Terry J. Leonard Explained

Terry James Leonard (born 1941) is an American stuntman, second unit director, film director, and stunt coordinator. He is most well known for his work as stunt coordinator and second unit director, including several collaborations with John Milius, Andrew Davis, and Robert Zemeckis.

Life and career

Leonard is a frequent collaborator of John Milius, serving as second unit director on the Milius-directed Big Wednesday, Conan the Barbarian, and Flight of the Intruder, as well as Used Cars, which Milius served as executive producer.

Leonard served as second unit director on the 1993 Andrew Davis film The Futigive, for which he staged the train crash sequence with Davis. According to an interview he did with Los Angeles Times in 2015, Leonard said "Andy Davis turned me loose. You are under a lot of pressure on making it go right. You use everything in your playbook that you have learned before to try and outsmart the gremlins."[1]

In 1987, Leonard made his directorial debut with Death Before Dishonor, which is so far the only film he has directed.

Other films he has directed second unit on include Rush Hour, Romancing The Stone, The Expendables, Maverick, Tombstone, Cowboys & Aliens, 2 Fast 2 Furious, and .

Filmography

Second unit director/Stunts

YearTitleStuntsSecond unit directorDirector
1978Big WednesdayJohn Milius
1979Apocalypse NowFrancis Ford Coppola
1980Used CarsRobert Zemeckis
1981Raiders of the Lost ArkSteven Spielberg
1982Conan the BarbarianJohn Milius
1983Blue ThunderJohn Badham
1984Romancing the StoneRobert Zemeckis
1989The PackageAndrew Davis
1990DowntownRichard Benjamin
1991Flight of the IntruderJohn Milius
Michael Pressman
DeliriousTom Mankiewicz
BackdraftRon Howard
Showdown in Little TokyoMark L. Lester
1992Buffy the Vampire SlayerFran Rubel Kuzui
Far and AwayRon Howard
1993Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles IIIStuart Beattie
The FugitiveAndrew Davis
TombstoneGeorge P. Cosmatos
1994MaverickRichard Donner
1995The Quick and The DeadSam Raimi
Die Hard With a VengeanceJohn McTiernan
Money TrainJoseph Ruben
1996EraserChuck Russell
1998Rush HourBrett Ratner
The Horse WhispererRobert Redford
Mighty Joe YoungRon Underwood
1999Wild Wild WestBarry Sonnenfeld
2001Planet of the ApesTim Burton
American OutlawsLes Mayfield
ImpostorGary Fleder
Joy RideJohn Dahl
2002The Sum Of All FearsPhil Alden Robinson
20032 Fast 2 FuriousJohn Singleton
Agent Cody BanksHarald Zwart
2004The ForgottenJoseph Ruben
2006Justin Lin
Date MovieJason Friedberg and Aaron Seltzer
2007Jake Kasdan
2008Soul MenMalcolm D. Lee
2009Fast and FuriousJustin Lin
2010The ExpendablesSylvester Stallone
InceptionChristopher Nolan
Due DateTodd Phillips
2011Cowboys & AliensJon Favreau
The Green HornetMichel Gondry
Bad TeacherJake Kasdan
2012Django UnchainedQuentin Tarantino
2013Gangster SquadRuben Fleischer
2014The Amazing Spider-Man 2Marc Webb
2015Furious 7James Wan
Hot PursuitAnne Fletcher
2016Jason BournePaul Greengrass
2017CHiPsDax Shepard
2020The Call of the WildChris Sanders
2023Outlaw Johnny BlackMichael Jai White

Director

Notes and References

  1. Web site: King . Susan . May 16, 2015 . Classic Hollywood: Stuntman Terry Leonard's career grew by leaps and bounds in Hollywood . 2024-09-29 . Los Angeles Times.
  2. Web site: Death Before Dishonor. 2024-09-29. catalog.afi.com.