
After decades of pushing, stunts will get their own Oscar
After more than three decades of lobbying — and countless bruises and broken bones — Hollywood's stunt community will finally be recognized at the Oscars.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced Thursday that it will introduce a new competitive category for achievement in stunt design, with the first award to be presented in 2028 at the 100th Oscars, honoring films released in 2027. The new Oscar for stunts follows last year's announcement of an award for casting directors — the first new category added in more than two decades, which will debut at the 98th Academy Awards next year.
'Since the early days of cinema, stunt design has been an integral part of filmmaking,' Academy CEO Bill Kramer and Academy President Janet Yang said in a joint statement. 'We are proud to honor the innovative work of these technical and creative artists, and we congratulate them for their commitment and dedication in reaching this momentous occasion.'
For Hollywood's stunt community, the announcement marks a historic milestone in a decades-long push for recognition. In 1991, veteran stunt coordinator Jack Gill began lobbying for an Oscar for stunts, securing the support of the likes of Steven Spielberg, Martin Scorsese, Brad Pitt and Arnold Schwarzenegger for the idea. But while stunt performers are honored each year at the Emmy Awards and the Screen Actors Guild Awards, academy leaders long turned down calls to recognize stunts either on Oscars night or at its untelevised Scientific and Technical Awards. (The three exceptions: Stunt performer Yakima Canutt received an honorary Academy Award in 1967 for developing safety devices for stuntmen, while stuntman-turned-director Hal Needham and Hong Kong action star and stunt pioneer Jackie Chan received lifetime achievement Oscars in 2012 and 2016, respectively.)
Read more: It's time for an Oscar for stunts. 'The Fall Guy' is the best argument for it
With stunts in blockbusters like "Mad Max: Fury Road" and franchises like "Mission: Impossible" and "Fast and Furious" growing ever more elaborate, backers argued that Oscar recognition was long overdue. 'There is no other department head in the movie business that has that kind of pressure where people's lives are at stake,' Gill told The Times last year. 'Stunt performers don't want to be actors and walk the red carpet and all of that. What they want is to be acknowledged among their peers for doing something that involves real blood, sweat and tears.'
That campaign had recently been spearheaded by director David Leitch, a former stunt performer and coordinator who has since helmed action hits like "Deadpool 2," "Bullet Train" and "John Wick." Alongside his producing partner and wife Kelly McCormick at their 87North Productions banner, Leitch worked with Chris O'Hara, a stunt coordinator and designer with Stunts Unlimited, and others to make presentations to the academy, according to people familiar with the process.
With last summer's action-comedy "The Fall Guy," Leitch said he aimed to make a movie that would celebrate and showcase the craft and ingenuity of the stunt world, including a record-setting "cannon roll" that saw a Jeep Cherokee complete eight and a half revolutions, more than any previous film. By labeling O'Hara's work on "The Fall Guy" as 'stunt design' rather than coordination — a subtle but significant shift — the filmmakers mirrored other crafts long recognized by the academy, such as costume and production design.
In a statement following the announcement, Leitch pointed to the critical role that stunts have played in cinematic spectacle throughout film history.
'Stunts are essential to every genre of film and rooted deep in our industry's history — from the groundbreaking work of early pioneers like Buster Keaton, Harold Lloyd and Charlie Chaplin, to the inspiring artistry of today's stunt designers, coordinators, performers and choreographers," Leitch said. "This has been a long journey for so many of us. Chris O'Hara and I have spent years working to bring this moment to life, standing on the shoulders of the stunt professionals who've fought tirelessly for recognition over the decades. We are incredibly grateful."
Though advocates for a stunt category long argued it could help boost ratings for the Oscar telecast, some academy insiders had previously maintained that there were simply too few stunt professionals in the organization to justify their own category. But over the past decade, the organization has tripled the number of stunt professionals in its ranks to more than 100. In 2023, the academy moved stunt coordinators, who had previously been categorized as members at large, into a newly created production and technology branch that also houses assorted technical and production positions including chief technology officers, script supervisors, choreographers and music supervisors.
For the stunt community, the lack of Oscar recognition had become a source of increasingly bitter frustration, starkly highlighted by Quentin Tarantino's 2019 film "Once Upon a Time ... in Hollywood," which finally landed Pitt an Oscar for his turn as a grizzled 1960s stuntman.
