If a stunt double is doing their job right, you never see their face. That was certainly the case with Lady Deadpool. But even though you may not have seen the performer under the mask, you've definitely seen her work.
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00:00If a stunt double is doing their job right, you never see their face. That was certainly
00:04the case with Lady Deadpool. But even though you may not have seen the performer under
00:08the mask, you've definitely seen her work.
00:11While Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman may have been the stars of Deadpool and Wolverine,
00:15some of the smaller roles and cameos occasionally stole the show. The finale of the movie introduced
00:20a flurry of Deadpool variants, a ragtag group led by Lady Deadpool, a female version of
00:25the anti-hero voiced by none other than Reynolds' wife, Blake Lively. However, the part was
00:30physically portrayed by Australian stunt performer Christiane Bettridge.
00:35Despite being relatively new to the movie industry, Bettridge has already established
00:39herself in Hollywood, and there's a good chance she's appeared in several films you've seen.
00:43Let's give the people what they came for!
00:45Although Bettridge is now known for her stunt work, she hasn't always worked in the movie
00:49industry. In fact, long before she became a stunt performer, Bettridge actually had
00:53a varied career working in several different fields. Her 2013 bio on a modeling agency
00:58website states that she worked as a dancer before the age of 22, in addition to landing
01:02some gigs as a model in her travels around Europe and Asia.
01:06And it's clear that Bettridge was not just an average dancer. Having grown up with a
01:10background in ballet, Bettridge's first career saw her make use of her dancing skills, and
01:14she continued to develop as a dancer by performing professionally in Australia and expanding
01:19into other dance styles, such as cabaret and contemporary. She eventually began to land
01:24some pretty prestigious jobs around the world. Bettridge performed as part of a burlesque
01:28and cabaret show in Paris, and also as a dancer in the world-famous Moulin Rouge! show.
01:34Bettridge may have danced her way across half the globe at the beginning of her career,
01:38but her biggest break came when she got the opportunity to head to Themyscira and join
01:42the stunt team for 2017's Wonder Woman. Under the name Christiane Chodol, she worked alongside
01:47more than 200 people who were involved in stunts for the spectacle-driven film.
01:51Bettridge actually had two different credits in the film, acting as a stunt double for
01:55both Connie Nielsen, who played the Amazonian queen Hippolyta, and Gal Gadot herself as
01:59Wonder Woman. The movie is one of the few entries in the DC Extended Universe that found
02:03both commercial and critical success, grossing over $800 million at the box office.
02:08In an interview with Scholastic, Bettridge explained that she had loved superheroes growing
02:13up, and had a particular affinity with Wonder Woman, making it something of a dream come
02:17true to be able to play the character. She said,
02:19"...I was a big fan of Wonder Woman when I was a kid. I love that I get to pretend to
02:23be someone that I grew up wanting to be."
02:26For their work on Wonder Woman, the stunt department received a 2018 Screen Actors Guild
02:30Award, although it was an honor she shared with the entire stunt department.
02:33I think, I mean, Wonder Woman will always be, just have a, you know, place in my heart.
02:41Wonder Woman wasn't the last time Bettridge doubled for Gal Gadot, and it certainly wasn't
02:45the last time she helped portray Wonder Woman on the big screen. She returned to the role
02:49in 2017 for Justice League, and doubled for Gadot again three years later in Wonder Woman
02:541984.
02:55Now that the DC Extended Universe is rebooting, Bettridge likely won't have any more opportunities
03:00to double for Gadot as Wonder Woman. But that doesn't mean that the actor and stunt performer
03:04will no longer work together.
03:06Bettridge has since acted as stunt double for Gadot in two Netflix movies, 2021's Red
03:11Notice alongside Dwayne Johnson and Ryan Reynolds, as well as the 2023 film Heart of Stone. Both
03:16films put Gadot's characters at the center of multiple action scenes, which meant Bettridge
03:20had plenty to do.
03:22"...On it."
03:27As part of a hashtag celebrating women, Gadot posted a behind-the-scenes image of herself
03:31and Bettridge. Accompanying the photo was a message praising the stunt performer for
03:35her work — a nice touch, given how dangerous the job can be. Gadot wrote on Instagram,
03:40"...she's been with me since the first Wonder Woman and I know we have a long future together.
03:44She's always there by my side, making sure I'm safe and at the same time taking the punches
03:48and getting thrown against walls. She's a mother, an athlete, and her movements are
03:52unlike anything I've seen before in a stunt performer."
03:55One of the more recent films that Bettridge has worked on is 2023's Locked In. The Netflix-exclusive
04:01psychological thriller is largely told through the use of flashbacks, as a hospital nurse
04:05tries to help a patient recover from what is initially thought to be a coma but is actually
04:09revealed to be Locked In Syndrome. The nurse works with the woman, played by Famke Janssen,
04:14to bring her out of her paralysis and uncover both the events that led to her injury and
04:18her family's dark pasts.
04:20This was the first time that Bettridge had worked as a stunt double for someone other
04:23than Gal Gadot since the release of Wonder Woman in 2017, doubling this time for Janssen.
04:28A person suffering from Locked In Syndrome who can't move anything but their eyes sounds
04:33like a part that doesn't require much stunt work, but without getting into any spoilers
04:37for the movie in case you want to watch it, there are a few pivotal scenes where Bettridge
04:40had a chance to ply her trait.
04:43Although most of her stunt work has, of course, been done in service of DC, Bettridge has
04:47also crossed the street to work in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The Marvels, a sequel
04:52to 2019's Captain Marvel, continued to follow Brie Larson as Carol Danvers on an all-new
04:57adventure with plenty of fights and wirework along the way.
