Hercules (2014)

All horseback riders were stunt riders or experienced actors who were skilled at riding, mounting and dismounting. All running/galloping scenes were well choreographed, and actors used caution while on and near animals. The horse(s) rearing was a trained behavior. The horses were specially trained “falling horses” and “lay down horses” that fell on cue onto a soft landing area. When teams of horses pulled wagons, carriages or chariots, the drivers were experienced and teams of horses were familiar with each other and accustomed to the pulling action. Whenever horses were seen tied to posts/fences, they were attached to lead ropes tied to posts. The horses in the film were constantly rotated to give them rest and shade.

Production provided tents and sprayed water on the horses for the day shoot due to the heat in Budapest.

In the scene where we see two peacocks in a room behind the king’s throne, food and water were provided, and the peacocks were free to roam in a small area. Wrangler stood off-camera.

All chariot/battle scenes were rehearsed numerous times weeks before shooting. And all the weapons used in the battle scenes were made of rubber. One particular sequence has a stuntman jump on the chariot and knock the driver off who is then dragged behind it. In order to create this sequence, a special rig was put on the chariot, a slide plate for the driver/stuntman to be drug on.

During chariot battle scenes the horses are never galloping, they canter at a trot, and the film is sped up in post production.

In the battle scenes whenever we see a horse fall on the ground with its rider, trainers created a “fall zone,” where the stunt riders and horses fall in a safe area. This safe area was made up of peat moss, sand and straw. These scenes were intercut at time with horse dummies and rubber human bodies.

In the scene where Hercules’ battalion enters a burned out and destroyed camp, production used non-toxic fire bars, wax ash and smoke pots to create the burned out atmosphere. Dummies of dead animals and rubber warriors were spread throughout the area. In this same sequence when Hercules’ army is attacked by a marauding army and Hercules drives a chariot through the army, cutting them down, production cleared a huge path for the stuntman driving the chariot. It looks as if the chariot is driving through the army, when in fact the actors playing the enemy soldiers are very far from the chariot.

In the scene where the enemy rides down the hill towards Hercules and his men, everyone involved in riding down the hill were stuntmen and stunt horses and were well rehearsed and prepped for the action. Takes were limited and horses were fed and watered between takes.

In the scene where we see a pair of snakes crawl out of a statue’s head, snake wranglers placed snakes at the head of statue and let them slither down its body. The rest of their movements and appearance was embellished in post with CGI.

The bluebird held by the king’s general was created through CGI.

In the scene where Hercules goes to battle with the wolves, production first used a real wolf to simulate its movements for post. Then an animatronic wolf was used in the fight sequence with the actor. The rest of the scene was embellished in post with CGI.

Whenever we see horses flipping over, or when Hercules flips the horse on its back, or when the chariot runs over a soldier, all of these sequences were accomplished through CGI.

The dead animals on the wall of the tavern where Hercules and his men were eating were all props or taxidermy. Production has provided us with the correct documentation for the taxidermy. This also goes for the dead birds hanging from the tree at the campsite and the roasted rabbit on the spigot. And the pig’s head at the King’s lair.