The stunt coordinator tells IndieWire about creating dynamic set pieces on an episodic television schedule — and budget.
If the 1970s and ’80s represented a golden age of kinetic but grounded stunt work by pioneers like Hal Needham (“Smokey and the Bandit,” “The Cannonball Run”), Buddy Joe Hooker (“To Live and Die in L.A.,” “Hooper”), and Vic Armstrong (“Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom,” “Last Action Hero”), the 2020s are proving to be a seminal moment for stunts in television. The urban action that used to be the bread and butter of Walter Hill, Richard Donner, and Peter Hyams has migrated from the big screen (now dominated by more visual effects-oriented set pieces) to network procedurals and streaming series where stunt coordinators have become adept at creating spectacular moments on tight schedules — all while keeping the performers and crew as safe as possible.
Since its 2020 debut, Dick Wolf’s CBS series “FBI: Most Wanted” has consistently showcased some of the best stunt work on television, with expertly choreographed action sequences that are realistic, thrilling, and heavily slanted toward practical effects. Season 5 included some of the show’s most dynamic set pieces to date, from a rope rescue sequence shot on a 200-foot cliff face to a high-speed truck chase on the streets of Queens. It all springs from the mind of stunt coordinator Declan Mulvey, who is deservedly nominated for an Emmy (his second nomination in a row for the series) for Outstanding Stunt Coordination For Drama Programming.
The nomination means a lot to Mulvey, given both the caliber of work by his colleagues and the fact that in film, no corresponding honor exists (are you listening, Academy?). “Television is now very competitive in delivering quality action,” Mulvey told IndieWire. “Like every other aspect of cinema, series work has provided a new platform for craftspeople like me to do ambitious work that 20 years ago you would only see in movies. As stunt people, we are all really thrilled to be recognized by the Television Academy with three awards categories, because if we were doing this for film, there wouldn’t be any such awards recognition.”
For Mulvey, the key to keeping stunts both safe and dynamic on a television budget and schedule is being honest about what can be achieved within the limitations of any given episode. “You can’t let your ego get the best of you,” he said. “You have to know when you’re in the danger zone, and you need the creativity and the rolodex of references from your own experience or the lexicon of action cinema history to pivot to a better idea.” The priorities for any given episode typically emerge both from time considerations — “We have a solid air date, which sometimes tracks very close to our shooting schedule” — and from conversations with the producers and directors about how to serve each particular story.
“We want to make sure we highlight what makes each episode unique,” Mulvey said. “We also take into consideration the director’s approach to the episode. How are they trying to stylize their episode so that it stands out? What is the tone they are going for? What visual motifs are we trying to emphasize?” At this point, Mulvey and his stunt team are given a fair amount of latitude to be creative. “Often, the writers leave room right there on the page for our input,” he said. “The script might say, ‘Exciting chase to be determined by director and stunts.’ We make sure we are all in agreement creatively, then we set about planning the shoot with every other department head. The locations are critical, as is every aspect of production really. The production design and props, the camera team, and the assistant directors all have to switch gears a bit to start thinking about granular details of an action scene. It becomes a mini-production within the production.”
One of the challenges of a series like “FBI: Most Wanted” for the stunt coordinator — and one of the pleasures for viewers — is that beyond the obvious set pieces, there are many smaller stunts in each episode that require just as much attention to detail as the massive explosions and shoot-outs. “Our show is largely about violent criminals, and our heroes spend the entire episode hot on their tail,” Mulvey said. “So, people are getting roughed up, and cars are being driven with a purpose. All that stuff, while not big in terms of stunts, is serious business. It’s important that it all looks convincing and, since the actors are doing most of it themselves, it is critical that it is safe.”
The range of opportunities that the series gives Mulvey is part of what makes it so enjoyable to work on. “When we get into a big stunt it could be anything,” he said. “Dylan McDermott’s character performed a rope rescue last season. We routinely crash cars and blow up buildings. The special effects coordinator Eric Jolley and I have a bit of a shorthand for those things now. The production is great about letting us set things up and run them in the manner we feel most comfortable so the big stunts on our show feel just as controllable as the small ones. Obviously, I enjoy a big wreck, but when one of our main cast or one of our guest star villains has a nice moment with a small piece of action, that can be equally satisfying.”
That rope rescue from the fourth episode, “Hollow,” was one of the season’s biggest challenges. “It was essentially a real rope rescue at a tremendous height,” Mulvey said. “We had to ‘scout’ the cliff face first and find a spot where we could place the character being rescued. We used a drone initially but ultimately, we had to lower a stunt person down on a rope and have them climb across much of the cliff face. We had to find a path of travel for our hero to come down on a single rope, grab hold of the victim, and then take her down to the ground on that same single rope. It was a real cliff. There was no modifying it. So, we had to muscle our way though that one a bit.”
Episode 9, “The Return,” featured the exciting truck hijacking that served as a series high point. “We raced a 14-foot truck under some very tight overpasses while it was chased and shot at by an SUV,” Mulvey said. “New York City can be difficult to drive a sedan through, let alone a truck. So again, we were dealing with landscapes that were not made for the type of performances we were bringing to them.” In spite of the challenges of shooting in New York, Mulvey loves working there and is pleased that three shows in contention for his Emmy category were filmed in New York, coordinated by New York stunt coordinators, and performed primarily by New York stunt people. “As someone who was born and raised here in New York, and went to New York University, it makes me especially proud that we are doing this on our home soil with our home teams,” he said.
“FBI: Most Wanted” is available to stream on Paramount+.
