It’s been a long time coming, but it’s finally happening. In 2028, which just so happens to be the 100th anniversary, the Academy Awards will introduce a new category: best stunts. It’s something that’s been championed by actors, directors, stunt crews, and yours truly for years now, and now those stunt performers will finally get some recognition at the biggest award show in the industry.

The campaign was spearheaded by David Leitch after directing his ode to stunts with last year’s criminally underappreciated The Fall Guy. Leitch, a former stuntman turned director, had been working hard to petition his craft to get the recognition he and others thought often went unnoticed. Leitch, alongside other members of the community, including Chris O’Hara, made their pitch to the Academy in a bid to allow the prestigious award ceremony to add stunts to their award show. The Academy agreed and will create a new category, achievement in stunt design, intheir show.

The Academy put out the following statement:

“Since the early days of cinema, stunt design has been an integral part of filmmaking. We are proud to honor the innovative work of these technical and creative artists, and we congratulate them for their commitment and dedication in reaching this momentous occasion.”

Leitch also put out his own statement:

“Stunts are essential to every genre of film and rooted deep in our industry’s history—from the groundbreaking work of early pioneers like Buster Keaton, Harold Lloyd, and Charlie Chaplin, to the inspiring artistry of today’s stunt designers, coordinators, performers, and choreographers. This has been a long journey for so many of us. Chris O’Hara and I have spent years working to bring this moment to life, standing on the shoulders of the stunt professionals who’ve fought tirelessly for recognition over the decades. We are incredibly grateful. Thank you, Academy.”

Of course, it’s not all sunshine and rainbows. There’s always been a concern that adding a stunt category would incentivize more reckless and dangerous work in pursuit of glory, leading to more accidents and deaths. The rules for the award will be hashed out by 2027, giving filmmakers and panellists time to come up with guidance and expectations for the category. I hope the interpretations of stunts aren’t limited just to action, that said. Dance sequences, by their definition, should be considered as stunts as well, as hand-to-hand combat scenes in film are just choreographed routines. If John Wick’s insane fight scenes would qualify, I’d argue something like the dance scene in Hail, Caesar! should as well, especially with Leitch referencing the likes of Keaton and Chaplin, who pioneered the stunt craft without violent scenes.

Chad Stahelski, director of the John Wick films and formerly Keanu Reeves’ stunt double, added: 

“Stunts is such a collaborative and complicated department, how are we going to determine who this goes to? We’ve spent 100 years getting the award, let’s just make sure it goes to the right people.”

With that in mind, I would imagine the award would go to the team, not just the actor performing the stunt. In Leitch’s example, something like his production company, 87North Productions, would be the recipient on behalf of the whole team, would be my guess.