Danny Trejo calls out big stars who insist on doing their own stunts (ahem, Tom Cruise)
It’s not like Danny Trejo won’t do stunts here and there. The 73-year-old Machete actor and all-around badass rode a buffalo (!!!), for instance, in his new action sequel, Dead Again in Tombstone.
But Trejo (who has 300-plus credits to his name, including films like Con Air, Heat, and From Dusk Til Dawn) strongly believes that actors are there to act, and well-trained stuntmen are there to handle the stunts.
“I know that all the big stars hate me to say this, but I don’t want to risk 80 peoples’ jobs just to say I got big huevos on The Tonight Show,” Trejo told Yahoo Movies this week during a Facebook Live interview (watch clip above). “Because that’s what happens. I think a big star just sprained an ankle doing a stunt, and 80 or 180 people are out of a job.”
Trejo was clearly referring to Tom Cruise, who is ever eager to perform audacious stunts and who reportedly broke his ankle last month during a mishap on the set of Mission: Impossible 6. That production has been forced to shut down for six to 12 weeks, leaving the film’s crew idle while Cruise recovers, according to Variety.
“We have stunt people who do that stuff,” Trejo said. “And if they get hurt, I’m sorry to say but they just need to put a mustache on another Mexican and we can keep going. But if I get hurt, everybody’s out of a job. So I don’t choose to do that.”
Dead Again in Tombstone hits Blu-ray, DVD and Digital HD on Sept. 12.
Watch our full Facebook Live interview:
Read more on Yahoo Movies: