Adam Devine Pushed To Perform A Particularly Dangerous Righteous Gemstones Stunt
The oldest filmmakers in Hollywood were physical comics, and they can all rest easy knowing Adam Devine is upholding their tradition. The "Righteous Gemstones" star is best known for his work as a comedian, but he also loves performing his own stunts — the more dangerous the better. One stunt was so extreme that production wanted a double to step in, but Devine insisted on going through with it himself.
"The Righteous Gemstones" is far from Devine's first foray into dangerous stunt work. "Workaholics" also featured a lot of physical comedy that Devine had to commit to mind, soul, and, body. Luckily, his commitment paid off, and the series earned an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Stunt Coordination. "I'm very excited and happy that the Academy took notice," the series co-creator said in a 2013 interview with Join the Synergy. "It looks like I really hurt myself every time, 'cause I do. It's very painful." When it comes to crazy action sequences, there's no line that Devine wouldn't cross for humor.
"We just want to write the funniest show, we don't try to put limits on that," he explained. "It's just monetary limits, where it's like, we cannot afford that." Devine would go on to take the same approach on the set of "The Righteous Gemstones" a few years later. When the script called for a risky stunt, the actor insisted on going all in. "I remember they wanted me to dive through this table," the actor recalled in an interview with Men's Health. "And, I'm like, 'I could dive through a table. Look at me, I'm a f***ing athlete, dude,' and they were like, 'No, we'll just have a stunt double, we don't want you to get hurt and then we'll have to shut down production, blah, blah, blah.'"
Devine was down to dive right through the table
The production team on "The Righteous Gemstones" was afraid that Devine would get hurt if he went through with the stunt, but he eventually wore them down.
"[On] one of the last takes, they were like ... 'You want to dive through that table?'" he revealed. "And I'm like, 'I do,' and then I dove through the table. And that ended up being the take they used because I was able to angle my head back and get on camera."
His character Kelvin is committed to maintaining a highly tailored physique, even leading a group of men centered around working out, the God Squad. Devine might not have the biggest muscles of the bunch, but he is certainly in shape. "I'm a fairly athletic guy," the comedian admitted. "I work out quite a bit so I can do stuff like this." Devine also said, "I don't have a jawline that touches my titties, but I'm getting to the age where I'm like, I want to be able to do stuff when I get older. So that's how I'm working out now."
The show wouldn't be as funny if Devine wasn't committed to working out at all, but it also wouldn't hit the same if he looked as athletic as the other God Squad members. The cult represents a ridiculous physical and religious extremism, so it makes sense that Devine and his character would also go to physical extremes, even when it comes to diving through a table.
The Pitch Perfect alum wants to be an action hero
Devine isn't afraid to put his body to the test, and it isn't just for the sake of physical comedy. The actor has always been a bit of a daredevil, as he revealed on the short-lived streaming service Quibi with his travel show, "Bad Ideas." The series showcased an adventurous side of Devine's personality and, of course, tied in some humor as well. He even brought along some celebrity guests, like his "Pitch Perfect" co-star Rebel Wilson. Devine and Wilson apparently share a love for danger and aren't afraid to do risky stunts on camera.
"We always talk about how we're known as being comedy people," he explained to Travel and Leisure. "But we always thought it would be cool to do a straight-up action movie or a show where we could do stunts. I had the idea to have us do some cool action stunts on a Hollywood background and it was a really fun episode to shoot."
Wilson and Devine have both dabbled into action comedies in the past — Devine starred in the 2019 film "Game Over, Man!" with his "Workaholics" buddies, and Wilson was featured in the criminally underrated 2013 movie "Pain & Gain." Still, both actors have yet to star in a straight-up action movie without a comedic edge. Then again, what's a good movie without a good laugh here and there?
Maybe one day Devine will be the biggest action star in Hollywood, but it's hard to imagine taking him seriously. Then again, even if Devine did become the next superhero, he certainly wouldn't be the first one that was known for being funny. In the meantime, the actor still has dangerous stunt work to do on the set of his HBO comedy series.