To the average person, Tom O’Connell is likely not a recognizable name. Once one starts looking through his filmography, however, they can see a prodigious and lengthy stuntman/acting career visualize in front of their eyes. From recent credits as Darth Vader’s stunt double in “Obi-Wan Kenobi” and Heavy Mandalorian stunt double in “The Mandalorian” to working on stunt rigging for James Cameron’s “Avatar 2”, this 1996 Trinity graduate has built himself a name in the film industry and is far from finished in his career.
O’Connell recently returned home to give presentations about his career at the Speed Art Museum and at WKU’s Innovation Campus. As a Trinity graduate, his representative reached out to the school and invited Trinity Theatre students such as myself (’25), Ben Scobee (’25), Everan McCartan (’26), and Vance Ortego (’28) to attend the presentation and even help out with the interactive portions.
The presentation was organized by Kentucky to the World, a nonprofit founded in 2012 with the mission to “elevate the cultural and intellectual reputation of our Commonwealth on the global stage.” They have organized many programs featuring Kentucky natives such as Carol Wyatt, known for her animation work on “Rick and Morty” and “The Simpsons”, as well as Wade Houston and Eddie Whitehead, two basketball players and businessmen who broke the UofL team’s color barrier in 1962. The organization helped provide a free student program before the public presentation, which students from local schools and programs such as DuPont Manual High School, Simmons College’s Film Program, and Fern Creek High School.
O’Connell began his student presentation with a quote featured in the show “Ted Lasso”: “Be curious, not judgmental.” Describing his high school self as a “nerdy computer kid” who was too scared to join Trinity’s Theatre Department after being inspired by the 1993 spring musical “Man of La Mancha”, he urged the young crowd to “say yes to everything.” After graduating from Trinity, he followed his love for engineering to the University of Alabama in Huntsville. He originally wanted to become an astronaut, and even after he learned his 6’4” frame exceeded NASA’s height limit, he pursued a career in engineering.
A couple of years after graduating college, O’Connell said he was feeling “incredibly burnt out” and decided to turn to a new outlet that his stage fright had barred himself from in high school: theatre. From a friend’s recommendation he joined an improvisational comedy troupe and fell in love with performing. After meeting a friend’s husband whose strong New York accent “sounded like he walked right out of a Scorsese movie” and encouraged O’Connell to take his raw talents to New York City for refinement, he pulled the trigger and decided to move to the Big Apple with a group of friends. He studied at the well-regarded LAByrinth Theater Company for three years and worked on perfecting his craft.
O’Connell’s life changed while working on an indie war film for a friend in the mid-2000s, when the stunt coordinator apparently approached him and said, “You look athletic. Do you want to do stunts?” Since then, O’Connell has certainly found his niche. His natural athleticism, acting talent, and strong work ethic all combine to create a film director’s total package.
O’Connell bounced around between various projects in the industry after that fateful encounter, including the Sylvester Stallone and Jason Momoa thriller “Bullet to the Head”. Eventually, he decided to return to Alabama to continue his day job as an engineer, working on various indie films as a stuntman or stunt coordinator. While reconnecting with an industry friend on a trip to California in the mid-2000s, he mentioned his plans to possibly move to Nashville once his lease was up on his Alabama apartment. His friend’s response was simply, “Are you stupid?” O’Connell’s friend urged him to move back out to Los Angeles, and he would “walk him into the door” and introduce him to directors and other higher-ups in the film industry to get him working again.
Since then, O’Connell has lived in LA and featured in some major projects, including his aforementioned roles in the Lucasfilm shows “Obi-Wan Kenobi” and “The Mandalorian.” His engineering background has also provided him work as a ‘stunt rigger,’ the people who set up the mechanical aspects and wires behind a stunt that ensure the safety of the performers. The benefits his multifaceted abilities have offered to him caused him to share an extension of a famous quote with the audience: “A jack of all trades is a master of none, but oftentimes better than a master of none.”
O’Connell’s life story is a fascinating one, and he is the ideal poster child for trying something new and finding new passions even after beginning a professional career. He is certain that, if he had seen his future as that “nerdy computer kid” at Trinity, he would have never believed it. His presentation, along with future Kentucky Across the World programs, will be available to watch coming soon on KET.
One of the most impactful parts of O’Connell’s story wasn’t the focus on just stunt people, but rather the entire behind-the-scenes production of movies. He oftentimes attributed the success of his stunts to other departments such as costumes, sound, and cinematography. O’Connell’s humility given his accomplishments is impressive, and it’s clear that it stems from his upbringing in great schools like Trinity. So, the next time you watch an action movie you might want to watch out for Trinity’s unknown celebrity graduate!
