PUEBLO, Colo. – Scott Eastwood, star of 20th Century Fox’s film adaptation of Nicholas Sparks’ best-selling novel “The Longest Ride,” found out what it is really like to be a bull rider when he attempted to ride Professional Bull Riders (PBR) bull Terminator at PBR stock contractor Troy Brown’s ranch in Moorpark, California, this past February.
Eastwood, the 29-year-old son of Clint Eastwood, trained for months to take on the role of Luke Collins, a fictitious bull rider making his way up the PBR rankings, in “The Longest Ride.” Scott sought out the help of Brown, who also works as a stunt coordinator for “NCIS: Los Angeles,” to learn the ins and outs of being a PBR bull rider.
A slew of current and former PBR stars, such as Josh Faircloth, Jerome Davis and two-time World Champion Justin McBride, also helped Eastwood learn how to come across as an authentic bull rider throughout the filming process for “The Longest Ride.”
Eastwood participated in every scene involving the bulls, except those when the chute gate was thrown open.
However, having a stunt double was not satisfying enough for him. Eastwood wanted to actually ride a bull.
When filming was complete and the movie was in the can, Eastwood got his wish and returned to Brown’s ranch to take on Terminator.
“I was definitely nervous, but it’s good to be scared,” Eastwood said. “It was a riot, though. I see why those guys do that. It’s awesome. If it was possible for me to have any more respect for those guys than I had before I tried to ride, I definitely do.”
Eastwood lasted about 2.5 seconds on Terminator.
The PBR served as technical advisors to 20th Century Fox to produce all of the bull riding scenes in the “The Longest Ride,” which opens in theaters Friday, April 10.
© 2015 PBR Inc. All rights reserved.