What Did Ana De Armas Say About Her Intense Stunt Sequence For Ballerina? (Photo Credit – YouTube)
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Ana de Armas officially entered the John Wick universe with the highly anticipated spin-off film, Ballerina. The movie, directed by Len Wiseman, tells the gripping story of Eve Macarro (Ana de Armas), a highly skilled assassin on a relentless quest for vengeance against those who destroyed her family.
When De Armas decided to join the universe, she knew intense fight choreography would be part of playing an assassin. In one such sequence, her character Eve, an assassin molded by the Ruska Roma, is seen unleashing a flamethrower on a group of henchmen as part of her mission for revenge following her father’s murder.
Director Wiseman recently revealed that “90 percent” of the Ballerina sequel was practical, and Ana de Armas performed most of the stunts herself. This meant she had to actually operate a flamethrower on set and (safely) set a stunt performer ablaze on camera. The actress shared that she was overcome with emotion and began to cry while handling the weapon during rehearsal.
“I remember the first day the stunt team was practicing with the fire, and they told me to go do it before the shoot, and I said, ‘No, no, no, I’ll be fine,'” Ana de Armas shared, Luckily, the stunt team insisted she test it beforehand. “They got the main fire guy that gets burned, and he’s all covered in this sticky grease or whatever they put for protection, and they’re like, ‘Okay, go ahead. Just burn him.’ And I did, and I started crying.”
Both Wiseman and De Armas described the moment as deeply intense. “It was really emotional,” she said. “I’ve never seen anyone burning, even though it’s fake.” Once she had the initial run-through behind her, the actress could film the scene without tears. “Then I was fine,” De Armas added. “Then I burned like a hundred people. I’m glad I practiced the day before, and I cried the day before. But it’s amazing to see what [the stunt performers] do — I can’t believe you guys put yourself through this. It’s unbelievable.”
Wiseman also admitted he was taken aback by the flamethrower’s sheer force, even in a tightly controlled stunt environment. “I had never actually shot a flamethrower in my life before,” he said. “It was just horrifying, actually lighting somebody on fire with a flamethrower, even though they’re acting. And it was a long sequence. It was very, very brutal,” the filmmaker noted.
While Ana de Armas underwent extensive weapons training before production, controlling fire proved to be a different challenge. In addition to the inherent risks, she found the flames’ unpredictable movement both surprising and unsettling. However, she managed to overcome her emotions and aced both the sequence and the stunt.
Set between John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum and John Wick: Chapter 4, Ballerina is the latest installment that delivers the franchise’s signature hard-hitting action, immersive world-building, and jaw-dropping stunts. The movie will provide an adrenaline-charged, big-screen experience that will leave fans on the edge of their seats.
Ballerina will release in India and the US on June 6, 2025. You can check out the trailer for the movie below:
