Stunts – Below the Line

John Wick: Chapter 4 Stunt Coordinator Stephen Dunlevy on Working With Keanu Reeves and What Sets the Action Franchise Apart

March 22, 2023 Daniel Eagan Comments Off

Keanu Reeves crosses paths with new foes as well as some familiar faces in John Wick: Chapter 4, the latest installment in a franchise that has redefined the action genre. This time around, Wick’s desperate attempt to clear his name from a High Table contract sends him to far-off encounters in Jordan, Osaka, Berlin, and Paris. Ian McShane and Laurence Fishburne return alongside Reeves, who is joined by franchise newcomers […]

Tulsa King Stunt Coordinator Freddie Poole on Doubling Sylvester Stallone, Planning Car Chases, and Getting His Start With Chuck Norris

February 7, 2023 Abe Friedtanzer Comments Off

The Paramount+ series Tulsa King stars Sylvester Stallone as a mobster who is newly released from prison and summarily exiled from New York to Tulsa, Oklahoma, where violence quickly finds him. The crime drama required extensive stunt work for its many action sequences, and, fortunately, they had just the right man for the job, as Freddie Poole has been working as Stallone’s stunt double for the past decade and change […]

Awards

Below the Line’s Awards Season Film, Television Craft Interview Round-Up

December 24, 2022 Edward Douglas Comments Off

Now that it’s late December, we’re fully into the awards season where crafts people in the industry get to nominate their colleagues in various below-the-line categories. Unlike the past few years, we’re including both television and film craft here, because many of the guilds and societies will be nominating for their annual awards, which include both film and television. You can also get a quick reminder of some of our […]

Violent Night Stunt Coordinator Jonathan “Jojo” Eusebio on Training David Harbour to Deliver Season’s Beatings, and His Love for Hong Kong Action Movies

December 21, 2022 Daniel Eagan Comments Off

What’s Santa Claus doing sitting in a dingy bar? “The whole planet runs on greed,” he complains to patrons before downing another shot and lamenting the long, reindeer-led journey ahead. Later that evening, he will encounter a family held hostage by Christmas-hating crooks. Before the night is over, Santa will prove once and for all whether the stories about him are true. Directed by Tommy Wirkola (Netflix’s The Trip, the […]

Watch Tom Cruise Practice the “Biggest Stunt in Cinema History” in Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One Featurette

December 19, 2022 Jeff Sneider Comments Off

It’s not a bird or a plane… it’s Tom Cruise. After delivering the highest-grossing film of the year with Top Gun: Maverick, the world’s most fearless action star returns to the big screen next summer in Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One, which finds him performing yet another death-defying stunt, as seen in the behind-the-scenes featurette below. Written and directed by Christopher McQuarrie, who directed the most recent two […]

The Woman King Stuntwoman Jénel Stevens on Doubling Viola Davis and the Importance of Having Proper Rehearsal Time

October 19, 2022 Daniel Eagan Comments Off

The continued box office success of The Woman King is, first and foremost, a tribute to its star, Viola Davis. The film has grossed $76 million worldwide to date, and it has been Davis’ commitment to the project — both in her portrayal as the Agojie warrior Nanisca and as the film’s producer — that has impressed moviegoers around the world. Directed by Gina Prince-Bythewood, the film’s hard-hitting battle sequences […]

Peacemaker Stunt Coordinator Gaston Morrison on Exploding Cows, Human Torpedoes, and Staging Comedic Action

August 19, 2022 Abe Friedtanzer Comments Off

HBO Max‘s Peacemaker, a spinoff series built around John Cena‘s character from The Suicide Squad, officially brought the DC Extended Universe to television, and the superhero show’s first season required a tremendous amount of work from Stunt Coordinators Gaston Morrison and Wayne Dalglish, who received the series’ sole Emmy nomination. Below the Line recently spoke to Morrison — Dalglish couldn’t join because he was on set — who discussed the […]

Bullet Train Stunt Coordinator and 2nd Unit Director Greg Rementer on Prepping the Star-Studded Cast for Crazy Fight Scenes

August 12, 2022 Edward Douglas Comments Off

David Leitch’s Bullet Train pulled into theaters this past weekend, pitting Brad Pitt against a cadre of assassins played by Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Brian Tyree Henry, Joey King, and Bad Bunny, among others, all while riding a fast-moving train through Japan. As has become the norm with Leitch’s films, which include the first John Wick, Deadpool 2, and Atomic Blonde, the action plays an incredibly important role. Leitch knows the importance of […]

Reacher Supervising Stunt Coordinator Buster Reeves on How to Stage a Knife Fight on a Fire Escape, Plus That Epic Prison Brawl

June 21, 2022 Daniel Eagan Comments Off

Bestselling author Lee Child has written more than 20 books about Jack Reacher, a former Army MP who is a magnet for trouble, and the character has built an enormous following. In fact, two Reacher novels were previously adapted into Tom Cruise vehicles. Fans who have been begging for a more physically accurate version of Child’s hero had their prayers answered with Amazon Prime’s eponymous series Reacher. The first thing […]

The Year’s Most Anticipated Movies From a Below-the-Line Perspective

March 11, 2022 Jeff Sneider Comments Off

The Batman and Scream were my two most anticipated movies of the year, and with the former currently playing in theaters and the latter now available On Demand, it’s time to turn our attention to my other Most Anticipated Movies of the Year, albeit with a below-the-line twist this time around. Rather than simply discuss the movies I can’t wait to see, I thought I’d highlight the crafts and below-the-line […]