or...
T-1000 flies a helicopter in a freeway chase after a S.W.A.T.
S.W.A.T.
- S.W.A.T. 1 :Date: October 4, 2006Location: VilniusResults: Valentine Bagdonavicius defeated Richard Damanskas by KO Gediminas Bielskis defeated Mantas Kuslin by KO Saulius Poltanavicius vs Aivaras Juska Draw...
van driven by The Terminator
The Terminator
The Terminator is a 1984 science fiction action film directed by James Cameron, co-written by Cameron and William Wisher Jr., and starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, Michael Biehn, and Linda Hamilton. The film was produced by Hemdale Film Corporation and distributed by Orion Pictures, and filmed in Los...
and at one point flies under an overpass.
Cliffhanger (film)
Cliffhanger is a 1993 American action film directed by Renny Harlin and starring Sylvester Stallone and John Lithgow. Stallone plays a mountain climber, who becomes embroiled in a failed heist set in a U.S. Treasury plane flying through the Rocky Mountains...
Corrupt Treasury agent Travers hijacks a jet carrying US$100 million, then slides down a cable to the villains' Learjet. British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
stuntman Simon Crane
Simon Crane
Simon Crane is a British stuntman, stunt coordinator, second unit director and film director.-Biography:Born in Twickenham, Middlesex, England. Crane was originally a law student, but not liking it, he dropped out after two years and worked as an acrobat in a circus for three years...
performed the stunt. When the film's budget was not large enough for the one million dollars needed to complete the sequence, lead actor Sylvester Stallone
Sylvester Stallone
Michael Sylvester Gardenzio Stallone , commonly known as Sylvester Stallone, and nicknamed Sly Stallone, is an American actor, filmmaker, screenwriter, film director and occasional painter. Stallone is known for his machismo and Hollywood action roles. Two of the notable characters he has portrayed...
agreed to cut his salary by the same amount.
- Speed
Stuntman Billy Morts doubled for actor Keanu Reeves
Keanu Reeves
Keanu Charles Reeves is a Canadian actor. Reeves is perhaps best known for his roles in Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure, Speed, Point Break and the science fiction-action trilogy The Matrix...
as L.A.P.D.
Los Angeles Police Department
The Los Angeles Police Department is the police department of the city of Los Angeles, California. With just under 10,000 officers and more than 3,000 civilian staff, covering an area of with a population of more than 4.1 million people, it is the third largest local law enforcement agency in...
cop Jack Traven, who rips the door off a Jaguar
Jaguar (car)
Jaguar Cars Ltd, known simply as Jaguar , is a British luxury car manufacturer, headquartered in Whitley, Coventry, England. It is part of the Jaguar Land Rover business, a subsidiary of the Indian company Tata Motors....
sports car then leaps to the open door of a speeding bus, his feet scraping against the ground.
- GoldenEyeGoldenEyeGoldenEye is the seventeenth spy film in the James Bond series, and the first to star Pierce Brosnan as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond. The film was directed by Martin Campbell and is the first film in the series not to take story elements from the works of novelist Ian Fleming...
Wayne Michaels
Wayne Michaels
Wayne Michaels is a British stuntman and stunt arranger. He performed the bungee jump in the opening scenes in the James Bond film GoldenEye...
as James Bond bungee jumped over a dam to break into a Russian chemical weapons factory. Michaels reached 100 miles per hour (45 m/s) during the jump and came perilously close to the sloping surface of the dam, which was studded with irons struts that could have torn him to pieces. The stunt was further complicated as Bond had to take out a gun during the fall, which threw Michaels off trajectory.
- Khiladi 420Khiladi 420Khiladi 420 is an Indian Hindi action film directed by Niraj Vora and starring Akshay Kumar and Mahima Chaudhry. The film was written by Uttam Gudda and released on 29 December 2000. It is the last film in the Khiladi series starring Kumar, which included Khiladi , Main Khiladi Tu Anari , Sabse...
Indian actor Akshay Kumar
Akshay Kumar
Akshay Kumar is an Indian film actor, producer and martial artist who has appeared in over a hundred Hindi films. When he began his acting career in the 1990s, he primarily starred in action films and was particularly known for his appearances in feature films commonly called the "Khiladi series",...
performs a dangerous stunt where he climbs onto a small airplane while it is moving, stands on top of the plane as it flies a thousand feet high, and jumps from the plane onto a hot air balloon, all in a single take.
- Ong-Bak: Muay Thai WarriorOng-Bak: Muay Thai WarriorOng-Bak: Muay Thai Warrior , also known in the United States as Ong-Bak: The Thai Warrior is a 2003 Thai action film. It was directed by Prachya Pinkaew, featured stunt choreography by Panna Rittikrai and starred Tony Jaa. Ong-Bak proved to be Jaa's breakout film, with the actor hailed...
Thai actor Tony Jaa
Tony Jaa
Tatchakorn Yeerum , formerly Panom Yeerum , better known in the West as Tony Jaa, in Thailand as Jaa Panom, is a Thai martial artist, actor, choreographer, stuntman, director, and monk...
performed a number of stunts for the film, suffering injuries such as a ligament injury and a sprained ankle. One scene involved fighting while his trousers were on fire, which spread upwards and burnt his eyebrows, eyelashes and nose during filming. Despite this, he did several more takes after that.