'That was the big uproar — you can get an Academy Award for pretending to be a stunt guy, but you can't get an Academy Award for actually being one,' O'Hara, who oversaw the stunt department on 'The Fall Guy' and previously worked on films including 'Jurassic World' and 'Baby Driver," told The Times last year.
In a signal the tide was turning, last year's Oscars included a special tribute to the stunt community, presented by "Fall Guy" stars Emily Blunt and Ryan Gosling and produced by Leitch and McCormick. 'They've been such a crucial part of our industry since the beginning of cinema,' Gosling told the crowd to warm applause between riffs with Blunt about their 'Barbenheimer' feud. 'To the stunt performers and the stunt coordinators who help make movies magic, we salute you.'
Rules around eligibility and voting for the new stunt award will be released in 2027, and details on how the award will be presented are still to be determined.
Sign up for Indie Focus, a weekly newsletter about movies and what's going on in the wild world of cinema.
This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Forbes
37 minutes ago
- Forbes
A Big New Update About ‘Dept. Q' Season 2 From Netflix
Dept Q. One of Netflix's best shows in a bit is Dept. Q, the Matthew Goode thriller based on a series of books that examines cold cases and the detective's own personality defects. The show has gotten great critic and audience scores, but viewership analysis is inconclusive, and while there is cast excitement about potentially getting a season 2, we haven't seen anything from the Netflix side. Until now. TVLine reports that Netflix has now submitted Dept. Q into the Emmy race for Best Drama Series. The show landed just two days before the cut-off for submission, and Netflix submitted it just under the wire. It's similar to the late release of Baby Reindeer, the limited series that went on to win a slew of Emmys. I have my doubts that in an incredibly crowded year that includes Severance, The Pitt, White Lotus, The Last of Us and even Andor that Dept. Q would land the award. Or if Matthew Goode would get a statue over say, The Pitt's Noah Wyle. But that's not the point. The point is that if Netflix is submitting this series for Emmy consideration, it thinks the show is high-quality, and that is a clear indication of a second season renewal. It's difficult to cite a Netflix series submitted for an Emmy like this that ended up cancelled after that happened. I can't think of one. If it happened, it was likely a show that had already run for multiple seasons. Dept Q Given all this information, I would expect to hear about a season 2 renewal for Dept. Q any day now. As a further update, here's the Dept. Q showrunner Scott Frank, who previously did the monster hit The Queen's Gambit for Netflix, on the prospect of a second season: 'I've got a great idea for a second season. It is another cold case and also a current case, at the same time, that they're looking into. So, I would do that.' However, he may slim down the episode count next time: 'I might just do six next time. We'll see. But I do know what I want to do next. I do have the story in mind for the next season.' I would agree that nine episodes may have stretched out the first season a little too long, even as I would often complain that many shows have gotten too short. For a series like this, it just felt a little prolonged. But of course, overall it was a great first season, and everyone is excited to see more. And there will almost certainly be more now, based on this recent development. Follow me on Twitter, YouTube, Bluesky and Instagram. Pick up my sci-fi novels the Herokiller series and The Earthborn Trilogy.


Entrepreneur
an hour ago
- Entrepreneur
Inside Giada De Laurentiis's Deal With Amazon
Celebrity chef Giada De Laurentiis discusses turning a two-minute demo into a two-decade career, going all-in on content and commerce and what she's building next with Amazon. Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own. Giada De Laurentiis didn't set out to become famous. She wasn't chasing TV deals or dreaming of launching a digital brand. When Food Network first asked her to submit an audition tape, she resisted. "I just wanted a job so I didn't have to rely on my family," she tells Restaurant Influencers host Shawn Walchef. The camera saw something she hadn't planned for. So did the culture. Before the Emmy Awards and restaurant openings, De Laurentiis was a quiet kid in a very loud family. Born in Rome and raised in Los Angeles, she grew up in a household where tradition mattered, and heritage wasn't negotiable. Related: These College Friends Wanted to Sell Better Food. Now, Their Company Is Publicly Traded. Her grandfather was a towering presence. A pasta maker turned film producer, he brought the whole family to the United States, chasing the promise of success in Hollywood. Their world was a fusion of food and film. De Laurentiis remembers afternoons spent at her grandfather's Italian food hall, watching customers marvel at imported cheeses, hanging salamis and ingredients they had never seen before. This was long before Italian food had gone mainstream