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After three decades, the stunt community is finally getting its due, after the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced the creation of a new competitive category for achievement in stunt design.
“It validated the whole stunt community,” stunt designer Chris O’Hara told Variety.
Stunt coordinator Jack Gill has been campaigning for an Oscar for stunts as far back as 1991, and as stunts became more elaborate and pushed groundbreaking boundaries on screen, conversations grew and talks continued around the stunt Oscar being overdue. Most recently, David Leitch (“Deadpool 2,” “Bullet Train”), a former stunt coordinator turned director, along with his producing partner and wife, Kelly McCormick and O’Hara, were among those leading key presentations with the Academy. Just last year, O’Hara, also vice president of Stunts Unlimited, landed the first-ever credit of “stunt designer” in “The Fall Guy,” after earning approval from the Screen Actors Guild and Directors Guild of America.
O’Hara spoke with Variety about what he hopes the new category will mean for the stunt community and the general viewing audience.
What has the reaction been from other members of the stunt community?
We had a meeting, and I went to a doctor’s appointment. I didn’t expect anything, and then my phone was on fire: texting, emails, phone calls and Instagram messages. It’s great that the Academy posted that information and did the press release because it validated the whole stunt community. It’s nice to have been the voice to help educate people within the Academy as far as what we do as a profession. I’m excited for the movies in 2027, it’s going to be amazing.
This has been a work in progress, going back to Jack Gill in the 1990s, and most recently, the ‘stunt design’ title was recognized last year, so how does it feel?
The term “stunt designer” and getting credited with that was only a little over a year ago, but that title encompasses what we really do.
It was about trying to educate people that we’re not just a stunt guy or stunt coordinator, we are actually out there designing these sequences.
We’re on films early in pre-production, and sometimes we’re one of the first five people hired. So that tile was more about opening the eyes to the world that stunts has a design aspect, it’s creative and it’s an art. It is one of those disciplines that is an art as well as a science.
You finally got it across the finish line.
Yes, David and I really pushed and worked hard to get this there. But none of this would have been possible without the groundwork that Jack Gill has done for three decades to get this across the line.
Gregg Smrz is another stunt coordinator who has worked tirelessly to try and do everything he can. So all of their work helped us get to where we are today, and it’s just great to not only get it across the finish line for the stunt community, but also get along across the finish line for people like that that have worked so long to try and get this going. So that’s one thing I want to recognize. You don’t just go into a place like the Academy and expect to get stuff done. We had a great team helping us navigate this. The governor of our branch, which represents stunt designers in the academy, is Wendy Aylsworth, and she had a pivotal role in this. Bill Kramer was a supporter and helped us navigate this. It’s like when you’re working on a stunt design, it’s not just one guy, it’s the whole team, and we had a great team.
With the Academy’s recognition of this category, what do you hope the general public will learn about the craft of stunts?
What I hope will happen is that we’re going to bring more light on a larger scale to what stunt designers do. They’re going to see their sequences, and studios are going to promote these films just as they promote best actor, best director, and all those things.
It’s going to gain more eyes on it. This is the pinnacle, if there is going to be a stunt design movie that is up for an Academy Award, it has to be outstanding. It’s not just about gratuitous action sequences, it’s something that is driven, that works together with all the departments. It’s seamless and drives the story.
I know this journey took a while, but can you see the category expanding to individual performers at some point down the line?
I don’t think the Academy Awards are the place. It’s to celebrate the design of the movie.
The Red Bull Taurus awards have been a huge supporter for us for many years, and that’s where the individuals get recognized. The goal is to just recognize stunt design, and I think we’ve educated people within the Academy as far as what we do, and I think it’s the perfect spot, the perfect timing and perfect title.
This interview has been edited and condensed.