- The World Is Not EnoughThe World Is Not EnoughThe World Is Not Enough is the nineteenth spy film in the James Bond film series, and the third to star Pierce Brosnan as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond. The film was directed by Michael Apted, with the original story and screenplay written by Neal Purvis, Robert Wade and Bruce Feirstein. It...
Echoing The Man with the Golden Gun
The Man with the Golden Gun (film)
The Man with the Golden Gun is the ninth spy film in the James Bond series and the second to star Roger Moore as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond...
, Gary Powell
Gary Powell
Gary Armstrong Powell is a British drummer. He is primarily the drummer for The Libertines, as well as doing the same for the band formed by his bandmate Carl Barat after the Libertines split, Dirty Pretty Things and Guyanese artist, Eddy Grant...
as James Bond put his boat into a 360 degree spin, wrecking a gun emplacement on a villainess's boat.
Casino Royale (2006 film)
Casino Royale is the twenty-first film in the James Bond film series and the first to star Daniel Craig as fictional MI6 agent James Bond...
Sébastien Foucan
Sebastien Foucan
Sébastien Foucan is a French actor of Guadeloupean descent. Along with David Belle he is considered one of the founders of parkour and is the creator of free running. He is known as a representative of, and ambassador for parkour and free running to many countries...
as an African bomb-maker eluded Daniel Craig
Daniel Craig
Daniel Wroughton Craig is an English actor. His early film roles include Elizabeth, The Power of One, A Kid in King Arthur's Court and the television episodes Sharpe's Eagle, Zorro and The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles: Daredevils of the Desert...
's James Bond using free running
Free running
Freerunning is a form of urban acrobatics in which participants, known as freerunners , use the city and rural landscape to perform movements through its structures...
style parkour
Parkour
Parkour is a method of movement focused on moving around obstacles with speed and efficiency. Originally developed in France, the main purpose of the discipline is to teach participants how to move through their environment by vaulting, rolling, running, climbing and jumping...
. Foucan's (and the stunt's) notation in the opening credits were a first.
Merantau (film)
Merantau is an Indonesian martial arts film released on August 6, 2009, produced by Merantau Films, directed and written by Gareth H. Evans, and starring Iko Uwais...
In one scene, Indonesian actor Iko Uwais
Iko Uwais
-Early life:Born in Jakarta, Indonesia on February 12, 1983, Uwais Qorny is of the Betawi descent. He has been learning Indonesian traditional martial art, Pencak Silat, since he was 10 years old at his uncle's Silat school, Tiga Berantai, which uses the distinctive Betawi style of Silat. In...
performs a jump from one building to another. Another stuntman, playing a henchman, chases him and attempts to do the same, but Uwais hits him with a bamboo pole in mid-air and the stuntman falls three stories to the ground.
Stunts that have gone wrong
Stuntwork accounts for over half of all film-related injuries, with an average of 5 deaths for every 2,000 injuries. From 1980 to 1990 there were 37 deaths relating to accidents during stunts, twenty-four of these deaths involved the use of helicopters.- The Skywayman (1920 film)
A plane crash killed stunt pilot Ormer LocklearOrmer LocklearOrmer Leslie "Lock" Locklear was an American daredevil stunt pilot and film actor during and immediately after World War I.-Early life and career:...
.
- Noah's Ark (1928)
Three people died, one man lost a leg and a number were injured in a scene where several hundred extras were caught in the 'Great Flood'. The deaths were instrumental in the introduction of film safety regulations in the following year.
- The Wizard of OzThe Wizard of Oz (1939 film)The Wizard of Oz is a 1939 American musical fantasy film produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It was directed primarily by Victor Fleming. Noel Langley, Florence Ryerson and Edgar Allan Woolf received credit for the screenplay, but there were uncredited contributions by others. The lyrics for the songs...
(1939)
Margaret HamiltonMargaret HamiltonMargaret Hamilton was an American film actress known for her portrayal of the Wicked Witch of the West in the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz...
was badly burned during a scene in which her character 'vanished' in a burst of flame and smoke. A delay in activating a trap-door left her exposed to the pyrotechnic device. Her stuntwoman was also injured in a scene involving a smoking broomstick. Buddy EbsenBuddy EbsenBuddy Ebsen was an American character actor and dancer. A performer for seven decades, he had starring roles as Jed Clampett in the long-running television series The Beverly Hillbillies and as the title character in the 1970s detective series Barnaby Jones, and played Barnaby Jones in the movie...
complained of life-long lung issues caused by an allergy to the aluminum dust used for his Tin Man makeup.
- How the West Was WonHow the West Was Won (film)How the West Was Won is a 1962 American epic Western film. The picture was one of the last "old-fashioned" epic films made by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer to enjoy great success. It follows four generations of a family as they move ever westward, from western New York state to the Pacific Ocean...
(1962)
Stuntman Bob Morgan, husband of Yvonne De CarloYvonne De CarloYvonne De Carlo was a Canadian-born American actress of film and television. During her six-decade career, her most frequent appearances in film came in the 1940s and 1950s and included her best-known film roles, such as of Anna Marie in Salome Where She Danced ; Anna in Criss Cross ; Sephora the...
, was seriously injured and lost a leg during a break in filming a gunfight on a moving train. Chains holding logs on a flatbed car broke, crushing Morgan as he crouched beside them.
