IN FOCUSBIG INTERVIEW
“IF YOU
GO INTO
A STUNT
HALF-
HEARTED,
YOU'RE
GOING TO
GET HURT”
and I had to hang out the door of a helicopter while Tom Cruise was
standing on Tate Modern over my shoulder – that was pretty cool.”MF Physical demands aside, the stunts you’ve just mentioned must also require
nerves of steel, but do you ever get scared before a shoot?
BHH “I would be lying to say if I didn’t feel cautious and nervous sometimes, but
that soon turns to adrenaline when you’re fi lming. Th e element of the unknown
makes me focus, so a bit of fear isn’t a bad thing, and it’s always well worth it
when you watch a stunt back and see how good it looks on screen. A bit of fear,
or doubt, or nerves keeps you on your toes and ensures you give it 110 per cent.
If you go into a stunt half-hearted, you're going to get hurt. Saying that, there’s
no avoiding a bit of pain sometimes.”MF How long does it take you to fi lm, say, a fi ve-minute sequence?
BHH “It’s a fairly complex process. Sequences we’ve done that have lasted fi ve
minutes in the movie have taken three or four weeks to fi lm.”MF Th e fi lm industry has changed a lot since you started out, most obviously
with huge advancements in CGI. How have these tech changes aff ected the role
of the stunt performer?
BHH “You’re always going to need a human to perform certain stunts, because
you want the scene to look real. You need the human element to articulate the
movements, and CGI comes in to enhance those scenes. I think if anything,
CGI helps because it can make the moves I perform look even better.”MF Performing the stunts is one thing, but presumably you wouldn’t be
working with the likes of Chris Hemsworth if you didn’t look the part, too.
How do you bulk up to match the size of a character like Th or?