Some actors just can’t resist the pain, bruises, and a couple of broken ribs – all for the sake of a good action scene. As Bruce Willis notes, it’s worth it – if you do your own stunts, you allow the director to shoot close-ups, and that wouldn’t be possible with doubles. Which actors are willing to go the extra mile, and remain dedicated to their craft despite not being twenty anymore? Read on and don’t forget to check out their films on the free movie streaming platform Filmzie.

Halle Berry

She showed off her tough side in: X-Men franchise, Catwoman, Die Another Day, Dark Tide, John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum…

Halle Berry is 53, has better abs than most people half her age, and has looked the same for years. Until this day, she doesn’t fear to take on demanding action roles and she even performs her own stunts – despite getting into several pretty serious accidents! Last winter, her injury delayed the shooting of her directorial debut, Bruised, a story of a disgraced MMA fighter. “Thank you to all the folks that have showered me with love since my injury. It’s par for the course when you do your own stunts, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. Just know I’m far from tired. I’m wide awake… and just getting started!” she wrote on Twitter.

It probably feels like nothing compared to breaking three (!) ribs shooting John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum. Not even something this serious could discourage her, though. “It’s like a badge of honor for me,” she told Extra TV. 

Bruce Willis

He showed off his tough side in: Die Hard franchise, Fifth Element, The Assassination, Looper, The Expendables, Red, 12 Monkeys, Sin City (his list seriously doesn’t end! :))

Bruce Willis – the name is practically synonymous with the action genre. We got so used to him in the role of a tough guy with a massive gun that it’s strange – and fun – to see him as other characters. Remember the insecure dad in Friends or the nerdy policeman in the Moonrise Kingdom? ? Still, Willis excels in films that keep us on our toes, and his age (65) doesn’t seem to interfere. “I think doing my own stunts whenever possible adds a lot to the production value of the film. But on a personal level, it satisfies the little boy who still lives in me who gets to shoot guns, kill the bad guys and be a hero while doing jumps and falls and swinging from ropes,” he said about shooting Die Hard.

John Cusack

He showed off his tough side in: Con Air; Dragon Blade; War, Inc.; Grosse Pointe Blank; The Bag Man; Drive Hard…

Okay, maybe crazy fight scenes and explosions aren’t the first things that come to your mind when someone says John Cusack. But did you know that he’s been practicing martial arts for years? He started honing his skills when he was shooting Say Anything, and he trained under the former world kickboxing champion Benny Urquidez for over 20 years. He even managed to reach a level six black belt in Urquidez’s Ukidokan kickboxing system. “I’ve been doing martial arts for so long, I understood the body rhythms even if I didn’t understand the commands,” he said about filming Dragon Blade with Jackie Chan for The Straits Times.

Aaron Paul

He showed off his tough side in: Need for Speed, Triple 9, Retribution…

Aaron Paul sure knows a quality “baddie” role when he sees one: he portrayed the unforgettable Jesse Pinkman in Breaking Bad after all. While he may not look like your typical bulky action hero, he’s actually done his own stunts in Need for Speed – and almost killed the director Scott Vaugh in the process! “I had to slide [the car] and get it within inches of the camera. The first take, I get about 15 feet short. That wasn’t good enough for the director, who was holding the camera because the actual cameraman wanted nothing to do with the danger. [Waugh] said, ‘If you hit me, don’t worry about it, I’ll just roll over the car,'” he mentioned on Conan. He enjoyed the adrenaline so much that he’s eager to try more stunts.

“You look at Tom Cruise and he does everything. And I see why because it’s just so much fun. I mean, if you know how to do it, why not? If we end up doing another one of these movies, [I would love to do more stunts] because I have found such a passion for racing now. I love going on a closed track and just kind of like, whipping the car around. It’s a blast,” he said for RTE. 

Kate Beckinsale

She showed off her tough side in: Underworld franchise, Total Recall, Van Helsing, Nothing but the Truth…

The British beauty is a certified action pro after portraying Selene in the Underworld film franchise. She kicks ass at 46, and she managed to cope with the increasingly high demands that come with each Underworld movie. “They don’t have to train me from scratch, you know running and all that. They have a much higher expectation of me each time. So it’s like, ‘Oh by the way, here’s what we figured out we would do for this fight,’ and I just go, ‘What? I’d never be able to do that!’ But luckily they are bullies and we get there in the end,” she explained.