- The Flight of the PhoenixThe Flight of the Phoenix (1965 film)The Flight of the Phoenix is a 1965 American film produced and directed by Robert Aldrich and based on the 1964 novel The Flight of the Phoenix by Elleston Trevor...
(1965)
Stunt pilot Paul MantzPaul MantzAlbert Paul Mantz was a noted air racing pilot, movie stunt pilot and consultant from the late 1930s until his death in the mid-1960s. He gained fame on two stages: Hollywood and in air races.-Early years:...
was killed, and another stuntman seriously injured, when the title plane broke apart and crashed while landing.
- Shark! (also known as Caine)Shark! (film)Shark! is a 1969 American action film directed by Samuel Fuller and starring Burt Reynolds. The film was based on the Victor Canning novel His Bones are Coral with the original screeplay written by Ken Hughes...
(1969)
A stuntman was mauled to death on camera when a shark, which was supposed to have been sedated, suddenly attacked.
- Kamen RiderKamen Rider, is a weekly science fiction story created by Japanese manga artist Shotaro Ishinomori. It debuted as a tokusatsu television series on April 3, 1971 and ran until February 10, 1973, airing on the Mainichi Broadcasting System and NET TV . A manga adaptation was also featured in Shōnen Magazine...
(1971-1973)
During a scene for Episode 9 ("The Terrifying Cobra-Man"), lead actor Hiroshi FujiokaHiroshi Fujioka, better known by his stage name , is a Japanese actor known for playing the hero Takeshi Hongo in the tokusatsu superhero series Kamen Rider, and later the Sega Saturn mascot Segata Sanshiro. Fujioka is a cultural icon in Japan, even having the minor planet 12408 Fujioka, discovered by Akimasa...
fractured his thighbone in a motorcycle stunt when he rode into a telephone pole at 50 mph, forcing him out of action. Producers had to use stock and unused footage, which was dubbed by Rokurô Naya, for the next four episodes, causing a dip in the ratings. Producers eventually had no choice but to substitute him with a second character played by Takeshi Sasaki. Fujioka made a return in Episode 53 ("Monster Jaguarman - Deathmatch by Motorcycle Fight"). As neither actor could be axed, the show ended up having two heroes.
- The ExorcistThe Exorcist (film)The Exorcist is a 1973 American horror film directed by William Friedkin, adapted from the 1971 novel of the same name by William Peter Blatty and based on the exorcism case of Robbie Mannheim, dealing with the demonic possession of a young girl and her mother’s desperate attempts to win back her...
(1973)
Actress Ellen BurstynEllen BurstynEllen Burstyn is a leading American actress of film, stage, and television. Burstyn's career began in theatre during the late 1950s, and over the next ten years she appeared in several films and television series before joining the Actors Studio in 1967...
seriously injured her back while filming a scene where she falls over backwards after her possessed daughter backhands her. The scene was left in the film.
- Attack of the Killer TomatoesAttack of the Killer TomatoesAttack of the Killer Tomatoes is a 1978 comedy film directed by John De Bello and starring David Miller. The film is a spoof of B movies. Made on a budget of less than US$100,000, the story involves tomatoes becoming sentient by unknown means and revolting against humanity. Writing credits were...
(1978)
The helicopter crash involving Jack Riley and George Wilson was entirely unintentional, but having not been seriously injured both actors continued by ad-libbing the rest of the scene, and ultimately it was included in the film.
- Comes a HorsemanComes a HorsemanComes a Horseman is a 1978 film starring James Caan, Jane Fonda, Jason Robards, and Richard Farnsworth.The movie, set in the American West of the 1940s, tells the story of two ranchers whose small operation is threatened both by economic hardship and the expansionist dreams of a local land baron...
(1978)
Filming the scene where Robards' character is dragged to (presumably) his death, stunt man Jim Sheppard was killed when a horse that was dragging him veered from its course and caused him to hit his head on a fence post. The scene made it into the movie, although it is cut right before the horse passes through the gate which killed Sheppard.
- Steel (1979)
A.J. Bakunas died doubling for George KennedyGeorge KennedyGeorge Harris Kennedy, Jr. is an American actor who has appeared in over 200 film and television productions. He is perhaps most familiar as the convict Dragline in Cool Hand Luke , airline troubleshooter Joe Patroni in the Airport series of disaster movies from the 1970s and...
in a fall from the Kincaid TowersKincaid TowersThe Kincaid Towers is a 22-floor high-rise in Lexington, Kentucky. It is located along Vine Street between Broadway and Mill Street. Its exterior is polished buff concrete with blue tinted glass, with terraces on the 5th, 10th, 14th, and 21st floor . It has a three-story atrium, and a skywalk that...
in LexingtonLexington, KentuckyLexington is the second-largest city in Kentucky and the 63rd largest in the US. Known as the "Thoroughbred City" and the "Horse Capital of the World", it is located in the heart of Kentucky's Bluegrass region...
, KentuckyKentuckyThe Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
. Bakunas had successfully performed a fall from the ninth floor of the construction site, but when he learned that Dar Robinson had broken his record high fall for a non-film related publicity stunt, Bakunas returned to perform the fall from the top of the 300 feet (91.4 m) construction site. Bakunas performed the fall expertly, but the airbag split and he was killed.
- KolilakkamKolilakkamKolilakkam is a 1981 Malayalam film directed by Vijayanandh, and starring Jayan.This was Jayan's last film before his death. His death happened during the shooting of this movie in which he was supposed to board a moving helicopter from a bike. The helicopter carrying him hit the ground while he...
