‘Everything you want is on the other side of fear’

Look closely at University of Minnesota alumnus David Leitch’s (BA ’93, international relations) left arm and you’ll find the words, “Everything you want is on the other side of fear.” The tattoo is a personal creed, his production company 87North’s motto, and his advice for current University of Minnesota College of Liberal Arts (CLA) students as they navigate their understanding of the world.

And he should know. The stunt double turned director has spent nearly 30 years working in the film industry, taking bold chances and telling big stories, including directing Atomic Blonde (2017), Deadpool 2 (2018), Hobbs & Shaw (2019), and Bullet Train (2022). His latest film, The Fall Guy, starring Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt, was hailed by NPR as “a tribute to stunt performers and the often unrecognized risks they take.”

But before there was Hollywood, there was life at the University of Minnesota. In this Q&A, Leitch talks about his journey in film and how his liberal arts education prepared him for the industry.

Brad Pitt’s stunt double. Multiple times. How does that happen?

Preparation plus opportunity equals miracles.

After finishing my undergraduate degree in international relations, I earned my master’s degree through an accelerated program in education at the University of Minnesota and taught second grade at Oxbow Creek Elementary School in Champlin, MN. I knew I was going to LA, so I spent my summers training in martial arts and met a core group of people who were stunt performers and martial arts performers.

A year into teaching, I felt like my athletic career wasn’t over. I had the bug. It is a business, though, and it’s hard to crack into. It’s all about finding connections, finding a mentor. There is no school for stunts, it’s all learned on the job or you apprentice under someone.

I had been in LA for three years and one of my martial arts connections was the fight coordinator on Fight Club who told me they needed a stunt double for Brad Pitt. They brought me in, stood me next to Brad, and said, “same height, same hair, same body composition” (though maybe not so much anymore!).

Getting to double the biggest actor in Hollywood was truly a rocket ship in the stunt world. I also developed a great relationship with Brad; he liked the work I did, so he brought me into a movie called The Mexican, then Troy, then Mr. & Mrs. Smith. I doubled him for five years and learned that I loved the carnival life of movies, the camaraderie of the set, and collaboration of the artists. If I was in the apocalypse, I’d want to be on a movie set. There are so many can-do people there!

What does success look like for you?

As an artist, you’re often conflicted. You want to make something that’s true to yourself, that’s the only way anyone’s going to love it anyway, while also making sure that you’re servicing the audience. I like to hear the audience laugh and gasp and applaud—that feels like success to me. Did you laugh? Cry? Have the feels?

My last movie Fall Guy was sort of a culmination of my journey in filmmaking. It had all the components of what I would do as a filmmaker: romance plopped in the middle of this bombastic movie, a sweet, beautiful, classic Hollywood film.

The Oscars are considering a possible stunt category. What do you think has taken so long?

I’ve been heavily involved in the past couple years, internally at the Academy (Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences), and it is a really complicated infrastructure. Things move at a glacial pace. The other part has been the perception of stunt performers—some actors probably didn’t want there to be a stunt branch. It keeps the illusion alive—you don’t want to break those characters, you don’t want to disrupt movie magic.

But action has been at the heartbeat of cinema since the beginning. Buster Keaton and Charlie Chaplin were stunt performers. Whether it’s comedy, romance, action, there isn’t a movie where there’s not a stunt coordinator. So the tides are really turning.

"The eclectic nature of the liberal arts education helped me as a storyteller, helped me communicate the stories I would eventually tell. Did I know that when I was doing it? No. But I'm so grateful that I have that education now." ~David Leitch

Why international relations?

I always loved talking about politics, loved the idea of traveling and exploring different cultures. Part of that was my enthusiasm for martial arts; it felt like something that made sense to me. I also knew that I might want to get into teaching and international relations seemed like the right idea.

In hindsight, it was great as a filmmaker. I’ve traveled all over the world: Thailand, China, Bulgaria, Romania, Czechoslovakia, Australia—that degree gave me a great base of appreciation for the world.

The liberal arts. Hollywood. Would you say these two things are synonymous?

Yes, definitely. The eclectic nature of the liberal arts education helped me as a storyteller, helped me communicate the stories I would eventually tell. Did I know that when I was doing it? No. But I'm so grateful that I have that education now. Learning to learn and learning to love learning is so important. If you’re fostering that in yourself, honing those skills, you’re just going to amplify your opportunities in the world.

What advice would you give to students?

Everything you want is on the other side of fear. As a stunt performer, this is obviously true. But it’s true in life, too. Take the chance. Try this job. Always be willing to learn. Investing in your education is a worthy investment. And investing in bettering yourself is a worthy investment, too. Give yourself time to explore the things that you’re interested in. Your liberal arts degree will give you confidence and an understanding of the world.

This story was adapted from the original at the College of Liberal Arts