9 Action Stars Who Risked It All Doing Their Own Stunts in the 2020s!

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As a movie enthusiast, I can’t help but appreciate the adrenaline-pumping action scenes that make films so thrilling. However, it’s essential to remember that these stunts are potentially risky, which is why we rely on skilled professionals for the high-octane sequences. The art of stunt work has been a cinematic mainstay since the dawn of film (take a look at Buster Keaton), but it wasn’t until 96 years later that the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences decided to honor this vital craft with a Stunt Design category for the Oscars.

Despite being challenging and costly, some performers feel compelled to go beyond the norms. They see it as an honor to showcase in films that they’ve executed certain daring stunts themselves. Naturally, there’s a great deal of preparation involved in actors performing their own stunts, which often causes apprehension among studios, but the end result can be truly remarkable.

Here are 9 a-list action stars who have performed their own stunts this decade.

9
Charlize Theron in ‘The Old Guard’ (2020)

Actress Charlize Theron is well-versed in executing her own stunts. In 2017, she took on numerous stunts for the action movie ‘Atomic Blonde’. Now, her recent stunt work can be seen in ‘The Old Guard’. Fight coordinator Danny Hernandez has commended Theron’s dedication, revealing that she trained tirelessly, five days a week for four months, to prepare for her role as an immortal mercenary. As Hernandez put it, “I admire Charlize’s fervor for martial arts and the ideologies that surround it.

Injuries on the Job

Despite thorough preparation and rehearsals, stunt work remains risky, as evidenced by Theron’s multiple injuries while filming The Old Guard. To put it simply, she sustained a few mishaps during production, such as an elbow injury in one of the fight scenes, occasional knee discomfort, but her thumb was particularly affected. As Hernandez shared with Business Insider, the thumb injury happened when Theron blocked a punch. In one of the stunt sequences, she accidentally struck her hand and severely jammed her thumb against one of the stunt performers.

8
Liu Yifei in ‘Mulan’ (2020)

Liu Yifei was chosen to play the leading role in Disney’s live-action version of Mulan following a global hunt for an actor capable of embodying both the faithful daughter and valiant warrior adored by fans of the original animated film. Director Niki Caro sought an actor ready to train like a soldier, a requirement that Yifei fulfilled without hesitation.

Yifei Did 90% of Her Own Stunts

According to Caro, speaking with Entertainment Weekly, the ground fighting scenes you see involving [Yifei] are entirely her without any assistance from wires or stunt performers. Mandy Walker, the cinematographer, echoes this statement in an interview with Business Insider. In fact, while a stunt person was always present during filming, Yifei herself trained extensively and managed to execute the fight scenes more than nine times out of ten.

7
Dwayne Johnson in ‘Red Notice’ (2021)

Tanoai Reed has served as Dwayne Johnson’s stunt double for an impressive two decades and is highly respected within the industry. However, this doesn’t stop Johnson from taking on stunts himself. In fact, in 2023, Johnson proudly posted a photo of him executing a daring jump on the set of “Red Notice,” boasting about the thrilling stunts they performed during filming: “We had a blast doing some wild, exhilarating stunts for this one!

WWE to the Big Screen

Previously a professional wrestler for the WWE, Johnson first stepped into the world of feature films as The Scorpion King in “The Mummy Returns” (2001). Since then, he has appeared in more than 25 action and adventure movies.

6
Tom Holland in ‘Uncharted’ (2022)

As a cinephile, I’ve always been captivated by Tom Holland’s athleticism. You might recall him effortlessly performing an impromptu flip on the beach in the film “The Impossible” way back in 2015, three years before he donned the Spider-Man suit. Fast forward to 2022, and he graced our screens as Nathan Drake, a bartender who turned out to be an action-adventure treasure hunter in the movie “Uncharted”.

The Hardest Stunt He’s Ever Done

In the film “Uncharted”, Tom Holland executed the most challenging stunt he had ever attempted in his career. The actor openly acknowledges that perfecting the plane sequence required numerous months of hard work and preparation. As Holland put it, “At a certain point, you simply can’t hold on any longer.” Despite the use of blue screens and special effects, the physical demands placed on Holland during this scene were considerable, and the outcome is truly remarkable.