(Shockwave, 1980)
While a helicopter stunt was being carried out for this Indian action filmCinema of IndiaThe cinema of India consists of films produced across India, which includes the cinematic culture of Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Gujarat, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Orissa, Punjab, Tamil Nadu, and West Bengal. Indian films came to be followed throughout South Asia and...
, the 3rd attempt went wrong after 2 successful shots. Helicopter crashed killing the iconic action star JayanJayanKrishnan Nair , better known by his stage name Jayan , was an Indian film actor, former sailor, stunt performer and 1970s style icon. He worked in Malayalam cinema, a sector of the Indian movie industry...
. The actor has since then attained a legendary status.
- For Your Eyes OnlyFor Your Eyes Only (film)For Your Eyes Only is the twelfth spy film in the James Bond series and the fifth to star Roger Moore as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond. It marked the directorial debut of John Glen, who had worked as editor and second unit director in three other Bond films. The screenplay by Richard Maibaum...
(1981)
While filming a high speed chase in the bobsleigh-run the four-man bob came out of the run at the wrong place and hit a tree. One of its occupants, a young stuntman named Paolo Rigon, was killed.
- Twilight Zone: The MovieTwilight Zone: The MovieTwilight Zone: The Movie is a 1983 science fiction horror film produced by Steven Spielberg and John Landis as a theatrical version of The Twilight Zone, a 1959 and '60s TV series created by Rod Serling. Those starring in the film are: Dan Aykroyd, Albert Brooks, Vic Morrow, Scatman Crothers,...
(1982)
During the filming of a segment directed by John Landis on July 23, 1982, actor Vic MorrowVic MorrowVictor "Vic" Morrow was an American actor whose credits include a starring role in the 1960s TV series Combat!, prominent roles in a handful of other television and cinema dramas, and numerous guest roles on television...
and children illegally brought on the set My-Ca Dinh Le (aged 7) and Renee Shin-Yi Chen (aged 6) died in an accident involving a helicopterHelicopterA helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by one or more engine-driven rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forwards, backwards, and laterally...
being used on the set. The helicopter pilot was instructed to fly close to the ground and an explosive charge was detonated very close to the helicopter, causing it to spin out of control and crash, decapitating Morrow and one of the children with its blades. The other child was crushed to death as the helicopter crashed.
- The Cannonball Run (1981)
Heidi von Beltz (girlfriend of the Stunt Coordinator) was left a paraplegic after being thrown from her car during a crash.
- PepsiPepsiPepsi is a carbonated soft drink that is produced and manufactured by PepsiCo...
Commercial (1984)
On January 27, 1984, Michael JacksonMichael JacksonMichael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...
and other members of the Jacksons filmed a Pepsi Cola commercial overseen by executive Phil Dusenberry from ad agency BBDO and Pepsi's Worldwide Creative Director Alan Pottasch. In front of a full house of fans during a simulated concert pyrotechnics accidentally set Jackson's hair on fire. He suffered second-degree burns to his scalp. Jackson underwent treatment to hide the scars on his scalp but never fully recovered from this injury.
- Top GunTop GunTop Gun may refer to:* Top Gun is a 1986 film starring Tom Cruise.**Top Gun , soundtrack to the movie**Top Gun , a number of games based on the movie...
(1986)
Stunt pilot Art SchollArt SchollArthur Everett Scholl was an American aerobatic pilot, aerial cameraman, flight instructor and educator based in Southern California. He died during filming of Top Gun when his Pitts S-2 camera plane never recovered from a flat spin and plunged into the Pacific Ocean...
was killed in an aircraft crash while taping footage of a flat spin.
- Armour of God (1986)
During the filming of a scene in which Jackie ChanJackie ChanJackie Chan, SBS, MBE is a Hong Kong actor, action choreographer, comedian, director, producer, martial artist, screenwriter, entrepreneur, singer and stunt performer. In his movies, he is known for his acrobatic fighting style, comic timing, use of improvised weapons, and innovative stunts...
jumped from a wall to a tree branch, Chan lost his grip on the branch and fell 15 feet to the ground below. He landed on his head, causing part of his skull to crack and a fragment to lodge in his brain. He now has a plastic plug in a permanent hole in his skull, and hearing loss in one ear.
- Million Dollar MysteryMillion Dollar MysteryMillion Dollar Mystery is a 1987 American film released with a promotional tie-in for Glad-Lock brand bags. While performing a routine stunt for this film, legendary stuntman Dar Robinson lost his life on November 21, 1986...
(1987)
Stuntman Dar RobinsonDar RobinsonDar Allen Robinson was an American stunt performer and actor. Robinson broke 19 world records and set 21 "world's firsts." He invented the decelerator which allowed a cameraman to film a top-down view of the stuntman as he fell without accidentally...
died in a motorcycle accident after the most dangerous stunt had been filmed and the medics on the set had been dismissed.
- UP2UUP2U (BBC TV series)UP2U was a summer Saturday morning children's magazine show produced and screened by the BBC in 1988 and 1989. It aired during the late summer of each year, the early summer having been taken up by On The Waterfront...
(1988)
During filming of a location report from the Royal TournamentRoyal TournamentThe Royal Tournament was the World's largest military tattoo and pageant, held by the British Armed Forces annually between 1880 and 1999. The venue was originally the Royal Agricultural Hall and latterly the Earls Court Exhibition Centre...
