A Different Kind of Horsepower

If you’ve ever watched shows like The Blacklist, Orange is the New Black, Sneaky Pete, Blindspot, the Netflix hit, Russian Doll, chances are, you’ve seen the work of Becca GT. She broke into stunt performing and stunt doubling full-time almost a decade ago, using her horseback riding background as a jumping off point.

As a child, the Rhode Island native grew up riding and competing at a regional and national level on the Arabian circuit and dreamt of being a florist. She began her adult life in a somewhat conventional way, attending Johnson and Wales University and majoring in advertising and public relations. She worked at an advertising firm for a couple of years before realizing an office setting wasn’t for her. Becca switched gears, turning to riding instruction, horse training, and managing her parents’ farm, PondView Equestrian Center. “I was always familiar with the rough-and-tumble, hard work, and being outside,” she says. “I think that upbringing has just been a huge influence has really helped shape who I am.”

When Becca met her now-husband, Matt, however, she was introduced to the exciting world of stunt performing. He was professional stunt driver and shared Becca’s desire to constantly learn new things. As their relationship grew, so did Becca’s skillset. “I didn't even know how to change my own oil at that point,” she admits, but it wasn’t long before she dove head-first into learning everything she could about cars. “My husband has been instrumental in teaching me as much as I can possibly hold and believe me, it's been an ongoing thing.”

Matt was a longtime member of SAG-AFTRA (Screen Actors Guild‐American Federation of Television and Radio Artists), so together, the pair decided to seek out opportunities in the Boston area, starting with extra work and then breaking into stunt work.

In the male-dominated industry that requires its people to be Jacks (or Jills) of all trades and master of some, Becca utilized her background in riding to make a name for herself before proving her propensity for driving a different kind of horsepower. “I was able to come as a horse person and later evolve into a car stunt driver,” she says. “I've been able to carve my own niche, which has worked out for me in the long run.”

By the time she hit her early 30s, Becca began her endeavor in her new career, full-time. She started out commuting to New York City—where much of her work takes place—from her home in Thompson, CT, before growing tired of the commute and moving to her current residence in Pennsylvania. “To be completely honest I never really even knew that being a stunt woman existed as a career,” she says. “I absolutely love what I do it's always challenging it's always new, it's always fresh.”

Becca’s job as a stuntwoman is quite literally never the same, but typically looks a little something like this: After the hardest part of the day—finding parking—she will go through hair, makeup, and wardrobe. She’ll go to set and walk through rehearsal, talk about the nature of what the stunt is, and, if doubling, Becca will­ have a chance to meet and observe the actor before completing the stunt. “It gives you the opportunity to watch how they move, how they interact,” she says, “it gives you the ability to make your doubling a little more realistic.”

Becca’s stunts—or gags, as they’re often called—have run the gamut from getting pushed and falling down to major car crashes. While she has a growing laundry list of television shows and movies that she has performed stunts in, she remains humble. “My husband and I try to keep a pretty low profile,” Becca says. “In our town, most people don't even know what we do for a living.”

Becca’s proudest moments are not in the number of productions she has been a part of or the recognition she receives from strangers. Rather, it is in the impression her achievements leave on young girls and other women striving to break the glass ceiling. One particular moment stands out for her. In front of a sold-out crowd at the end of a live car stunt show in Honesdale, PA, she stood on top of the car and removed her helmet, revealing to the audience that all of the crashes and rollovers were performed by a woman. “At the meet-and-greet, a mother came over to me—she had her two young daughters with her—and said ‘thank you for showing them that they can do something like this,’” Becca recalls, “and that was really empowering.”

This article was originally published in Northeast Equestrian Life