5
Michelle Yeoh in ‘Everything Everywhere All at Once’ (2022)

Michelle Yeoh has consistently performed her own stunts in movies over an extended period, and this pattern continued with her role in ‘Everything Everywhere All at Once’. Speaking to Variety, Yeoh mentioned that while she was comfortable with the choreography and execution of the fights, the unique props used in this film presented a challenge. “The challenging aspect,” she said, “was keeping a straight face during scenes like the one involving the butt plug fight.

Yeoh’s Favorite Fight Scene

In her opinion, the prolonged fight scene involving the use of a butt-plug stands out as her favorite, describing it as incredibly enjoyable. She explains, “It felt like being on a rollercoaster, with each twist and turn being unexpectedly thrilling.

4
Keanu Reeves in ‘John Wick: Chapter 4’ (2023)

Since 2014, Keanu Reeves has played the lead in a total of four ‘John Wick’ movies. The upcoming sequel, titled ‘John Wick: Chapter 4’, required him to undergo an extensive training regimen for a period of four months. According to the actor himself, this installment promises more action than any previous films in the franchise.

Doing A Reverse-180

Although the film features a lot of close-quarter fighting, Keanu Reeves managed to introduce innovative car stunts in the production. He shared with Total Film that there were spins (180s), spinning while reversing (forward-into-reverse 180s), and even reversing while spinning (reverse into-forward 270s). Plus, he added drifting as well. Essentially, he enjoyed the opportunity to learn these new stunt skills and perform them in the film.

3
Anya Taylor-Joy in ‘Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga’ (2024)

On the set of ‘Mad Max: Fury Road’, acting was demanding for Charlize Theron. Later on, Anya Taylor-Joy assumed the challenge playing the younger version of Furiosa in the prequel, ‘Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga’. Taylor-Joy was incredibly dedicated to her role, and at times, director George Miller couldn’t tell her and her stunt double, Hayley Wright, apart.

Climbing Across a Truck

In a particular scene involving Taylor-Joy scaling a war rig and breaking through the front window, Miller was initially taken aback by how authentic the stunt double appeared…until he figured out it wasn’t the double at all. After discussing this with the stunt coordinator, Miller learned that Taylor-Joy herself was performing the dangerous feat. “This occurred quite frequently,” Miller shared with GQ.

2
Florence Pugh in ‘Thunderbolts*’ (2025)

In the movie “Black Widow,” Florence Pugh demonstrated she’s got the skills for action roles. For her comeback in the upcoming “Thunderbolts” film, however, the actor aimed to raise the stakes even higher. This involved executing a daring stunt that made the filmmakers anxious. The scene required her character to leap from the world’s second-tallest building – the Merdeka 118 tower in Malaysia.

Convincing Filmmakers To Let Her Do It

The studio initially considered it a challenging task, perhaps even a hassle, to have her leap from a building. However, Pugh persistently pushed for the daredevil act, and eventually they agreed. In an interview with Fandango, Pugh expressed, “I do enjoy jumping from heights…” She further explained, “But this was a whole new level.” Pugh was taken aback by how serene she felt after each attempt and confessed to sleeping deeply following stunt work.

1
Tom Cruise in ‘Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning’ (2025)

Few celebrities are as renowned for performing their own death-defying feats as Tom Cruise. From riding motorcycles, scaling skyscrapers, and leaping from helicopters, it came as no shock when Cruise executed his own stunt for the newest Mission: Impossible movie. In The Final Reckoning, this 62-year-old actor daringly hung off the wing of a biplane.

Battling Wind on the Wing of a Plane

As a movie enthusiast, I’d put it this way: “I was captivated by the stunning backdrop of South Africa, where we filmed under the post-rainy season greenery, and boy, it was windy! Director Christopher McQuarrie shared with GQ that the wind gusts were over a hundred miles an hour. There were moments when Tom Cruise had to lie down on the wing for a break between takes. It was hard to tell if he was even awake.” Communication during these intense sequences was done through hand signals; a pat on his head meant we needed to halt production.

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2025-05-28 00:36