, one of its presenters, Anthea TurnerAnthea TurnerAnthea Millicent Turner is an English television presenter and media personality.-Education:Turner was educated at the independent St. Dominic's High School in Hartshill, Stoke-on-Trent....
was injured when a pyrotechnicPyrotechnicsPyrotechnics is the science of using materials capable of undergoing self-contained and self-sustained exothermic chemical reactions for the production of heat, light, gas, smoke and/or sound...
display exploded in her face while she was giving a piece to cameraPiece to cameraA piece to camera is the television and film term used for when a presenter or a character speaks directly to the viewing audience through the camera....
during a motorcycleMotorcycleA motorcycle is a single-track, two-wheeled motor vehicle. Motorcycles vary considerably depending on the task for which they are designed, such as long distance travel, navigating congested urban traffic, cruising, sport and racing, or off-road conditions.Motorcycles are one of the most...
stunt. The incident was broadcasted live on-air. The incident was later blamed on a miscommunication between programme staff and stunt organisers, coupled with a last-minute change in the location from which Turner gave her report.
- Hired to Kill (1989)
Clint Carpenter was killed in a helicopter stunt.
- CyborgCyborg (film)Cyborg is a 1989 American martial-arts science fiction film directed by Albert Pyun. Jean-Claude Van Damme stars as Gibson Rickenbacker, a mercenary who battles a group of murderous marauders led by Fender Tremolo along the East coast of the United States in a post-apocalyptic future.-Plot:A...
(1989)
During a fighting sequence action star Jean-Claude Van Damme accidentally stabbed Jackson 'Rock' Pinckney in the eye, causing him to permanently lose vision in it.
- Guns N' Roses/Metallica Stadium TourGuns N' Roses/Metallica Stadium TourThe Guns N' Roses/Metallica Stadium Tour was a famed joint, co-headlining concert tour by the American rock bands Guns N' Roses and Metallica during 1992...
(1992)
During a MetallicaMetallicaMetallica is an American heavy metal band from Los Angeles, California. Formed in 1981 when James Hetfield responded to an advertisement that drummer Lars Ulrich had posted in a local newspaper. The current line-up features long-time lead guitarist Kirk Hammett and bassist Robert Trujillo ...
performance at Olympic StadiumOlympic StadiumThe Olympic Stadium is the name usually given to the big centrepiece stadium of the Summer Olympic Games. Traditionally, the opening and closing ceremonies and the track and field competitions are held in the Olympic Stadium. Many, though not all, of these venues actually contain the words Olympic...
in MontrealMontrealMontreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
on August 8, 1992, vocalist/guitarist James HetfieldJames HetfieldJames Alan Hetfield is the rhythm guitarist, co-founder, main songwriter, and lead vocalist for the American heavy metal band Metallica. Hetfield co-founded Metallica in October 1981 after answering a classified advertisement by drummer Lars Ulrich in the Los Angeles newspaper The Recycler,...
was unknowingly standing on a flash pot during the song "Fade To Black," when the flash pot ignited, causing second- and third-degree burns to his arms legs, hands, face, and the entire left side of his body. Hetfield was hospitalized for 17 days and was unable to play guitar for the rest of the tour, but was still able to sing. Metallica completed the tour, with guitar technician/Metal ChurchMetal ChurchMetal Church was an American heavy metal band. They originally formed in Seattle, Washington as Shrapnel in 1980. Their first album was released in 1984, and the band's most recent work, This Present Wasteland, was released in 2008....
guitarist John MarshallJohn Marshall (guitarist)John Marshall is a former guitarist for the thrash metal band Metal Church . Before joining the band in 1989, he was the guitar tech for Metallica's lead guitarist Kirk Hammett...
playing for James. Hetfield has since made a full recovery.
- The CrowThe Crow (film)The Crow is a 1994 American action film based on the 1989 comic book of the same name by James O'Barr. The film was written by David J. Schow and John Shirley, and directed by Alex Proyas...
(1994)
In one of the most high-profile stunt deaths, Brandon LeeBrandon LeeBrandon Bruce Lee was an American actor and martial artist. He was the son of martial arts film star Bruce Lee...
, the star of The CrowThe CrowThe Crow is a comic book series created by James O'Barr. The series was originally written by O'Barr as a means of dealing with the death of his girlfriend at the hands of a drunk driver. It was later published by Caliber Comics in 1989, becoming an underground success, and later adapted into a...
, was killed 8 days before the film's completion. Prop Masters working under time constraints had failed to notice that the previous firing of a cartridge with only a primer and a bullet had caused a bullet to lodge in the forcing cone of one of their revolvers. When the first unit used this gun to shoot the death scene, the chamber was loaded with blanks which had no bullets; however, the bullet, which was still in the barrel, was propelled out by the blank cartridge's explosion. Despite being rushed to hospital Lee died within a matter of hours.
- Vampire in BrooklynVampire in BrooklynVampire in Brooklyn is a 1995 horror comedy film directed by Wes Craven, and starring Eddie Murphy and Angela Bassett. Allen Payne, Kadeem Hardison, John Witherspoon, Zakes Mokae, and Joanna Cassidy co-star. Eddie Murphy wrote the film's script, along with Vernon Lynch and older brother Charles Q....
(1995)
Stuntwoman Sonya Davis died from head injuries from a high fall during filming.
- Gone Fishin'Gone Fishin' (film)Gone Fishin' is a 1997 American comedy film starring Joe Pesci and Danny Glover as two bumbling fishing enthusiasts. Nick Brimble, Rosanna Arquette, Lynn Whitfield, and Willie Nelson costar.-Plot synopsis:...
(1995)
Wife of stuntman Scott Wilder, Janet Wilder was killed and four other people are injured when a speedboat misjudged a ramp and landed in a crowd.
- SevenSeven (film)Seven is a 1995 American thriller film, which also contains horror and neo-noir elements, directed by David Fincher and written by Andrew Kevin Walker. It was distributed by New Line Cinema and stars Brad Pitt, Morgan Freeman, Gwyneth Paltrow, R...
(1995)
In a scene where Detective David Mills (Brad PittBrad PittWilliam Bradley "Brad" Pitt is an American actor and film producer. Pitt has received two Academy Award nominations and four Golden Globe Award nominations, winning one...
) chased John Doe in the rain, Pitt fell and his arm went through a car windscreen, requiring surgery. This accident was written into the script to explain Pitt wearing a cast over his arm. Coincidentally, the original script did call for Pitt's character to be injured during this sequence but not to his hand.
- The Stuntwoman (1996)
Actress Michelle YeohMichelle YeohMichelle Yeoh Choo-Kheng is a Hong Kong-based Malaysian Chinese actress, well known for performing her own stunts in the action films that brought her to fame in the early 1990s....
, who usually performs her own stunts, was seriously injured during shooting of the film about the life of a stuntwoman, when she misjudged an 18 feet (5.5 m) jump off a bridge onto a truck. She fractured a vertebra and was in traction for a month. The sequence can be seen at the end of the film.
- Love SerenadeLove SerenadeLove Serenade is a 1996 Australian feature film directed by Shirley Barrett. It is a comedy film which has the tagline: "Two sisters will do anything to hook the right man."...
(1996)
During the filming of a scene on a grain silo, stuntman Collin Dragsbaek (doubling actor George Shetsov) died when he fell onto a faulty airbag.
- World Wrestling FederationWorld Wrestling EntertainmentWorld Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is an American publicly traded, privately controlled entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...
event (1999)
Professional wrestler Owen HartOwen HartOwen James Hart was a Canadian professional and amateur wrestler who worked for several promotions including Stampede Wrestling, New Japan Pro Wrestling , World Championship Wrestling , and most notably, the World Wrestling Federation , where he wrestled under both his own name, and ring name The...
died in May 1999's WWE/WWF PPV Over the Edge 1999 while being lowered on a cable from the rafters for a ring entrance. The cable was accidentally released early and Hart fell 78 ft (24 m) to the ring below.
- Taxi 2Taxi 2Taxi 2 is a French film directed by Gérard Krawczyk and released in 2000. It is a sequel to Taxi written by Luc Besson and directed by Gérard Pirès in 1998. It was followed by Taxi 3 in 2003.-Plot:...
(2000)
A Peugeot 406 was supposed to land in a pile of cardboard after a stunt, but missed and hit several crew. A cameraman died later of internal injuries and another cameraman broke both legs.
- Exit WoundsExit WoundsExit Wounds is a 2001 action film based on the book of the same name by John Westermann. The book takes place on Long Island, while the film is set in Detroit. The film was directed by Andrzej Bartkowiak, and stars Steven Seagal as an urban detective notorious for pushing the limits of the law in...
(2001)
During filming in HamiltonHamilton, OntarioHamilton is a port city in the Canadian province of Ontario. Conceived by George Hamilton when he purchased the Durand farm shortly after the War of 1812, Hamilton has become the centre of a densely populated and industrialized region at the west end of Lake Ontario known as the Golden Horseshoe...
, Ontario, Canada, a van was being towed along a street upside-down as part of a chase scene; stuntman Chris Lamon and another man were supposed to roll safely out, but Lamon struck his head, and died six days later.
- xXxXXXXXX may refer to:* The number 30 in Roman numerals* The year 30 AD* Games of the XXX Olympiad, the 2012 Summer Olympic Games in London, England* Super Bowl XXX, held on January 28, 1996* A mark indicating "extra strong"* Alcoholic beverages...
(2002)
Stuntman Harry L. O'Connor was killed in an accident when he failed to rappel fast enough down a parasailing line to land on the submarine. He impacted a bridge at high speed and was killed instantly. On the DVD's director's commentary track, Rob Cohen commented on his decision to include the edited footage of O'Connor's death in the final cut of the film.
- Motley CrueMötley CrüeMötley Crüe is an American heavy metal band formed in Los Angeles, California in 1981. The group was founded by bass guitarist Nikki Sixx and drummer Tommy Lee, who were later joined by lead guitarist Mick Mars and lead singer Vince Neil...
concert (2005)
Tommy LeeTommy LeeThomas Lee Bass , best known as Tommy Lee, is an American musician and founding member of glam metal band Mötley Crüe. As well as being the band's long-term drummer, Lee founded rap-metal band Methods of Mayhem, and has pursued solo musical projects...
was hospitalized for injuries after being hit by sparks from a pyrotechnic explosion while he was swinging on a wire between drum sets suspended several feet above the stage.
