Rémy Julienne, the prolific stuntman and coordinator who amassed hundreds of credits over a six-decade-strong career, has died at the age of 90 after contracting Covid-19.
French newswires said the France native had been in intensive care in a hospital in the central town of Montargis since early January.
Rémy Julienne began as a French motocross champion before breaking into films in the 1960s, initially as a double for actor Jean Marais in a motorcycle scene in the movie Fantomas. He went on to perform and coordinate stunts on multiple entries in the James Bond franchise, and also worked as a stunt double for famed actors such as Michael Caine in The Italian Job.
Rémy Julienne also coordinated the attraction Moteurs… Action! Stunt Show Spectacular at Walt Disney Studios Park in Paris and set up a specialist school for stunt drivers in France.
Rémy Julienne career hit difficulties in 1999 when a stunt went wrong during the filming of the Luc Besson-produced Taxi 2, resulting in the death of a cameraman Alain Dutartre.
A lengthy legal battle between Julienne and Besson’s EuropaCorp saw Julienne initially held solely responsible before an appeal saw the decision reversed, though Julienne was still given a six month jail term.