The cast of the X-Men franchise is incredibly talented. In fact, a lot of the people in these superhero roles are used to being in big blockbuster action flicks, where they are doing their own stunts. However, a few of them have decided to take a step back from some of these dangerous sequences.
It always looks better when an actor does their own stunts, but that isn't to take anything away from the fantastic work of a stunt crew. They put their bodies on the line to make fantastic movies and should be praised more! Some actors let them get on with their stellar work, whereas others just have to get in on the fun themselves.
Never Risk It: Ryan Reynolds
Ryan Reynolds is incredibly dedicated to his role as Deadpool. However, despite giving the character a lot of physicality, he steps out when it comes to some of the big action scenes. There's actually a very good reason for this though.
Reynolds used to love giving it his all. But after some back injuries from stunts on a previous shoot, he is unable to carry out the action that he would want to. Considering the all in one costume though, it's very easy to hide a stunt double under there.
Own Stunts: Olivia Munn
Olivia Munn very briefly portrayed the sword-wielding Psylocke in the X-Men franchise. She was very proud of the fact that she carried out many of her own stunts, something a lot of her castmates weren't doing at the time.
Believing it looked more authentic and having a blast doing it, Olivia Munn suited up in her comic-accurate costume and really went for it. It shows on screen and it's just a shame that the character was so underused in the franchise as a whole.
Never Risk It: Jennifer Lawrence
Jennifer Lawrence has been known to do her own stunts. She was very active on set when portraying Katniss Everdeen. However, she has both body and stunt doubles for her role as Mystique, perhaps because of the intensity of the production.
She has gotten involved now and then, but often there's another stunt double under the blue makeup, which once again makes it much easier to disguise the fact that Lawrence isn't the one being launched into the air. The role is also very physical and requires a trained fighter.
Own Stunts: Hugh Jackman
Hugh Jackman has never been one to shy away from a challenge. He has been known to go to the extreme to pull off the role of Wolverine. He's even dehydrated himself in order to look the best on camera and hasn't stopped when it comes to action.
Although having a few stunt doubles, much of Hugh's stunt work is all done by himself. This got dangerous however under director Bryan Singer who created an unsafe work environment, so much so that Hugh actually got cut up.
Never Risk It: Ian McKellen
Ian McKellen is a classically trained actor, used to starring in plays rather than big blockbuster movies. His desire to do his own stunts has never been overly big therefore and as he has gotten older, this has looked less and less likely.
It's much safer overall for others to take on some of the work of Magneto. Considering Ian has never had any proper training for these kinds of stunts it would be quite irresponsible to put him in any kind of dangerous situation.
Own Stunts: Halle Berry
Storm is one of the most powerful heroes in all of comics. The part needed a strong woman to take it on and really throw herself into the action. Halle Berry did just that and has been doing many of her own stunts ever since.
From the vast array of wirework that the role requires to some of the more action-heavy parts, Berry really stepped up and showed the rest of the cast how it was done. The final product showcases all of her hard work and commitment.
Never Risk It: Patrick Stewart
Patrick Stewart is another actor that has some classical training and has never really had to do many stunts. Even his days on the Enterprise saw far less stunt work due to the budget of TV networks at the time.
As he has gotten older and the fact that the character is actually in a wheelchair, has meant there are very few stunts for Patrick to be taking part in. The few that there are were actually largely achieved with CGI. He's still one of the best Professor X's though.
Own Stunts: Nicholas Hoult
Nicholas Hoult has already showcased he is willing to get stuck into stunts thanks to his time in a futuristic, apocalyptic wasteland. It's not too surprising to see that he tries to do as many of his own stunts in X-Men as well.
It's likely because anything that doesn't come out too well can be modified by CGI thanks to the kind of suit that he is wearing. It's likely more complex to try to get a stunt double into such a costume as well. Plus, he seems to enjoy it!
Never Risk It: Sophie Turner
Sophie Turner has often had stunt and body doubles during her role as Sansa Stark. She didn't take a different approach when portraying Jean Grey, even when the film was actually titled after her. Most of the stunts were done by professionals.
This is partly because she hasn't had to do much stunt work in the past and it's a big commitment to start learning so much, especially when so much of the film rests on the character. It makes more sense for someone else to take over.
Own Stunts: Alexandra Shipp
Storm is such an important character to the franchise that there have been two different variations of her. The second iteration saw Alexandra Shipp take on the role and she was clearly inspired by Halle Berry's work.
She too took on many of her own stunts and contributed to some of the wirework as well. She did, however, admit that it wasn't the most comfortable of experiences, but regardless she gave it her heroic all!