A car wreck, a 52 foot drop into the river Thames, soaring through a wall of fire-it’s all in a day’s work for stuntman Glenn Foster. Only a few years ago he was working as an Outdoor Sports instructor in Yorkshire, now he’s leaping across rooftops for the elite. Glenn is Robert Downey Jr.’s official stunt double and recently received 2 nominations at the World Stunt Awards for his work on Sherlock Holmes. Stuntmen are a small professional community, but Glenn managed to infiltrate the clique and break Hollywood. He has performed in blockbusters like THE DARK KNIGHT, QUANTUM OF SOLACE, and THE BOURNE films. Today, Glenn took a break from staring death in the face to speak with THN about his last film, DUE DATE and the letting his inner child wear the IRON MAN suit:
THN: So, Glenn, your job seems like every kid’s dream but it’s not something you’d see advertised in a local paper. How did you get into this line of work?
Foster: It was childhood dream. Literally, just a childhood dream. I was fanatical about film when I was growing up and my parents bought me a book for Christmas when I was about 9 called Hollywood Stunt Men. It featured a guy jumping through a wall of fire on his motorcycle on the front cover. I would scour this book cover to cover on a daily basis and watch as many movies as I could. I guess I took that feeling into secondary school and then it comes to a point where you have a career to choose and the career guidance counselor wants to know what you want to do with your life. Stuntman is not on their list so they try and talk you around into choosing something a bit more orthodox, like a teacher.
THN: Or a fireman?
Foster: Yeah thats right, something a bit more action packed. It was something that I definitely had in my mind for quite a long period of time. A friend of mine lived on a farm and we used to create things I had read in that stuntman book, like diving on hay bales to jumping off the back of quads. I drifted off the idea as I got older and became an outdoor instructor just taking people out on the mountains rock climbing and kayaking and all sort of stuff. Then I came across someone training to become a stunt person because he needed me to introduce them to the world of rock climbing and take him through that element of his training. It reignited that childhood passion. That’s when I became aware that it was actually a legitimate job and not just a complete pipe dream. I found out a way to do it through him and just started to realise that childhood dream.
THN: So, your last film, DUE DATE is out on DVD soon (February 28th). This was your third film with Mr. Robert Downey Jr, what was it like being his stunt double for a film like this?
Foster: Well DUE DATE was very interesting for me because it’s a comedy and I had literally just come from doing the last James Bond, the last Batman and then to go on to, for all intensive purposes, a comedy about a road trip, it needed a slightly different approach from my perspective. The stuff we were doing was for comedy value as opposed to more action value, but presented new set of challenges and a new sort of approach to the thing. Aside from the fact that at times it was just hilarious to be working alongside the likes of Zach Galifianakis and Robert as well, I mean the two of them together, at time it was just brilliant, people would have paid to have been there to witness it.
THN: How demanding was the film in terms of stunts, was it physically different in any way because it was a comedy?
Foster: It was certainly slightly different thinking in how I did things. If you are doing something in an action movie you want it to be quite visual and have some element of pleasantness in some respects. But in a comedy you want a similar effect but you are putting into context. The end result might not be different, but it is definitely a different was of thinking about things. Particularly with someone like Robert, whatever you are doing from a stunt point of view, you have to tailor it to his character. The character on due date was different to the one in Sherlock Holmes and Iron Man.
THN: You have been working with Robert (Downey Jr) for a while now, how has that experience been for you?
Foster: Well, I couldn’t think of anyone I would rather work with. He’s an incredibly affable, generous, down to earth guy, he’s been there and done it. Tasted it. And he’s always come back and shown the world what he is made of. That really has created a grounded and humble and yet extremely talented individual. From my perspective, he is always extremely appreciative of what I do for him. He’s really aware and really knowledgeable. He’s also at the top of his tree, you know, there are only really maybe 4 or 5 other actors in his position but he’s just an all rounder in terms of comedy, action, serious drama, there is no-one quite like him. It’s just so effortless. I will be talking to him on set, and he will just flick a switch and delve into character.
THN: And do you have to do the same?
Foster: Yeah, absolutely, yeah, I mean for us it pays to be in the moment. We are often crafting fairly complex sequences so it needs a lot of input before getting to the camera. Ann actor can just learn the lines and turn up and do it. Not always, of course they need to rehearse and do all the things we do, Robert get involved in a lot of it. Sometimes though, it’s better to not be in the zone, to just flip the switch and do it, rather than over-thinking something and stressing about it. If someone put you on a 10 metre diving board and just said jump, you could probably do it but if you had a day to think about it, your mind can play tricks on you. Sometimes its good just to flick the switch.
THN: And how did you manage to make your way into the profession?
Foster: You have to go through equity in the UK, well you did at the time. You have to qualify very highly in 6 or 7 different disciplines (martial arts, rock climbing etc) before you can get on the register.
THN: When you were a kid was there any one particular film that you watched that helped put you on this path?
