‘Expend4bles’ Stunt Coordinator Alan Ng on Crafting a Movie with Action Legends

When you think about action-stars, there are certain names that pop to mind. Even better is you can probably think about the cast of The Expendables movies and that’s pretty much all the people you think about, with the exception of Tom Cruise. These movies bring together some of the actors we know and love from action movies of the 80s and 90s and shows us that they still can kick ass and take names and do it with flair. All with their very specific brand of styles.

Talking with stunt coordinator Alan Ng, one thing was clear: He wanted to make sure these legends were represented as we knew and loved them. For The Expend4bles, we had stars like Sylvester Stallone, Dolph Lundgren, Jason Statham, and Megan Fox all coming together to bring the action to life but with men like Stallone at the helm, it’s hard to make sure their style is represented in a way that still keeps it true to them. In talking to Ng though, I wanted to know about his approach to stunts as a whole. So I asked about what the most exciting part about approaching a project in general was. “To be able to create something different and fresh whilst pushing the limit of each actors talent,” he said via an email interview.

Still, there is an added pressure to bring to life the style of these stars, so I asked Ng about making sure those were represented in the film. “There was so much pressure as the cast are all legendary action stars and have so much experience. It was most fun mixing and creating something different that the fans have never seen.” This isn’t the first time that Ng has worked with legends though.

Ng has worked with the likes of Jackie Chan in the past and so bringing this approach into his work isn’t new and so I asked Ng about collaborating with the actors and how he does so to bring those stunts to life. “It is down to communicating well and having the trust of the cast to be able to push them to their limits to create something unique.”

But Ng’s favorite part of working on The Expend4bles? “Being able to work with such a talented cast filled with legendary action stars.” The Expend4bles is in theaters now.

(featured image: Lionsgate)