- Mayhem Festival 2008Mayhem Festival 2008Mayhem Festival 2008 was the first iteration of the annual concert festival created by Kevin Lyman.-Mayhem Festival 2008 tour information:The Mayhem Festival, like most large festivals of a similar caliber, feature bands that recently released or are just about to release a new album...
(2008)
SlipknotSlipknot (band)Slipknot is an American heavy metal band from Des Moines, Iowa. Formed in 1995, the group was founded by percussionist Shawn Crahan and bassist Paul Gray...
turntablist Sid WilsonSid WilsonSidney George Wilson also known as Ratboy or DJ Sid, #0 , is an American disc jockey known as the turntablist of the Grammy Award winning band Slipknot. He is the youngest member of the band.-Biography:...
broke both heels landing from a jump over percussionist Chris FehnChris FehnChristopher Michael "Chris" Fehn , or known by his number #3, is an American musician known as one of the two custom percussionists of the Grammy Award winning nu metal band Slipknot and is the current bassist for the band Will Haven.-Personal life and career:Fehn was born and raised in Des Moines,...
.
- Red Cliff (2008/2009)
While filming a scene in which a small boat was set on fire and was to ram a larger boat, the fire spread quickly out of control, killing stuntman Lu Yanqing and injuring six others.
- The Expendables 2The Expendables 2The Expendables 2 is an upcoming ensemble action film directed by Simon West and written by David Agosto and Ken Kaufman based on a story by Sylvester Stallone...
(2012)
While filming, a stuntman was killed and another was left in critical condition during a staged explosion on a rubber boat. The surviving stuntman underwent a five hour operation which reportedly left him in stable condition.
Recognition of stunt performers
Films such as HooperHooper (film)
Hooper is a 1978 action-comedy motion picture starring Burt Reynolds, based loosely on the experiences of director Hal Needham, a one-time stuntman in his own right...
and The Stunt Man
The Stunt Man
The Stunt Man is a 1980 American film directed by Richard Rush, starring Peter O'Toole, Steve Railsback, and Barbara Hershey. The movie was adapted by Lawrence B. Marcus and Rush from the novel by Paul Brodeur...
and the 1980s television show The Fall Guy
The Fall Guy
The Fall Guy is an American action/adventure television program produced for ABC and originally broadcast from November 4, 1981 to May 2, 1986. It starred Lee Majors, Douglas Barr, and Heather Thomas. Majors and Barr are the only two actors to appear in all 112 episodes of the series...
sought to raise the profile of the stunt performer and debunk the myth that film stars perform all their own stunts. Noted stunt coordinators Hal Needham
Hal Needham
Hal Needham is an American stuntman and film director.-Early years:Needham was born in Memphis, Tennessee, the son of Edith May and Howard Needham. He was raised in Arkansas and Missouri...
, Craig R. Baxley
Craig R. Baxley
Craig Redding Baxley is an American actor, director and stunt performer. He is best known for his work in the action and thriller genres....
and Vic Armstrong
Vic Armstrong
Victor Monroe Armstrong is a BAFTA winning British film director and stunt double -- the world's most prolific according to the Guinness Book of Records...
went on to direct the action films The Cannonball Run, Action Jackson
Action Jackson
Action Jackson is a 1988 action film directed by Craig R. Baxley and starring Carl Weathers, Vanity, Craig T. Nelson and Sharon Stone. Paula Abdul was the choreographer...
, Joshua Tree
Joshua Tree (1993 film)
Joshua Tree, also known as Army of One, is a 1993 action film directed by Academy Award and BAFTA-winning stunt coordinator Vic Armstrong, written by Steven Pressfield and starring Dolph Lundgren, Kristian Alfonso, and George Segal...
. Vic Armstrong
Vic Armstrong
Victor Monroe Armstrong is a BAFTA winning British film director and stunt double -- the world's most prolific according to the Guinness Book of Records...
became the first stuntman to win both an Academy Award
Academy Awards
An Academy Award, also known as an Oscar, is an accolade bestowed by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers...
(for developing a descender rig as a safe alternative to airbags) and a Bafta award (for lifetime achievement in film). But the status of stuntmen in Hollywood is still low; despite the fact that few films of any genre or type could be made without them, stunt performers are still seen as working mainly in action films. Repeated campaigns for a "Best Stunts" Academy Award have been rejected.
In 2001, the first 'World Stunt Awards' was held in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
. Presented by actor Alec Baldwin
Alec Baldwin
Alexander Rae "Alec" Baldwin III is an American actor who has appeared on film, stage, and television.Baldwin first gained recognition through television for his work in the soap opera Knots Landing in the role of Joshua Rush. He was a cast member for two seasons before his character was killed off...
, the event had A-list stars presenting the statues to Hollywood's unsung heroes. Arnold Schwarzenegger
Arnold Schwarzenegger
Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger is an Austrian-American former professional bodybuilder, actor, businessman, investor, and politician. Schwarzenegger served as the 38th Governor of California from 2003 until 2011....
was presented with the first "Lifetime Achievement" award. He presented the awards in 2001. The awards show hands out eight awards: Best Fight, Best Fire Stunt, Best High Work, Best Overall Stunt by a Stunt Man, Best Overall Stunt by a Stunt Woman, Best Speciality Stunt, Best Work with a Vehicle and Best Stunt Coordinator and/or 2nd Unit Director.
