No rush.
Four decades after its TV heyday, 1980s classic The Fall Guy will land in cinemas in May 2024 as a Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt-starring adventure. It's one of the most-anticipated films of the year.
The Fall Guy follows stuntman Colt Seavers (Gosling) as he is tasked with finding wayward A-lister Tom Ryder (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) for director Jody Moreno (Blunt) - who just happens to be Seavers' former love interest.
Directing The Fall Guy is David Leitch, a legendary stuntman who has already stepped behind the lens to helm John Wick, Atomic Blonde, Deadpool 2, Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw and Bullet Train. The Fall Guy comes to screens via Leitch and his co-producer and wife Kelly McCormick's company, 87North.
When RTÉ Entertainment spoke to Leitch at the end of 2023, he was buzzing about the film he has in the can. Here's what he told us:
Harry Guerin: I have this romantic idea that when you were growing up in Wisconsin, your entire life was mapped out by seeing The Fall Guy on TV. Is there an element of truth to that?
David Leitch: There's a little bit! It was one of the shows that influenced me in my subconscious that I wanted to come to live the life of Colt Seavers! I think there's a lot of influences from that time - the Lethal Weapons and the Die Hards and the MacGyvers and all the action shows of that era and action movies of that era have sort of influenced my work and my life. I mean, I came to make movies! So yeah, The Fall Guy certainly lit the fuse for a lot of stunt people of my generation.
What have you carried through from the TV series to the movie?
Ryan and the team and I, we created a slightly different character. He's a little more contemporary character and we draw on a lot of our experiences - my 25 years of being a stunt performer was probably different than the 80s experience, that Colt Seavers at the time. So there's a little modernised version of this guy, but he is sort of underestimated all the time. He's an underdog, it's kind of a Rocky story. He's always taking down the bad guys. He's taking down the 1%, you know? A working-class hero!
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There's an Irish expression called 'notions' - people getting ideas above their station. Naming no names, but when you were working on film sets as a stunt performer, how often would the eyebrows raise ever so slightly between you and your fellow stuntpeople?
[Laughs] Quite often! Look, it is this thing: stuntpeople are underestimated and are sometimes seen as, well, you know, disposable. 'Throw him down a stairs - he's just a meathead anyway! Whatever. Get another stuntman in here - throw him down the stairs!' But the real fact of the matter, and one of the things I wanted to highlight, is they're actually a really smart group of people who have an incredible skill set. They don't want the spotlight. They actually really enjoy what they're doing and they love making movies and they love their craft.
But, yes, constantly underestimated - just like Colt is in this movie. It's like the song from The Fall Guy, The Unknown Stuntman, he made people look good for years. And maybe, again, there's a chance for some recognition, but it isn't necessary for us as a whole. We're the unsung heroes. They're not jaded. They actually f****** love their jobs and they like being under the radar! We really do!
Given the number of TV shows that have made the jump to the big screen ahead of The Fall Guy, why do you think it took so long to get it in cinemas, given that it's 40-plus years since the show first aired? I mean, you've got to be hitting 50 to remember it back in its heyday.
I know, I know - I'm already there! [Laughs] I don't know, but I do think, like, the sort of sensibilities of maybe the Colt [Seavers] back then, I honestly don't know [if they would work now]. Every generation has different types of stunt performers and maybe they were trying to adapt it in different ways. I don't know if you could just do the 80s version of Colt right now and reach a wide group of people. We would love it, but maybe it's a little sort of out of touch and maybe the development was always trying to be so adherent to the IP (intellectual property).
I think what we did is, we were really respectful to the IP, but I really wanted to make a contemporary version. Again, it leans on a lot more on my generation's experience of being stuntpeople. It's more an origins story. Colt's not a bounty hunter yet. He's finding out his skillset. He's coming back from an injury. It's an introduction to this guy and the world and maybe what he could do in the future.
The lessons you've learned from all the other films you've directed from John Wick onwards, what did all your other films teach you that you brought to The Fall Guy?
I think it's the continuous collaboration with great actors. I've been really lucky. Kelly (McCormick, wife and production partner) and I have been really lucky to direct and produce these things with great actors - the list is pretty humbling. So when you bring them on [the set] and you're really open... The more you're open and the more you listen, you realise that they're taking care of this character and bringing that character to life. We did a lot of that with Emily and Ryan in this movie, really helping us define who these people were. And the dynamics that came out of that, obviously you can see in the trailer, are undeniable. The more and more I do this, the more I foster an environment of trust, and we work together and it's not a stranglehold of a vision. I think that really helps me make something special that people weren't expecting.
Did this film take the most out of you compared to the other ones?
You know, I'm like a Golden Retriever! When I'm in it, it's like, 'This is the hardest thing I've ever done! Oh my God!' And now it's like looking back on it when we put it all together and you're feeling so nostalgic. It's like, 'That was a beautiful experience!' But I think this one was probably the hardest one we've done! I think we did all practical stunts. There's a lot of pressure to do something that honours the stunt community, where I come from, so there's a big weight on our shoulders there. It's not a known IP so much so anymore as much as these other big franchises so you knew you had to hit a solid hit with this. And when we go to Australia [where The Fall Guy was filmed], as beautiful as it is, you're really far away from LA! You're really isolated and so your life is put on hold and all of those things can make it a little bit harder - but you can come out the other side better for it.
Sum up what people can expect in cinemas next May.
We've been showing audiences and there's a real love and affinity for it. It's a feelgood movie. It's like an underdog love story action comedy thriller! It really does have something for everybody. The action is off the hook, but the love story is going to bring in the people that love that stuff! And, somehow, the peanut butter and the chocolate work together!
The Fall Guy opens in cinemas on 3 May 2024
