“Venom: The Last Dance” Stunt Coordinator James Churchman on Tom Hardy, Wild Horses and Flying Kids
When he was nine years old, James M. Churchman bought his first motorcycle and started riding the backroads of his native Florida. A few years later, he became a professional stuntman, and by the late nineties, he’d invented a computerized flying system that is still in use today. In the 2000s, Churchman emerged as a ...
“Wolfs” Stunt Coordinator George Cottle on Designing Superlative Stunts For George Clooney & Brad Pitt
For stunt coordinator George Cottle, it started on a warm summer’s day in Los Angeles. He and director Jon Watts were shooting an episode of Star Wars: Skeleton Crew when Watts mentioned a film idea he was developing to star Brad Pitt and George Clooney. Watts asked Cottle if he’d like to be involved. “I’ve ...
“Deadpool & Wolverine” Second Unit Director & Stunt Coordinator George Cottle on Capturing Those Cameos
In the last installment of our conversation with Deadpool & Wolverine’s second unit director and stunt coordinator George Cottle, we covered the hysterical dance/action opening sequence and what it took to shoot the bone-crunching brawl inside a real Honda Odyssey minivan. Smashing box office records on every level—the first R-rated movie to open domestically over $200 ...
“Deadpool & Wolverine” Stunt Coordinator & Second Unit Director George Cottle on the Comically Ultra-Violent Style
“Suck it Fox, I’m going to Disney World!” So declares our favorite fourth-wall-breaking antihero, Deadpool (Ryan Reynolds), in Shawn Levy’s hilariously meta threequel, Deadpool & Wolverine, which is back in the #1 spot domestically for the fourth weekend. With Deadpool’s signature brand of acerbic sarcasm and self-deprecating humor, the raunchy action comedy often references the ...
“Shōgun” Stunt Coordinator Lauro David Chartrand-DelValle on Lady Mariko’s Last Stand
In part one of our conversation with Shōgun’s stunt coordinator and second unit director, Lauro David Chartrand-DelValle, he shared details about the extensive choreography training for the cast and what made Lord Toranaga’s (Hiroyuki Sanada) fighting style distinctive. Now, we turn toward Toranaga’s two allies, the “Anjin,” English sailor John Blackthorne (Cosmo Jarvis), and the ...
The Samurai Sword and the Flaming Arrow: Inside the Stunts of “Shōgun” – Part One
It has been a very busy year for stunt coordinator Lauro David Chartrand-DelValle. Not only is he on one of this season’s most-watched scripted series on broadcast—Tracker on CBS—he is also the second unit director on FX’s critically acclaimed hit, Shōgun. Still maintaining its 99% Rotten Tomatoes score after a 10-week run, the historical saga ...
Defying Death With “Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One” Second Unit Director & Stunt Coordinator Wade Eastwood
“The action evolves with the story — I’m not trying to invent action just to invent the next big stunt. It’s got to be emotionally engaging through action and fit the character,” says second unit director and stunt choreographer Wade Eastwood of Mission: Impossible’s brand of character-driven action choreography. An accomplished fixed-wing and helicopter pilot, Eastwood ...
Best of Summer 2023: “Heart of Stone” Stunt Coordinator Jo McLaren on Taking Gal Gadot to New Heights
Jo McLaren is a longtime stunt professional who has worked on a slew of hit films and TV series, lending her talents to hits as disparate as Titanic, Dr. Who, and the Sherlock Holmes, Harry Potter, and Avengers franchises. As an in-demand stunt coordinator, she has kept productions safe while creating some of the most ...
“Heart of Stone” Stunt Coordinator Jo McLaren on Taking Gal Gadot to New Heights
Jo McLaren is a longtime stunt professional who has worked on a slew of hit films and TV series, lending her talents to hits as disparate as Titanic, Dr. Who, and the Sherlock Holmes, Harry Potter, and Avengers franchises. As an in-demand stunt coordinator, she has kept productions safe while creating some of the most ...
“Fast X” Stunt Coordinator Andy Gill on [Safely] Going Pedal to the Metal
Fast X roared into theaters this past weekend and delivered another pedal-to-the-metal, physics-melting action adventure. Director Louis Leterrier steered the tenth installment, which finds Dominic Torretto (Vin Diesel) and his beloved family of gearheads facing off against a ferocious villain with a passion to burn Dom and the family to the ground. There’s a reason why ...
