Vic Armstrong facts for kids

Victor Monroe Armstrong (born October 5, 1946) is a very famous British film director and stunt expert. He is known for making action scenes exciting and safe. The Guinness Book of Records even calls him the world's most active stunt performer!

Vic Armstrong's Amazing Career

Vic Armstrong has had a long and exciting career in movies. He started out doing stunts and later became a director.

Stunt Work and Famous Roles

Vic Armstrong is famous for being a stunt double for many well-known actors. A stunt double is someone who performs dangerous actions in a movie so the actor doesn't get hurt.

• He was the stunt double for Harrison Ford in the first three Indiana Jones movies.
• He also doubled for Christopher Reeve in the Superman films.
• He worked with Timothy Dalton in Flash Gordon.
• He even doubled for George Lazenby in a James Bond movie, On Her Majesty's Secret Service.

People often said Vic looked so much like Harrison Ford that they sometimes confused them on set! This was helpful when Harrison Ford got hurt during Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. Vic stepped in to film important action scenes.

One of his most famous stunts was in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. He jumped from a horse onto a moving German tank. Experts and viewers in the UK voted this one of the top 10 film stunts ever in 2002.

Directing Action Scenes

Besides being a stunt double, Vic Armstrong is also a top stunt coordinator. This means he plans and directs all the action scenes in a movie. He has worked on many big films, including:

• Several James Bond movies.
• War of the Worlds.
• I Am Legend.
• He even directed the opening scene of Terminator 2: Judgment Day.

Becoming a Film Director

In 1993, Vic Armstrong directed his first full movie, an action film called Joshua Tree. He has continued to direct films since then.

• In 2012, he was the second unit director for The Amazing Spider-Man. A second unit director films scenes like action sequences or landscapes, separate from the main director.
• He directed the movie Left Behind which came out in 2014.
• His movie A Sunday Horse tells a true story.
• More recently, he worked on the 2022 Amazon Prime Video series The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power. He was the second unit director and action director for this big show.

Vic Armstrong is a long-time member of the British Stunt Register. This is a group for professional stunt performers in the UK.

Awards and Recognition

Vic Armstrong has received important awards for his work in movies.

• In 2001, he won a special Academy Award. This award was for inventing a "Fan Descender." This is a device that helps stunt people fall safely from high places.
• In 2002, he received the BAFTA Michael Balcon Award. BAFTA awards are like the British Oscars, celebrating excellence in film and television.

Vic Armstrong's Family Life

Vic Armstrong comes from a family of stunt performers. His brother, Andy Armstrong, is also a stunt expert.

Vic is married to Wendy Leech, who is also a stuntwoman. Her father, George Leech, was also a stunt performer. Vic and Wendy met while working on Superman II, where Wendy was the stunt double for actress Margot Kidder.

They have four children together. Vic has two children from his first marriage, and Wendy has a daughter from her first marriage. They also have one daughter together. Vic is the uncle of stuntman James Armstrong and filmmaker Jesse V Johnson.

Movies and Shows Vic Armstrong Worked On

Here is a list of some of the movies and shows Vic Armstrong has worked on. He has been a stunt performer, a second unit director, or the main director.

As Stunt Coordinator or Second Unit Director

As Stunt Double

As Director

See also

In Spanish: Vic Armstrong para niños