05:01Like most of her other roles, Bettridge isn't credited as a stunt double for any particular
05:05actor. Instead, she's listed in a more general sense as a stunt performer. While the role
05:10of stunt double and stunt performer can be used interchangeably for the same position,
05:14it is likely here that Bettridge was not substituting solely for a single character, but rather
05:18taking part in stunts for different actors when needed.
05:21Bettridge worked alongside noted performers such as Matthew Bell and Marvin Campbell in
05:25the stunt department, as well as frequent Brie Larson stunt double Joanna Bennett.
05:31It turns out that a past in dancing and sport gave Bettridge a big leg up for her current
05:35career as a stunt performer. Bettridge detailed to Scholastic how her former jobs have given
05:40her the tools to succeed in the world of Hollywood. In particular, she credited her time spent
05:44learning complex dances as an invaluable aid to her, and learning fight scenes. It makes
05:49sense, after all — both activities involve carefully choreographed routines that have
05:53to be followed exactly to ensure the timing is perfect.
05:57"...confronting the idea of training 25-30 women to become Amazons, you know, the bar
06:02is extraordinarily high."
06:04Many stunt performers used to be athletes, but being a former dancer helped me. Every
06:08fight and stunt is choreographed, or planned out step-by-step. I master the moves quickly
06:12because I spent so many years learning dance routines."
06:15Bettridge also outlined some of the ways that she and her colleagues have to work hard when
06:19training with weapons like swords, and that her physical fitness from spending so much
06:23time in the gym when she was younger was a big help in these instances.
06:27Bettridge went on to give words of encouragement to any youngsters who might be going through
06:30similar training, explaining that it instills useful skills for many careers. She added,
06:35"...you don't have to be an athlete or dancer forever, but training and working hard now
06:39will show you that you can do anything."
06:42Long before Wonder Woman and the beginning of her stretch doubling for Gal Gadot, Bettridge's
06:46first credited stunt role was in the sci-fi series Hunters. The television show follows
06:51a group known as the Exo-Terrorism Unit, a secretive government organization that works
06:55to track down and eliminate a race of aliens that have invaded Earth and live among its
07:00people. It ran for just a single season of 13 episodes before it was brought to a premature
07:04end.
07:05Bettridge acted as a stunt double for the character Regan, played by Brittany Olford,
07:09in three 2016 episodes. Regan is a hunter in disguise, and she often finds herself in
07:14compromising situations, which gave Bettridge plenty of opportunities to show off her stunt
07:19capabilities.
07:20She next appeared in the Netflix show Mako Mermaids, a spinoff of H2O Just Add Water.
07:25Bettridge is credited for utility stunts. While it isn't clear exactly what Bettridge
07:29contributed, she was part of a 27-person stunt team that included a number of safety divers
07:34and swimmers. Unlike many of the stunt performers, though, Bettridge is only credited in a single
07:39episode of the series.
07:41Even if you are completely unaware of Bettridge as a stunt performer, there's still a small
07:45chance you may have seen her online. Her Instagram is active and has over 20,000 followers,
07:50with Bettridge not only providing a behind-the-scenes look at some of her work in Hollywood movies,
07:54but also sharing other aspects of her life. Many of these posts include videos and images
07:59showing how she stays in shape and gets in condition to carry out her demanding stunts.
08:03Her routines range from workouts to hikes up mountain trails and forests. Bettridge
08:07is so passionate about keeping fit and staying in shape that she's launching her own on-demand
08:12personal training service that will be available through an app.
08:15According to Bettridge, the service will benefit from her years of experience not only working
08:19in stunts, but also as a former dancer and athlete. She's previously received instruction
08:24in a wide variety of skills that includes everything from martial arts to riding jet
08:28skis. She's also certified as a scuba diver and trained in the use of several types of
08:33weapons, seemingly giving her plenty of experience with which to teach a well-rounded approach
08:37to fitness.
08:39If you keep up with the stunt industry, you probably know Bettridge on her own merits.
08:43But you might also be familiar with her due to her relationship with stunt performer and
08:47actor Andy Lister. The two have been in a relationship for several years, with Lister
08:51proposing to Bettridge in 2023, and the pair regularly post pictures together on social
08:56media as they travel around the world.
08:58They have also worked together on a number of films. He worked as a fight trainer for
09:02Wonder Woman 1984 and was also involved in the Marvels, on which he was credited as the
09:06assistant fight coordinator. One of Lister's recent gigs found him collaborating with Bettridge
09:11again as he was the assistant stunt coordinator for Deadpool and Wolverine, working to choreograph
09:16some of the fight scenes in the film as well as performing in them. For example, he plays
09:20one of the TVA agents who battle Deadpool early in the movie.
09:24With a character as popular as Wonder Woman under her belt, and given her long collaboration
09:28with Gal Gadot, it's no surprise that Bettridge has more work on the way. Her IMDb page lists
09:33the upcoming Netflix film The Old Guard 2 as her next project. The first one was heavy
09:37on the action, so the sequel is no doubt the perfect opportunity to flex her skills. She'll
09:42be doubling for Uma Thurman.
09:44And although it's not listed on her upcoming credits, Bettridge recently shared the trailer
09:48for Disney's upcoming live-action remake of Snow White, in which Gadot is appearing as
09:52the Evil Queen. While there's no word yet on whether Bettridge is involved with the
09:56stunts given her history doubling for Gadot, it's certainly a possibility. We'll have to
10:00wait and find out.