We love action movies, especially those that are jam-packed with breathtaking thrills and sensational stunts. The movies that really stand out are the ones that feature great characters, which means that we quickly become invested in what happens to them as individuals. Then when they manage to pull off — and somehow survive! — a spectacular stunt, or two or three, it's all the more memorable and rewatchable.
In honor of all the amazing stunt people who put their talents on the line to enhance amazing action movies, we've assembled a video for your viewing pleasure. Bonus: All of these films are available to watch right now by heading over to this special playlist on Vudu.
Wonder Woman
Cast: Gal Gadot, Chris Pine, Robin Wright, Connie Nielsen, Elena Anaya
Did You Know: No one in the movie calls Diana Prince (Gal Gadot) "Wonder Woman."
Fun Fact: Australian Christiian "Stanni" Bettridge, who originally trained in ballet before transitioning to stunts, won a Screen Actors Guild award for her performance as Gal Gadot's stunt double.
Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol
Cast: Tom Cruise, Jeremy Renner, Paula Patton, Léa Seydoux, Simon Pegg
Did You Know: The Burj Khalifa skyscraper is the tallest building in the world.
Fun Fact: Tom Cruise performed the majority of his own stunts.
Spy Kids 2: Island of Lost Dreams
Cast: Alexa Vega, Daryl Sabara, Antonio Banderas, Carla Gugino
Did You Know: The dinner party scene was filmed at the Capitol building in Austin, Texas.
Fun Fact: Director Robert Rodriguez' sons Racer, Rebel, and Rocket all did stunts in the movie.
Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark
Cast: Harrison Ford, Karen Allen, Paul Freeman
Did You Know: Terry Leonard, who portrays the German soldier/truck driver, also served as one of Harrison Ford's stunt doubles.
Fun Fact: The scene is a tribute to a legendary stunt performed by Yakima Canutt in the classic Western, Stagecoach.
Rush Hour
Cast: Jackie Chan, Chris Tucker
Did You Know: Chinese-speaking Jackie Chan performed all his own dialogue in English for the first time; previously, he had been dubbed by other actors.
Fun Fact: Jackie Chan performed all his own stunts.
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest
Cast: Johnny Depp, Orlando Bloom, Keira Knightley, Jack Davenport
Did You Know: The gigantic wheel stood 18 feet high and weighed 1,800 pounds.
Fun Fact: The film won the Taurus World Stunt Award for Best Fight.
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
Cast: Chow Yun-Fat, Michelle Yeoh, Zhang Ziyi
Did You Know: Before making the movie, Zhang Ziyi had no martial arts training.
Fun Fact: Yuen Woo-ping, famous for his work on many Hong Kong action movies, as well as The Matrix, served as action choreographer.
Transformers: Dark of the Moon
Cast: Shia LaBeouf, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, Tyrese Gibson
Did You Know: The complexity of the skydiving stunts, and the necessary closure of multiple roads in Chicago for safety, required months of planning.
Fun Fact: Cameras were attached to the helmets of the skydivers to capture their unique point of view.
Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace
Cast: Ewan McGregor, Liam Neeson, Natalie Portman, Jake Lloyd
Did You Know: Darth Maul speaks only three lines of dialogue in the entire movie.
Fun Fact: Ray Park portrayed Darth Maul on screen, but his voice was provided by Peter Serafinowicz.
Now You See Me
Cast: Jesse Eisenberg, Mark Ruffalo, Isla Fisher, Woody Harrelson
Did You Know: Isla Fisher performed her own underwater stunt as an escape artist.
Fun Fact: While filming the underwater stunt scene, Isla Fisher unintentionally ran out of air but remained calm and surfaced to safety; the crew had misunderstood her signal for help, thinking she was just acting.
Batman Begins
Cast: Christian Bale, Liam Neeson, Katie Holmes, Gary Oldman
Did You Know: Christian Bale personally performed 16 fight scenes as Batman in the movie.
Fun Fact: Buster Reeves, who served as Batman's stunt double for certain scenes, would go on to play Tom Hardy's stunt double in The Dark Knight Rises.
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire
Cast: Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Liam Hemsworth
Did You Know: In the original novel, Peeta (Josh Hutcherson) could not swim. The filmmakers decided to change the character's abilities for the movie version.
Fun Fact: In the scene where Peeta (Josh Hutcherson) proposes to Katniss, the actor's pants ripped while he was proposing causing a huge laugh on set. That part of the scene did not make it into the finished film.
Captain America: Civil War
Cast: Chris Evans, Robert Downey Jr., Sebastian Stan, Anthony Mackie, Chadwick Boseman
Did You Know: Although the title and certain ideas originated in the Marvel comic book universe, the film has more to do with who has ultimate oversight over superheroes, rather than secret identities.
Fun Fact: The late Chadwick Boseman made his debut in the Marvel Cinematic Universe here as Black Panther.
Sponsored by DQ®
