He has built a career on high-speed chases, bruising fight scenes and gravity-defying stunts, but Jason Statham says that even after decades in action cinema, he is still determined to push himself “a little bit further than the last time”.
Speaking to BBC News at the premiere of his latest film Shelter, Statham admitted that his commitment to doing his own stunts has sometimes comes at a cost.
“There have been a lot of stunts where I went too far,” he says.
“When you get hurt, a lot of the time you think, ‘why did I do that, why didn’t I get a stunt man to do that?’
“I’ve hurt my neck a few times, I’ve hurt a lot of things a few times and that reminds you of your mistakes.”
Even so, the 58-year-old, who has two young children with model Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, shows little inclination to step back from the physical demands of his work and has an “in for a penny, in for a pound” mentality.
“I like to get in front of the camera and do as much as I can,” he explains. “I’ve spent many years learning different disciplines and given I have the technical skills to take on these complex action sequences, I like to get stuck in.”
Reflecting on age and longevity, he adds that he’s “not that old”.
“As you get into your later years you’re less bouncy than when you were 25, but I’m still going,” he laughs, adding that his secret to longevity is “lots of physio.”