And the Oscar goes to... Stunts
- Alex Iwanoff
- Apr 14
- 4 min read
In a move that's been decades in the making, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has officially announced the creation of a new competitive Oscar category: Achievement in Stunt Design. The award will debut at the 100th Academy Awards in 2028, recognizing work from films released in 2027 — a milestone that industry professionals have been demanding for years.
THE HIDDEN ARCHITECTS OF ACTION
Stunt performers have been part of cinema since the silent era. Think Charlie Chaplin doing his own pratfalls, Buster Keaton dodging falling buildings, or Yakima Canutt inventing the art of the moving horse-to-wagon transfer for John Ford. They were there from the beginning — but mostly in the shadows.
While stars collected awards and audiences held their breath, the people throwing themselves off buildings, getting hit by cars, or set on fire were rarely acknowledged. And that invisibility? It was by design.
Not out of malice, but out of necessity. After all, cinema is an illusion. And a great stunt is meant to serve the story (yes, even the fights mean something) and to give our heroes and villains amazing abilities. All without drawing attention to the risk involved.
“It’s the contract we sign up for: we’re not supposed to be seen”, David Leitch, director and stuntman, LA Times
For generations, stunt performers have perfected the art of disappearing into the action, embodying characters and executing dangerous feats. They are meticulous planners, skilled athletes and dedicated artists, often overlooked in the celebration of filmmaking. And even sometimes absent from the credits. Literally. Being erased from film credits was a common practice, especially when studios wanted to maintain the illusion that actors did their own stunts.
That’s why it was news when, in season three, The Mandalorian correctly credited the men (not man) behind the mask. Mando was a character built by three different bodies and one voice. And yet, most viewers have no idea. That’s how good the illusion is.
This lack of recognition has created a frustrating paradox: the very people responsible for some of cinema’s most breathtaking moments have been denied the industry’s highest honor.
THE TAURUS AWARDS: STUNT WORK’S UNDERGROUND OSCARS
Until now, the most prestigious recognition for stunt professionals has been the Taurus World Stunt Awards. Launched in 2001, the event was created by Red Bull founder Dietrich Mateschitz. It honors categories like 'Best Fight', 'Best High Work' and 'Hardest Hit', but remains largely outside the mainstream eye.
The 2025 Taurus Awards are set for May 10.
A SEAT AT THE TABLE – FINALLY
The Academy’s announcement on April 10, 2025, confirmed that a new Oscar will be introduced for Stunt Design at the 2028 ceremony. Unlike past honorary awards or brief mentions during montages, this will be a fully-fledged, voted category.
“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”, Academy CEO Bill Kramer and Academy President Janet Yang
But what exactly does “stunt design” mean?
According to John Wick director and longtime stunt professional Chad Stahelski, calling the category "Stunt design" was a smart compromise. It acknowledges how collaborative stunt work truly is.
As he explains in an interview with Vulture, bringing a stunt to life on screen involves far more than just a single performer. You have choreographers, stunt doubles, camera operators, riggers, safety coordinators, rehearsal teams, VFX artists, editors — and more, depending on the complexity of the scene. It’s all of these departments working in sync. A team.
“I have a team of ten guys that helps me choreograph. I have three other fight choreographers that are coming from Japan, China, France. I have two stunt-riggers that design how I do the wild gags. My idea is the gag. Their idea is how to do it safely. Camera guys shoot it. My editor helps me edit it. VFX helped me erase the wires. That’s pretty fucking collaborative”, Stahelski on John Wick.
Though the rules for eligibility will be announced in 2027, the new Oscar is expected to be awarded to a team recognizing the collaborative nature of the craft.
A BIT OF HISTORY: THE IRONY AND THE DEBATE
The fight for recognition isn’t new. In 1967, legendary stuntman Yakima Canutt received an honorary Oscar for his groundbreaking work in stunt safety and rigging. Hal Needham — a stunt coordinator and performer on more than 30 films from the 1950s through the ’70s — was honored with a similar award at the 2013 Governors Awards, as reported by The Hollywood Reporter.
Nearly fifty years later, Jackie Chan was also given an Honorary Award for his “lifetime achievement” in 2016 — a nod for redefining action cinema with death-defying choreography.
But these were exceptions. For years, industry insiders have lobbied for an official Oscar category for stunt work. As early as the 1990s, the Stuntmen’s Association of Motion Pictures began campaigning for change, according to LA Times.
The irony hit a high point in 2020, when Brad Pitt won an Oscar for portraying a stuntman in Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood — a fictional character inspired by real professionals who, at the time, still had no Oscar category of their own.
The conversation reignited with The Fall Guy (2024), a movie about — and for — stunt performers, released into an industry that still hadn’t formally recognized their work. Until, finally, a year later — the Academy announced it. And much of the credit goes to director David Leitch, who helped lead the charge while promoting the film.
“This has been a journey for so many of us. Chris O’Hara and myself have invested several years into this. We built on the work of all the stunt designers who fought so hard for this in the past over the past decades. We are very grateful. Thank You @theacademy”, he said in an Instagram post.
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