The 12-minute “single-take” fight scene was, without a shadow of a doubt, the highlight of Netflix’s Extraction. That’s probably why Marvel stunt co-ordinator turned director Sam Hargrave has decided to up the ante for Extraction 2 with an insane 21-minute continuous prison brawl.
The supersized sequence, which was teased in the forthcoming sequel’s trailer, has been described as “the hardest thing I’ve ever done” by leading man and seasoned action star Chris Hemsworth.
Given the nature of the beast, Hemsworth couldn’t rely on stunt doubles this time around as the time-honoured switcharoo would’ve been far too obvious on camera. In other words, he had to put that Thor rig to good use and bear the brunt of the physically demanding fight choreography.
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“It was like, ‘I don’t know if I can get to the end of this round.’… It’s like a boxing match: ‘When is the bell going to ring? When are they going to call cut?'” Chris Hemsworth told Total Film.
“At the end of a take, you’re sucking air like you never have before, and everyone drops to their knees.”
Hemsworth later revealed there was a physio he affectionately referred to as “The Wizard” constantly on set, who became essential to the blockbuster poster boy’s recovery: “He would see me just sit there and start leaning in a different way. He’d grab me, pull me aside, and quickly dig his hands into my back and my shoulder or whatever, and send me back out there.”
“I’d get home and it would be straight into the ice bath, right into the sauna, and physio. A few anti-inflammatory tablets. And then back out there.”
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“For me, the image of Chris Hemsworth beating the shit out of a bunch of prisoners, while on fire, in the snow was something that I couldn’t pass up,” Sam Hargrave explained to Empire Magazine earlier this month.
“And hats off to Chris. It wasn’t CG fire. And he had to do it over and over. I don’t know a lot of people, let alone Hollywood A-listers, who are gonna let you light them on fire while on camera.”
Extraction 2 hits Netflix next month on June 16th – check out the official plot synopsis and full-length trailer below:
After being presumed dead nine months ago, Tyler Rake (Chris Hemsworth) is assigned back by the black-ops mercenary to rescue a ruthless Georgian gangster’s family from the prison where they are being held.
