Chad Stahelski

Charles F. Stahelski, better known as Chad Stahelski, was born on September 20, 1968. He is an acclaimed American stuntman and filmmaker notorious within the action film genre. He originally surfaced in the industry as a significant stunt performer and coordinator, contributing notably as the main stunt double for Keanu Reeves in The Matrix (1999), and the martial arts stunt coordinator on its initial two sequels. Following his successful ventures in stunts, he shifted to direction with the widely popular 2014 film John Wick, also starring Reeves, followed by its three sequels. Stahelski was born in Palmer, Massachusetts to parents Gary and Kathleen Stahelski (née Diamond). From an early age, he was keenly interested in martial arts, training in Jeet Kune Do under Dan Inosanto. Before his jump to the silver screen, he actively participated in kickboxing and mixed martial arts, one of the earliest American competitors in Shooto. Stahelski is also an alumnus of the University of Southern California. In the stint of his successful and eventful career from 1992 till now, his fame escalated as a well-known stuntman, and later as a notable director in the film industry. He is the Co-founder of action design company 87Eleven and has worked extensively with martial arts choreographer Yuen Woo-ping. He has faced his share of tragedies too, like the fatal accident of stuntman Kun Liu under his coordination on the set of The Expendables 2. In 2023, he was developing several projects to produce and direct, including a remake of Highlander, adaptations of Rainbow Six, Ghost of Tsushima, Black Samurai for Netflix, and Shibumi for Warner Bros. He was married to fellow stunt performer Heidi Moneymaker, but they divorced in 2018.