in America. The experience was immersive, almost theatrical. It left an imprint. She didn't know it at the time, but those after-school visits would shape how she thought about food, emotion and hospitality. What drew people in wasn't just the flavor. It was the feeling and the story. "I wanted to do something that created that same reaction," she says, thinking back to how guests responded to her grandfather's markets. Even as she studied food anthropology, trained in Paris and worked in fine dining, the storytelling instinct never left — it was part of her DNA. And when she finally said yes to a taped audition, it showed. "I honestly had no desire to be in front of the camera," she admits. "There was no plan." Everyday Italian became a breakout hit. But in De Laurentiis's mind, the goal was never stardom: it was independence and self-definition. Related: Fans Are Tattooing This Pizza Brand's Logo on Their Skin for a Year of Free Slices Building her Giadzy brand Giadzy, the lifestyle brand De Laurentiis launched in 2016, started as a simple blog. It's now a curated marketplace, media hub and ecommerce platform that reflects her take on Italian living: simple meals, joyful hospitality and stories that matter. With recipe kits, travel tips and premium pantry staples sourced from Italy, Giadzy is a direct extension of De Laurentiis's upbringing and personal ethos. That foundation has positioned her for bigger moves. She recently partnered with Amazon on both a digital storefront and a new multi-year Amazon Studios unscripted series deal for Prime Video. She and Amazon are blending content and commerce in a way that lets her audience go from watching to cooking to shopping — all in the same digital space. At the same time, she's expanding her restaurant footprint. De Laurentiis's Las Vegas location just passed the 10-year mark, a major milestone anywhere, let alone on the Strip. When she opened it, the Vegas dining scene was overwhelmingly male-led. As one of the few women stepping into that space with her name on the marquee, many doubted she would last. She didn't just last — she built something that redefined what Vegas dining could feel like. Related: This Chef Lost His Restaurant the Week Michelin Called. Now He's Made a Comeback By Perfecting One Recipe. She's now bringing the same approach to Chicagoland, where she's launching two new restaurants: Sorellina and Sorella. One casual, one elevated. Both are designed to feel warm, bright and inviting — no moody steakhouses or overdone menus, just intentional design and food that speaks. "I'm not trying to do what everyone else is doing," De Laurentiis says. "I'm trying to create places that feel like me." That's what her brand has always been about. Not chasing trends, but staying rooted in something deeper. "I don't know what I'm doing half the time," she laughs. "But I keep learning. And that's what keeps me going." About Restaurant Influencers Restaurant Influencers is brought to you by Toast, the powerful restaurant point-of-sale and management system that helps restaurants improve operations, increase sales and create a better guest experience. Toast — Powering Successful Restaurants. Learn more about Toast. Restaurant Influencer is also supported by NEXT INSURANCE. See why 600,000+ U.S. businesses trust NEXT for insurance. Related: How a Spot on 'The Montel Williams Show' Sparked a Restaurant Power Brand for This Miami Chef


Forbes
an hour ago
- Forbes
TV Academy 2025 Hall Of Fame Honorees: Viola Davis, Don Mischer, Ryan Murphy, Conan O'Brien, Mike Post And Henry Winkler
Viola Davis, Don Mischer, Ryan Murphy, Conan O'Brien, Mike Post and Henry Winker will be This latest roster of inductees, all previous Emmy Award winners, will be inducted into the Television Academy Hall of Fame at the inaugural Televerse festival, which will take place August 14 to 16 at the JW Marriott at L.A. LIVE in Los Angeles, California. Organized for both industry insiders and fans of television, The Televerse festival is designed to offer fans and voters 'unprecedented access' to Emmy-nominated series. 'These trailblazing performers, creators and producers have left an indelible mark on our industry,' said Cris Abrego, chair of the Television Academy in a statement. 'Their groundbreaking work has shaped and elevated the television landscape in profound ways. We are honored to welcome these legends into the Hall of Fame and to recognize their exceptional contributions to the evolution of television.' 'All six honorees have elevated the art of storytelling and have had an extraordinary influence on television culture and history,' noted Rick Rosen, chair of the Hall of Fame Selection Committee. 'Their transformative leadership and innovative work have made a lasting impact on the medium, and the Television Academy is proud to honor their legacy.' Since its inception in 1984, more than 150 individuals have been honored by the Television Academy, which originated in that inaugural year with honors bestowed to Lucille Ball, Milton Berle, screenwriter Paddy Chayefsky, producer Norman Lear, newscaster Edward R. Murrow, and executives William S. Paley and David Charnoff.