Foster: I would say…well, I was always a big fan of Burt Reynolds films and Lee majors the Bionic Man. It was really a combination of American TV and American movies that put me in that frame of mind.
THN: Would you consider stuntmen to be the unsung heros of cinema, they are names you don’t really get to hear….
Foster: Yeah, absolutely, it has been said before that they are the unsung heros and its true. A lot of the great actors in history have relied very heavily on their stunt doubles like Harrison Ford’s guy has been with him for many years, Sean Connery’s guy and hopefully it will be the same with myself and Robert. you work with these people and they become reliant on you, not just for performing in front of the camera but for advice on performing the sequences themselves, where they can get involved. There is much more to it these days than just being someone who takes the risk. The stuntman is a fundamental part of the team these days. Shooting schedules being the way that they are, you can really contribute to the character of a movie from a physical perspective. And thats how I approach it in my role. I look at Robert as such an incredible actor and performer and I want to be able to be him. And think as he does whenever I am doing something tricky and he’s not even around to consult I just have to make a decision myself. I think unsung hero is probably an appropriate term.
THN: Especially because of the risk the job demands, have you ever had any serious injuries?
Foster: I have been lucky for a point of view of serious injury. I think people involved in any physical realm experience injury like rugby players, any physical pursuit. I have had my fair share of breaks, dislocations and concussions but I just put that down to the territory. In terms of serious injuries I have been really lucky but it does happen. A friend of my is currently bound in a wheelchair for the rest of his life, he was the body double for HARRY POTTER. It definitely does happen and it’s very much a reality. I have always been on the right side of injury.
THN: What was one of the more dangerous films you worked on?
Foster: Em some of the things we were doing on Sherlock Holmes would probably rank at being the more challenging for me. There was an 80 foot fire wall that was completely ablaze and the flames were right above my head. I had to come out of a window head first. Then there was a 52 foot high dive into the river Thames. Those things are certainly at the upper end of the scale when it comes to risk.
There will be other things which don’t sound that dangerous but they are inherently. Anything where you are using horses…Like big battle sequences with guys on the ground, they have a mind of their own the horses. But then on the face of it might not sound that risky.
THN: When you hear interviews with action stars, there is often that cliche of ‘oh yeah, I do all my own stunts’ is there ever a clash of egos on set where the actors become envious?
Foster: I have always been fortunate in working with actors who know there limitations, certainly Robert, Daniel Craig. They are capable, physical people but they do know when to draw a line in the sand. I have certainly heard about cases where the actor wants to do it all themselves but that’s for the director to step in and say ‘ooh no you can’t do that because of insurance’. Most recognise that someone else has a livelihood, doing it for them. Generally, they have the grace to step back and just say ‘your turn’.
THN: Speaking of Daniel Craig, I saw you had a small part acting in QUANTUM OF SOLACE, is that something you want to continue doing?
Foster: Yeah, I thought about doing it, maybe give it some training but then along came the opportunity to work with Robert and that has really preoccupied me ever since. I haven’t really got back to thinking about it. It’s something I would consider for sure. But a part of you thinks ‘well i have to start at the bottom again’. The level I am at now I am at a nice level, not having to do the things i did at the bottom of the ladder. It would be hard to pull myself away from the ladder now. I like it up here.
THN: We have to ask, what was it like wearing the Iron Man suit?
Foster: That was one of those childhood moments. I remember growing up there was always these TV shows that were shown around Christmas like, ‘the making of Superman’ or ‘the making of Star Wars’. You never really got to see the behind the scenes stuff, so the guys in the suits had this real aura about them. they were just these anonymous characters, particularly Darth Vader. So I was always in awe of these suits. I always had a bit of a thing about that. So all of a sudden I am on set one day getting dressed up in the Iron Man suit. It took about an hour and a half to get the whole thing on.
Suddenly I saw my reflection in a pane of glass. They put the helmet out and I was just looking at myself going ‘oh my god’. Then, they turn the lights on in the eyes and it was like, ‘are you serious?.’ I just got completely transported back to that young kid who was wowed by these creatures of the film world. It’s not very comfortable though.
THN: Pretty restrictive too, how do you scratch your nose?
Foster: Nope, can’t scratch your nose. You get someone else to do it for you.
THN: So what was is you favourite film that you have worked on so far?
Foster: In terms of the end product, I would say Sherlock Holmes.
THN: When you watch them, do you look out for your own moments saying to your friends ‘that’s me!’?
Foster: When I am not aware of the fact that it’s me, that’s the mark of a good film. I just get swept along with the movie. I am aware of the bits I am involved with but when it’s good, I just let myself get absorbed in the story.
See some high quality bro-mance comedy and Glenn’s fantastic car-crashing stunts in DUE DATE, released on DVD this February 28th.
Our friends at LOVEFiLM have a huge back catalogue including DUE DATE, you can also now watch movies online as well as rent them.
Dilbert
Feb 12, 2011 at 10:45 pm
Looks like Ryan Reynolds