Already established as a successful stuntman, having worked on features such as Godzilla, the Twilight saga and Tron: Legacy, Fraser Corbett is quickly making his mark in the acting world with his diverse talent. He can be seen in the upcoming Disney feature Tomorrowland starring George Clooney – the film follows a science enthusiast teen and a former inventor that set out to find a mysterious place between space and time, and it premiered May 22nd.
Fraser talked about the seriousness of the stunt business and what he would have gotten into career-wise had he not gotten into stunts.
Craveonline: Tell us about your most recent as well as your upcoming projects.
Fraser Corbett: I worked on Disney’s Tomorrowland, which came out May 22nd. I play a guard named Jensen. It’s going to be an action-filled adventure the whole family can enjoy.
I also was a part of the stunt team on Disney’s Descendants, which is a musical, coming out soon. It was my first time working on a musical – I had no idea how big the scope is when there are a lot of dancers and singers all working in step with each other.
What is the most dangerous stunt you’ve ever done?
A few years ago on Fringe I was doubling Michael Eklund, his character was running away from the cops and decides to jump off of a pedestrian overpass onto a moving van. We were going to be shooting it in multiple takes and marry them together. After one jump I asked if I could try it in one go… I managed to do it twice.
Are there any types of stunts that you will not attempt or do?
Well I think all stunts are do-able, within a persons skill set. A professional driver wouldn’t be capable of doing a gymnastics routine and vice versa. That being said, with the proper risk assessment and a good team behind you, anything can be done. So the answer is “yes” – if I had the right team behind me and the time to set it up properly. All the successful stunt performers who last in this industry are not daredevils or unnecessary risk takers, they are skilled professionals. We analyze the situation and try to perform the gag the safest way possible. Of course there is always an element of danger and people do get hurt.
What is your background? How did you get interested in stuntman work/acting?
I grew up on a farm with three brothers, we were always up to no good, fighting and jumping our bikes off of stuff. I played a lot of sports through school. I was fascinated with movies, especially action movies and westerns. I wanted to be a Jedi Knight or Marshall Dillon. So I went to stunt school after high school where I learned the basics, and after that I moved to Vancouver and spent the next four years going to gymnastics and training with the local stunties until I got in. Acting has always been something I was fascinated by. As a stunt performer I was inspired to take some acting classes and have started to take it a lot more seriously in the last five years.
Anything you have yet to try and would like to?
Well I really want to work on Star Wars! Other than that there are a few stunts I have yet to do that I have always wanted to do a James Bond-type chase scenes in the snow with snowmobiles and skiers and guns and stuff.
What’s one thing that people would be surprised to know about you?
If there was ever a second career I would love to do it would be to go back to the country and farm. Something about being in the open spaces and having my own land to be responsible for… love it.
