Stunt double
Encyclopedia
A stunt double is a type of body double
, specifically a skilled replacement used for dangerous film or video sequences, in movies and television
(such as jumping out of a building, jumping from vehicle to vehicle, or other similar actions), and for other sophisticated stunts (especially fight scenes). Stunt doubles may be used in cases where an actor's physical condition precludes a great amount of physical activity (such as when the actor is too old to perform extended fight choreography), or when an actor is contractually prohibited from performing stunts. Stunt doubles are sometimes referred to as "stunties".
The terms stunt double and body double may be used interchangeably for cases where special skills (sometimes far from dangerous) are needed, such as dancing (dance double
), playing the piano, or competitive skiing. Stunt doubles should be distinguished from stunt performer
s, who perform stunts for the sake of the stunt alone, often as a career. It should also be noted that sequences often do not place stunt doubles in the same mortal peril as the characters: for example, harnesses and wires can be digitally edited out of the final film.
Many stunt doubles have happy and long production careers as part of a star actor's contractual "support crew" along with the star's cooks, trainers, dressers, assistants. Often stunt doubles have to look like their respective actors, in order to give keep the character's appearance. Stunt doubles for Eddie Murphy, John Wayne, Harrison Ford, Steve Martin and Michael Landon have been associated with their lead actors for decades.
Non-humans are also known to have "stunt doubles". For example Enzo was the stunt double for his aging sire Moose
on the sitcom Frasier
. Soccer
, the dog
who portrayed Wishbone, reportedly hated swimming and therefore had stunt doubles.
Some actors, for example Charlie Chaplin
, Buster Keaton
, Bruce Lee
, Jet Li
, Jayan
, Donnie Yen
, James Garner
, Barrett Snow, Burt Reynolds
, Johnny Yong Bosch
, Tom Cruise
, Steve McQueen
, Angelina Jolie
, Michelle Yeoh
, Maggie Q
, Christopher Lee
, Jean-Paul Belmondo
, Thora Birch
, Milla Jovovich
, Bridgette Wilson
, Jason Statham
, Dolph Lundgren
, "Stone Cold" Steve Austin
, Arnold Schwarzenegger
and Viggo Mortensen
, are known to have performed their own stunts. Jackie Chan
is particularly famous for doing most of his own stunts, as well as fellow martial arts star and movie partners Yuen Biao
and Sammo Hung
. Jayan
was well known for performing extremely dangerous stunts by himself and was killed while performing a helicopter stunt. Thai martial artist and actor Tony Jaa
performs his own stunts, likewise.
Body double
A body double is a general term for someone who substitutes for the credited actor of a character in any recorded visual medium, in shots where the character's body is shown but the face is either not visible or shown indistinctly, or in shots where the image of the credited actor's face is joined,...
, specifically a skilled replacement used for dangerous film or video sequences, in movies and television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
(such as jumping out of a building, jumping from vehicle to vehicle, or other similar actions), and for other sophisticated stunts (especially fight scenes). Stunt doubles may be used in cases where an actor's physical condition precludes a great amount of physical activity (such as when the actor is too old to perform extended fight choreography), or when an actor is contractually prohibited from performing stunts. Stunt doubles are sometimes referred to as "stunties".
The terms stunt double and body double may be used interchangeably for cases where special skills (sometimes far from dangerous) are needed, such as dancing (dance double
Dance Double
A dance double is a type of stunt double who steps in and performs the dangerous or physically difficult dance parts of a character's role in film or television....
), playing the piano, or competitive skiing. Stunt doubles should be distinguished from 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, who perform stunts for the sake of the stunt alone, often as a career. It should also be noted that sequences often do not place stunt doubles in the same mortal peril as the characters: for example, harnesses and wires can be digitally edited out of the final film.
Many stunt doubles have happy and long production careers as part of a star actor's contractual "support crew" along with the star's cooks, trainers, dressers, assistants. Often stunt doubles have to look like their respective actors, in order to give keep the character's appearance. Stunt doubles for Eddie Murphy, John Wayne, Harrison Ford, Steve Martin and Michael Landon have been associated with their lead actors for decades.
Non-humans are also known to have "stunt doubles". For example Enzo was the stunt double for his aging sire Moose
Moose (dog actor)
Moose was a veteran canine actor. He was a Jack Russell Terrier and is most famous for his portrayal of Eddie Crane on the television sitcom Frasier.-Early life:...
on the sitcom Frasier
Frasier
Frasier is an American sitcom that was broadcast on NBC for eleven seasons, from September 16, 1993, to May 13, 2004. The program was created and produced by David Angell, Peter Casey, and David Lee in association with Grammnet and Paramount Network Television.A spin-off of Cheers, Frasier stars...
. Soccer
Soccer (dog actor)
Soccer was a Jack Russell terrier dog actor. A veteran of many television commercials for companies like Nike Athletics and Mighty Dog Dog Food, he became famous portraying the talking dog Wishbone in the PBS TV series of the same name...