“The Last Kingdom: Seven Kings Must Die” Stunt Coordinator Levente Lezsák on Orchestrating a Viking Melee
Action buffs who enjoy English history will find much to savor in The Last Kingdom: Seven Kings Must Die. The Netflix epic (now streaming) follows five seasons of The Last Kingdom to chronicle the bloody Battle of Brunanburh in 937 when native Saxons crossed swords with invading Vikings and warriors from Scotland. Both sides suffered ...
“Renfield” Stunt Coordinator Chris Brewster Sinks His Teeth Into Hyperkinetic Action-Comedy
Chris Brewster knows how to make a bloody mess. The stunt coordinator has been making the rounds in Hollywood for over twenty years now and reteams with director Chris McKay on Renfield, following their collaboration on The Tomorrow War (2021), where Brewster served as a fight choreographer. This time around, Brewster sinks his teeth into ...
“John Wick: Chapter 4” Stunt Coordinators on How They Crafted the Craziest “Wick” Yet
Editor’s Note: Leading up to the release of John Wick: Chapter 4 on March 24, 2023, The Credits is publishing a “Wick Week” of content, weaving stories about the film’s fighting style, and cinematography, along with an interview with director Chad Stahelski. Some mild spoilers follow. “No one department works by themselves,” says Scott Rogers, stunt coordinator and ...
Stunt Coordinator Freddie Poole Trades Jabs with Sylvester Stallone in “Tulsa King”
Stunt coordinator Freddie Poole has worked long enough with Sylvester Stallone that, although he may not be able to finish the actor’s sentences, he can sure finish his punches. So when the call came to oversee the action on the Paramount+ series Tulsa King, Poole didn’t hesitate. Stallone stars as Dwight “The General” Manfredi, an ...
“Black Widow” Stunt Coordinator Rob Inch on the Art of Adrenaline
In her swan song as Russian assassin-turned-Avenger Natasha Romanoff, Scarlett Johansson fights her way through Black Widow (opening Friday) on a mission to destroy evil mastermind Dreykov (Ray Winstone) and his network of brainwashed female killers. But first, Natasha has to confront her equally ferocious kid sister Yelena, portrayed by Florence Pugh. (Some light spoilers ...
Going Pedal To The Metal With “F9” Stunt Coordinator Andy Gill
Any mention of the words “fast” and “furious” immediately brings to mind one of film’s most successful franchises. But for stunt coordinator Andy Gill, it’s another word beginning with “f” that makes these movies so special. “Truthfully, it’s the family feeling,” says Gill during a recent Zoom interview. “Fast has become like a big family. ...
From “Black Panther” to “Jeopardy,” Stunt Coordinator & Actor Zee James Hits Her Mark
Zee James is an actress, a stuntwoman and stunt coordinator, and a background performer in movies and on television, ranging from Black Panther and Dolemite is My Name to Bosch and Everybody Hates Chris. She has even demonstrated an entire category of Jeopardy! clues about martial arts. James spoke to us about taking advantage of ...
Emmy-Nominated Stunt Coordinator Hiro Koda Talks “Stranger Things” Action
Stranger Things Season 3 continues to track the bizarre mysteries unfolding in Hawkins, Indiana circa 1985. Blending sci-fi, action, romance, and comedy the Netflix thriller, nominated for eight Emmys this year, embroils plucky kids, led by Eleven (Milly Bobby Brown) in their ongoing quest to bring down the mysterious “Mind Flayer” monster. Meanwhile, Sheriff Jim ...
Meet the Fight Coordinators Who Gave “The Old Guard” Their New Moves
Years before Wonder Woman, Black Panther, and Captain Marvel came out, Charlize Theron set the bar for female action heroes in 2005 when she starred in the sci-fi bloodbath Æon Flux. She followed that with her incredible performance as Furiosa in Mad Max: Fury Road and then as a super-spy more than willing to fight in Atomic ...
Stunt Coordinator Kathy Jarvis Drives the Action in Paramount’s TV Series 68 Whiskey
A television series set on a military base during the height of the Afghan war is where you’ll find one of the best stunt coordinators currently working on television—Kathy Jarvis. Creating the stunts for 68 Whiskey, the Paramount Network comedy/drama about a team of medics battling to save lives while keeping their sanity in the ...
