Stuntman Tom McComas on Breaking Into the Biz, Taking Risks, and the Value of Stunt Performers

Hello listeners! Welcome to the latest edition of One Moore Hollywood Podcast. In this episode, our hosts, Chris Moore, Katie Marpe, and Dennis De Nobile, are joined in lively conversation by longtime stuntman and stunt coordinator Tom McComas. From hustling ten sets a day in the hopes of landing a stunt job to doubling for Ben Affleck and Ryan Gosling, McComas takes us on the journey of his 30-year-and-counting career in the business, detailing exactly why stunt performers are so valuable to the movie-making industry. 

Movie Magic, Aka Stunt Performers

The capabilities of CGI have many audiences thinking that the stunts performed in action movies are likely just that: movie magic. However, the truth is that real people perform most of the stunts you see on screen. These talented, multifaceted performers, such as McComas, work tirelessly with the director and the camera operators to figure out the safest way to capture the coolest-looking stunts on film. "Stunt people usually get hurt training or doing things outside of the business because everything we do inside the business is very calculated and rehearsed…we try to take as much danger out of the stunts as possible," McComas says. 

According to McComas, one of the only actors he knows who does his own stunts is Tom Cruise. While most actors are dissuaded from doing the dangerous stunts themselves because of the high risk of injury, Cruise often operates in the capacity of producer of his films, meaning he has the power to make executive decisions. Most actors don't have that luxury.

But Where's the Stunt Oscar?

As McComas points out, the stunt department is one of the only major departments not acknowledged at the Oscars. There's a category for makeup, production design, and costuming, but for some reason, the esteemed Academy has always forgotten about stunts. Seeing as almost every trailer includes the biggest stunt of the movie as a selling point, this is a surprising exclusion. 

McComas details how much thought, restructuring, and collaboration go into creating major stunts. Often, stunt performers will take on the role of action designer to adjust a stunt scene or create a new one that isn't in the script but will make more sense for the character and ensuing story. "As you progress in the business, you understand it's not about making the stunt as big as possible; it's about making the stunt as appropriate for the script as possible," McComas explains. 

McComas's Industry Start

When McComas realized he could get paid for crashing his motorcycle at a high speed, he decided that stuntman was the job for him. At the time, he was living in Los Angeles on very little money, and every day, he would ride his motorcycle around to the locations of different sets in the city, hustling each one to see if he could land a job. 

At around 10 set visits a day, from 8 am to 8 pm, McComas was getting rejected continuously, but he didn't let that curb his resolve. "If you bring that kind of initiative to any career, you're going to be successful," he says. Determined to get a job, McComas kept visiting sets, and one day, he happened upon the set of Armageddon with rising star Ben Affleck. That day, McComas’s likeness to Affleck got him his first job doubling. His unwavering tenacity had led to him being in the right place at the right time. 

From there, McComas was hired for more doubling roles as a rider, and as the years went on, he built on his skills to include more and more. "You want to learn how to do everything to minimize the opportunity to lose your job," he says. 

Risking It for the Shot

To be a stunt performer, you must be drawn to high-risk, high-adrenaline situations. It has to sound fun to jump off a burning building with a parachute, cover yourself in flame retardant in front of an exploding courthouse, or drive 170 miles an hour on your motorcycle (fun fact: McComas does this). If not, you might want to stick with seeing movies like The Fall Guy from the safety of the theater's cushiony seats, watching people like McComas do what they do best: take risks for the shot.

Listen to the entire episode here: Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, or iHeartRadio.