Stunt double
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| Occupation | |
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| Names | Stunt double, body double, dubbie, batemen |
Activity sectors | Entertainment |
| Description | |
| Competencies | Physical fitness, daring, and acting skills. |
Related jobs | Body double, stunt performer, stunt coordinator, actor, movie star, extra |
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 dubs 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 daredevils, who perform stunts for the sake of the stunt alone, often as a career. 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 long production careers as part of a star actor's contractual "support crew" along with the star's cooks, trainers, dressers, and assistants. Often stunt doubles have to look like their respective actors, in order to keep the character's appearance. Stunt doubles for Eddie Murphy, John Wayne, Harrison Ford, Steve Martin, Salman Khan 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 are known to have performed their own stunts. Jackie Chan is particularly famous for doing most of his own stunts, as are fellow martial arts star and movie partners Yuen Biao and Sammo Hung. Indian actor, Jayan was well known for performing extremely dangerous stunts by himself and was killed while performing a helicopter stunt. Akshay Kumar is also famous for doing all of his own stunts and has done a lot of dangerous stunts. Thai martial artist and actor Tony Jaa performs his own stunts, likewise.