, the dog
Jack Russell Terrier
The Jack Russell terrier is a small terrier that has its origins in fox hunting. It is principally white-bodied smooth, rough or broken-coated which is commonly confused with the Parson Russell terrier and the Russell terrier with the term "Jack Russell" commonly misapplied to other small white...
who portrayed Wishbone, reportedly hated swimming and therefore had stunt doubles.
Some actors, for example 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...
, 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...
, Bruce Lee
Bruce Lee
Bruce Lee was a Chinese American, Hong Kong actor, martial arts instructor, philosopher, film director, film producer, screenwriter, and founder of the Jeet Kune Do martial arts movement...
, Jet Li
Jet Li
The fame gained by his sports winnings led to a career as a martial arts film star, beginning in mainland China and then continuing into Hong Kong. Li acquired his screen name in 1982 in the Philippines when a publicity company thought his real name was too hard to pronounce...
, 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...
, Donnie Yen
Donnie Yen
Donnie Yen is a Hong Kong actor, martial artist, film director and producer, action choreographer, and world wushu tournament medalist...
, James Garner
James Garner
James Garner is an American film and television actor, one of the first Hollywood actors to excel in both media. He has starred in several television series spanning a career of more than five decades...
, Barrett Snow, 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...
, Johnny Yong Bosch
Johnny Yong Bosch
Johnny Yong Bosch is an American actor, voice actor, martial artist, and musician.He may be best known for portraying Adam Park in Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, and being the English voice of Ichigo Kurosaki in the hit anime series Bleach, Vash the Stampede in Trigun and Lelouch Lamperouge in Code...
, 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....
, Steve McQueen
Steve McQueen
Terrence Steven "Steve" McQueen was an American movie actor. He was nicknamed "The King of Cool." His "anti-hero" persona, which he developed at the height of the Vietnam counterculture, made him one of the top box-office draws of the 1960s and 1970s. McQueen received an Academy Award nomination...
, 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...
, Michelle Yeoh
Michelle Yeoh
Michelle 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....
, Maggie Q
Maggie Q
Margaret Denise Quigley , professionally known as Maggie Q, is an American-born actress and former fashion model. She currently stars as the titular character on the action-thriller TV series Nikita.-Early life:...
, Christopher Lee
Christopher Lee
Sir Christopher Frank Carandini Lee, CBE, CStJ is an English actor and musician. Lee initially portrayed villains and became famous for his role as Count Dracula in a string of Hammer Horror films...
, Jean-Paul Belmondo
Jean-Paul Belmondo
Jean-Paul Belmondo is a French actor initially associated with the New Wave of the 1960s.-Career:Born in Neuilly-sur-Seine, Hauts-de-Seine, west of Paris, Belmondo did not perform well in school, but developed a passion for boxing and football."Did you box professionally very long?" "Not very long...
, Thora Birch
Thora Birch
Thora Birch is an American actress. She was a child actor in the 1990s, starring in movies such as All I Want for Christmas , Patriot Games , Hocus Pocus , Now and Then , and Alaska . She came to prominence in 1999 after earning worldwide attention and praise for her performance in American Beauty...
, Milla Jovovich
Milla Jovovich
Milla Jovovich December 17, 1975)is an American model, actress, musician, and fashion designer. Over her career, she has appeared in a number of science fiction and action-themed films, for which music channel VH1 has referred to her as the "reigning queen of kick-butt".Milla Jovovich began...
, Bridgette Wilson
Bridgette Wilson
Bridgette Leann Wilson-Sampras is an American actress, singer and model. A Miss Teen USA in 1990, Wilson holds several acting roles in television and movies, including the role of Veronica Vaughn in the movie Billy Madison, the role of Elsa Shivers in the movie I Know What You Did Last Summer, and...
, Jason Statham
Jason Statham
Jason Statham born 12 September1967) is an English actor and former diver, known for his roles in the Guy Ritchie crime films Revolver, Snatch and Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels...
, Dolph Lundgren
Dolph Lundgren
Dolph Lundgren is a Swedish actor, director, and martial artist. He belongs to a generation of film actors who epitomise the movie action hero stereotype including Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Bruce Willis, Chuck Norris, Steven Seagal and Jean-Claude Van Damme.A graduate in chemical...
, "Stone Cold" Steve Austin
Stone Cold Steve Austin
Steve Austin , better known by his ring name "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, is an American film and television actor and retired professional wrestler...
, 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....
and Viggo Mortensen
Viggo Mortensen
Viggo Peter Mortensen, Jr. is a Danish-American actor, poet, musician, photographer and painter. He made his film debut in Peter Weir's 1985 thriller Witness, and subsequently appeared in many notable films of the 1990s, including The Indian Runner , Carlito's Way , Crimson Tide , Daylight , The...
, are known to have performed their own stunts. 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...
is particularly famous for doing most of his own stunts, as well as fellow martial arts star and movie partners 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 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...
. 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...
was well known for performing extremely dangerous stunts by himself and was killed while performing a helicopter stunt. Thai martial artist and 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...
performs his own stunts, likewise.