Summary

• Just like costumes, cinematography, and makeup, stunts are also meticulously designed and deserve Oscar recognition.
• Emily Blunt and Ryan Gosling agree that iconic stunts from films like Mad Max and The Dark Knight deserved Oscar recognition and praise.
• The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences took a positive step towards recognizing stunt performers at the 2024 Oscars but have not introduced an official category for it yet.

Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt, who star in the new movie The Fall Guy, unanimously agree that "stunts deserve an Oscar." Directed by David Leitch (a former stuntman), The Fall Guy is loosely based on the cult-classic '80s series of the same name. The film follows Colt Seavers (Gosling), an underappreciated stuntman who is tasked with tracking down the film's leading star, Tom Ryder (Aaron Taylor-Johnson), to save the shoot and impress his director, Jody Moreno (Emily Blunt).

In an interview with Jake's Takes, the pair were asked about the long-overdue Oscar for Best Stunts, an award that stunt performers have been petitioning for, for years at this point. During the interview, Gosling and Blunt were asked about The Fall Guy signaling that there should be a Best Stunts Oscar by now. Gosling compared stunts to the other major departments in his answer, saying:

"They have deserved an Oscar for a very long time. It is designed, just as much as make-up is designed, or costumes, or the cinematography. The action is designed as well."

The pair were also asked which stunts they've seen which deserve an Oscar. Emily Blunt listed a few films, saying "some of those stunts in Mad Max, that stuff was incredible. The Dark Knight stunts... remember the truck flip? Extraordinary stunts." Ryan Gosling then brought up the most prominent actor that does all his own stunts... Tom Cruise. "What about Tom Cruise," Gosling said, "going on the motorcycle over the mountain?" The interviewer then asked about the prospect of Tom Cruise winning his first Oscar for stunts, to which Blunt simply said, "Tom Cruise deserves to win an Oscar. What a legacy that guy has."

Emily Blunt and Ryan Gosling made an appearance at the 2024 Academy Awards, promoting The Fall Guy, and presenting a special commemoration for stunt performers. While it wasn't a direct award, many agreed it was a step in the right direction for the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

Many Directors and Performers Have Petitioned for a Best Stunt Oscar

The release of John Wick: Chapter 4 in 2023 re-ignited the petition for stunt performers to receive an Oscars category, recognizing their hard (often life-threatening) work. Speaking to ComicBookMovie.com in 2023, the film's director, Chad Stahelski (another former stunt performer), said that conversations had taken place between the Academy and stunt coordinators. Stahelski said an Oscar for stunts "can happen as soon as, you know, the next Oscars, or at least the one after that. At the latest, the next three or four years."

Emily Blunt and Ryan Gosling are just two of many actors and directors that agree stunt performers deserve an Oscars category. Extraction star Chris Hemsworth, Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part 1 director Christopher McQuarrie, and Indiana Jones himself, Harrison Ford, have all publicly stated that stunt performers are underappreciated in the industry and deserve an award category at the Oscars.

One of the major selling points of The Fall Guy is the insane stunt work that David Leitch and his stunt coordinator, Keir Beck, have packed the movie with. The first trailers highlight the death-defying abilities of the film's stunt team (including Logan Holladay, Chris OHara, and Ben Jenkin). The Fall Guy will likely add more fuel to the Best Stunts Oscar fire when it releases this May.

The Fall Guy crashes into cinemas on May 2, 2024