Equality in stunts
In past Hollywood films it was common for men to double for women and White AmericanWhite American
White Americans are people of the United States who are considered or consider themselves White. The United States Census Bureau defines White people as those "having origins in any of the original peoples of Europe, the Middle East, or North Africa...
stunt performers to double for African-American performers. Veteran stunt man Dave Sharpe
Dave Sharpe
Dave Sharpe was an American actor and stunt performer.He was called the "Crown Prince of Daredevils" and ranks alongside Yakima Canutt as one of Hollywood's all time greatest stuntmen...
, a man of shorter than average height, often doubled for women in film serials of the 1930s and '40s. It is now against union
Trade union
A trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...
rules for stunt performer
Stunt performer
A stuntman, or daredevil is someone who performs dangerous stunts, often as a career.These stunts are sometimes rigged so that they look dangerous while still having safety mechanisms, but often they are as dangerous as they appear to be...
s to double an actor of a different gender or race unless the stunt is so dangerous that there are no other volunteers, for example when B.J. Worth doubled for the black Jamaican actress Grace Jones
Grace Jones
Grace Jones is a Jamaican-American singer, model and actress.Jones secured a record deal with Island Records in 1977, which resulted in a string of dance-club hits. In the late 1970s, she adapted the emerging electronic music style and adopted a severe, androgynous look with square-cut hair and...
parachuting
Parachuting
Parachuting, also known as skydiving, is the action of exiting an aircraft and returning to earth with the aid of a parachute. It may or may not involve a certain amount of free-fall, a time during which the parachute has not been deployed and the body gradually accelerates to terminal...
off the Eiffel Tower
Eiffel Tower
The Eiffel Tower is a puddle iron lattice tower located on the Champ de Mars in Paris. Built in 1889, it has become both a global icon of France and one of the most recognizable structures in the world...
in A View to a Kill
A View to a Kill
A View to a Kill is the fourteenth spy film of the James Bond series, and the seventh and last to star Roger Moore as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond. Although the title is adapted from Ian Fleming's short story "From a View to a Kill", the film is the fourth Bond film after The Spy Who Loved...
. The rise of action heroines like Angelina Jolie
Angelina Jolie
Angelina Jolie is an American actress. She has received an Academy Award, two Screen Actors Guild Awards, and three Golden Globe Awards, and was named Hollywood's highest-paid actress by Forbes in 2009 and 2011. Jolie is noted for promoting humanitarian causes as a Goodwill Ambassador for the...
and African-American stars like Will Smith
Will Smith
Willard Christopher "Will" Smith, Jr. , also known by his stage name The Fresh Prince, is an American actor, producer, and rapper. He has enjoyed success in television, film and music. In April 2007, Newsweek called him the most powerful actor in Hollywood...
has offered wider opportunities for stunt performers from diverse backgrounds.
The future of stuntwork
A backlash against dangerous stunts following the death of Sonya Davis , coinciding with developments in Computer Generated Imagery (CGI)Computer-generated imagery
Computer-generated imagery is the application of the field of computer graphics or, more specifically, 3D computer graphics to special effects in art, video games, films, television programs, commercials, simulators and simulation generally, and printed media...
that make such stunts unnecessary threatens to reduce stunt performers to the status of body doubles. And yet a backlash against films that resemble video games could lead to a resurrection in pure stuntwork. Films such as The Matrix
The Matrix
The Matrix is a 1999 science fiction-action film written and directed by Larry and Andy Wachowski, starring Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, Carrie-Anne Moss, Joe Pantoliano, and Hugo Weaving...
and Mission: Impossible II
Mission: Impossible II
Mission: Impossible II is a 2000 action film directed by John Woo, and starring Tom Cruise, who also served as the film's producer...
have shown how CGI and stunts can be integrated for maximum effect. But - if for no other reason than safety - it is doubtful that the records established by Hooper
Hooper (film)
Hooper is a 1978 action-comedy motion picture starring Burt Reynolds, based loosely on the experiences of director Hal Needham, a one-time stuntman in his own right...
and Sharky's Machine
Sharky's Machine (film)
Sharky's Machine is a 1981 motion picture directed by Burt Reynolds, who stars in the title role. The movie is an adaptation of William Diehl's first novel Sharky's Machine , with a screenplay by Gerald Di Pego....
will be broken anytime soon.
A new sub-genre of eastern martial arts films exists which emphasize the actors performing their own stunts, deliberately using wide angles and unbroken shots to show each stunt in its entirety.
See also
- Stunt coordinatorStunt coordinatorA stunt coordinator, usually an experienced stunt performer, is hired by a TV, film or theatre director or production company to arrange the casting and performance of stunts for a film, television programme or a live audience...
- Stunt performerStunt performerA stuntman, or daredevil is someone who performs dangerous stunts, often as a career.These stunts are sometimes rigged so that they look dangerous while still having safety mechanisms, but often they are as dangerous as they appear to be...
- Stunt doubleStunt doubleA stunt double is a type of body double, specifically a skilled replacement used for dangerous film or video sequences, in movies and television , and for other sophisticated stunts...
- Motorcycle stunt ridingMotorcycle stunt ridingMotorcycle stunt riding, sometimes referred to as simply stuntriding, is a motorcycle sport characterized by stunts involving acrobatic maneuvering of the motorcycle and sometimes the rider. Common maneuvers in stunt riding include wheelies, stoppies, and burnouts...