Copyright Variety
87North, the production company behind films such as “The Fall Guy,” “Nobody” and the John Wick franchise is back for the Stunt Design Showdown. Now in its second year, the showdown is a competition for upcoming stunt performers. It also serves as a launchpad for stunt perfomers offering participants access to professional facilities, mentorship, production tools, and visibility with top-tier industry professionals. Each team receives the same script and production timeline, ensuring a level playing field and emphasizing storytelling, choreography, and cinematic execution. The competition lasts 56 hours and requires creative thinking and the ability to execute stunts flawlessly under pressure. Co-founded by director David Leitch and Kelly McCormack, the company hopes to continue to open the doorways for more aspiring stunt coordinators. Pete Davidson, who previously worked with Leitch on his latest film “How to Rob a Bank,” expressed his excitement on collaborating with the stunt coordinators on the film, which is set to release in 2026. Speaking with Variety, Davidson said, “I was just amazed at how the stunts team are like a family, and they were so excited and precise about every single movement.” He added, “They were very intentional about every small detail and adjusted certain things because of my height or weight or lack of skill. There was a lot of love, grace and support, and I felt really comfortable quickly. I also loved how much those guys love what they do, and how serious they took it and how they were super jacked about what stunts are next. It was really exciting and refreshing.” With a competition that lasts five days, all teams selected compete to win a one-year membership to the 87North Action Design facility, a one-day professional post-production workshop with Narrator Inc., and a DJI camera package. For Leitch, watching the submissions and choosing a winner was proven to be difficult throughout all of the potential candidates. This year’s winner was Code 10-10, who took home the grand prize. “The submissions were insane this year,” Leitch says. “It was hard to pick a winner this year, but it was up a level from last year because people felt the competition and [felt] the positive camaraderie. It’s a small stunt community in film, and we’re all sort of family because we work on different films together. It’s all fun to see them all come together and everyone stepped up. I can’t believe the shit that they’re coming up with.” With the recent news of the Best Stunt Design category being added to the Academy Awards starting in 2027, Davidson and Leitch hope that the Stunt Design Showdown continues to grow and more moviegoers are educated about the level of intricacy and detail that goes into stunt work. “When I would watch a movie, I would be like ‘Oh man, I wonder how long that took to set up,’ because people really don’t understand how fucking hard these guys work,” reveals Davidson. “People who work on movies appreciate it, but as a general audience, I don’t know if they realize how under-appreciated this category is. I love that David’s advocating for it, because when you watch films like the “John Wick” movies or you see any actor kicking ass, there’s a chorus of people [behind the scenes] that are responsible for that. As actors or directors or writers, we get a lot of glory, but most people don’t think about all these amazing people that make it a team sport.” Leitch is hopeful that the recognition will help audience members take the world of stunts seriously and inspire the next generation of stunt coordinators to be recognized by the entertainment industry. “We are artists, and any department head like costume designers and production design designs the worlds that we immerse ourselves into, but the stunt department designs the action sequences and creates something to present to the director to curate, and it’s a very artistic process. As much as we’re seen as the meatheads that go through the glass window, we’re also the creative energy behind some of the most memorable moments in film. It’s time that the stunt people get recognized, like all other artists in this collaborative thing we love so much.”
