APEX - 2026

Another great NETFLIX picture about a woman who just wants to be left alone, but someone has other ideas.

Charlize Theron and Taron Egerton star in this action filled movie

well worth checking out before Friday

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:10

Hello, and welcome to this week's look at the world of action and stunts on film and television. Charlize Theron is a remarkable actress. An actress who over the last 30 years has produced some of the great performances in cinema. So much so that she's already been nominated for three Academy Awards, winning in 2005 for Monster. Her remarkable performance as Aileen Wurnos, the serial killer sentenced to death for her crimes. Nominated for three BAFTA Awards, 2005 for Monster, 2006 for North Country, and 2020 for Bombshell. Five Golden Globe nominations and 203 other nominations and awards. Yet this year, 2026, she says that Apex is her favourite movie that she's ever made. A very sweeping statement. But one that appeals to her physicality and her love of the outdoors. She said in interviews promoting the movie that her role in this picture has given her so much more freedom to continue many of the activities she explores in the film once filming and finished, including rock climbing. This has become a passion project for Charlize, who's now gotten to a level that she actually climbed the billboard for the movie during its first week on Netflix. But why? What is it that's captivated Charlize Theron so much that she's taken to rock climbing like a duck takes to water? It appears to be because of the outdoors work in this picture. Kayaking, rock climbing, and swimming are fully covered here. So before we go any further, let's take a listen to the trailer. You go in there alone. I wouldn't recommend it.

SPEAKER_04 2:21

I'm trying to get to Grand Isle Narrows.

SPEAKER_01 2:25

You're on the easy way or the hard way.

SPEAKER_04 2:29

The best way. So what do you think we're doing?

SPEAKER_03 3:48

Everybody coming out of the skin.

SPEAKER_04 3:50

Let's do it.

SPEAKER_03 3:52

Deadly dropshipping the game.

SPEAKER_02 3:53

Gonna hit you in the soul execution of the name. We make a good turn, don't we, eh?

SPEAKER_00 4:08

This is a cat and mouse movie about a woman trying to come to terms with the death of her husband in a climbing accident. So she goes to Australia to swim and kayak. She's met by a guy who manages to deflect the attentions of a couple of locals looking for way more than unleaded and flapjacks in a petrol station, and she asks him directions to a particular place. He obliges and she drives off. But a movie like this is never that simple. What follows is an extraordinary chase right across and below, the incredible scenery to a very powerful conclusion. The stunt coordinator is Philip Partridge, and the second unit director is Greg Rementa, who has worked with Charlie's before during the incredible stairwell fight in Atomic Blonde. Charleese and co-star Taryn Edgerton both used their stunt doubles for the really dangerous bits, but they both did a bit more of their own action than originally anticipated.

SPEAKER_04 5:16

I loved, oh yeah, I really loved this movie, uh it was my favorite movie I've ever made. I just loved the possibility to go to Australia and immerse into nature like that. And turns out I love rock climbing. Who would have thunk that? I would have never ever discovered that on my own. I'm continuing it. I love it. Um I had to jump off on like day four or three. I had to jump off a cli that cliff jump that was like 30 feet but into six feet of water.

SPEAKER_02 5:46

I think it was taller than 30 feet.

SPEAKER_04 5:48

I think like 50. Just keep saying that. It was really bad. It was really insane. Um and I was, I I definitely had a bit of fear. I've never done anything like that, you know. Um, but then I went and spent some time and did it slowly. And then by the time that we shot it, I couldn't get enough. Like I just, they were like, we're done. I was like, one more time, let's go. Just one more time. It was so incredible.

SPEAKER_02 6:14

So zen when you do it as well, you're kind of like, you look, I don't know, you look like you're going for a massage or something.

SPEAKER_04 6:20

I was having a great time, and Bolt had to remind me that I was a character that was not happy.

SPEAKER_02 6:25

Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_04 6:26

It's like you're having too much fun. You're here to punish yourself. So you got it.

unknown 6:30

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 6:31

Karen, did you have a favourite?

SPEAKER_01 6:32

Yeah, look, I uh I do want to shout out my stunt double Max Sharkey who uh did you know did um uh like amazing work on the movie. But it's true that I tr try and endeavour to do everything I can, and there is a fall that I do in the film, um, a fall from height, that Max did and they shot, and then Bolt asked me if I would do it, and I hadn't expected to, and I was and I had by this point in the shoot discovered that I am not as comfortable at height as I thought I was, and I did it, and it I didn't want to do it. Uh well I did want to do it, but I didn't want to do it. You know what I mean? I was t I was really terrified, I was you know visibly shaken. Um, but I did it, and I was I I found it very exhilarating, and I was really proud of myself, and Charlie's came uh gave me a big hug, and the crew would give me a sort of spontaneous round of applause, which was lovely. So I'm very proud that I did that.

SPEAKER_03 7:31

It was it's you you could tell you were so scared of it, and you and then you did it.

SPEAKER_00 7:38

Tarren mentioned Max Sharke, who did a wonderful job doubling him, and we should also mention Charlize's remarkable doubles, Jacqueline Legurtz, uh the wonderfully named River Mutton, who was one of the kayak doubles, uh, Luca Jones, Tara Smythe, and Brianna Panakoke, who all did a remarkable, remarkable job. Join me again on Friday when we'll take a dive off a cliff face into the action and find out more about it. Until then, it's bye for now.