After they met in Mammoth, Terry Leonard asked Rossall if he wanted to work on The Wind and the Lion in Spain. Rossall agreed and got along with the director John Milius after discovering he surfed in Malibu. The next project for Milius was writing a script for Francis Ford Coppola. Rossall got involved after Leonard was signed on as the stunt coordinator.[1]
Rossall said his career in stunts and acting took off on the set of Apocalypse Now when he and Steve Boyum were initially there to double as a pair of surfers. Coppola was amused enough by their talent that he fired the original actors after the four of them had a surf-off.[1] Rossall described the helicopter explosion[8] sequence as the most dangerous. He was the lookout for himself and three other stuntmen. It was an expensive shot in which Rossall injured his shoulder, hit is head and caught on fire. He claimed that working with Coppola was inviting and that each day after filming, he would play racquetball with Robert Duvall who he also tried to teach how to surf.[1] On screen, Rossall played "Mike from San Diego" and advises Bill Kilgore about Charlie's point, in which the Duvall's character responds, "Charlie don't surf!"[9][10][11] Rossall was on the film set for over 6 months, involved in 5 of the 6 crucial stunts and worked on every major action sequence.[1]
Following a rerelease in 2001 called Apocalypse Now Redux, Rossall shared Taurus World Stunt Awards nominations alongside stunt performers Terry Leonard, Steve Boyum and Joe Finnegan for 3 stunts in the film: Best Fire Stunt, Best Water Work, and Best Work With a Vehicle.[12]
1986–1998
While filming Cobra, Rossall was doubling as a bad guy driver. While doing a test run, he was supposed stop a van 30 feet away from actress Brigitte Nielsen. His foot got tangled in some cables that had fallen from the dashboard and he braked too late. When the van stopped, it was 25 feet over its mark, a near fatal stunt that almost killed Nielsen. During the actual take, Rossall hit cement at 20 miles per hour, cracking his sternum and breaking his passenger's back.[1]
During the filming of Babylon 5, actress Claudia Christian recalled Rossall choreographing a fight scene for the episode "Eyes" when he intentionally hit his head on a piece of cloth thought to be padded. A metal object underneath caused Rossall's head to swell and bleed, resulting in a noticeable lump.[13]
Rossall produced the action film Movin' Too Fast written and directed by Eric Chambers. The film was completed in 2006 with Artist View Entertainment and starred Layla Alexander, Marquita Terry and Matthew Glave.[14]
Rossall met actor Don Handfield at a gas station after noticing Handfield's car had a camera mounted to it. He was later brought into Handfield's directorial project Driver's Ed as Second Unit Director. It was then pitched to Broken Lizard as a web series, but was eventually released as a television deal.[15]
On February 3, 2011, Rossall was the stunt coordinator while filming an episode of the TV show Justified. At approximately 1:30 a.m., stunt performer Lisa Hoyle was knocked unconscious when a parked car rolled over her ankle after being hit by another car. She and another stunt performer said they were never informed that the car they were near would be involved in the stunt. She claimed she was getting food during the meeting in which the stunt was being explained. On February 1, 2013, Hoyle filed a lawsuit against Sony Pictures in which she says the incident wrecked her body and ruined her marriage. Rossall and Hoyle's husband, now divorced, were among the defendants in the case.[16][17][18] Rossall had also organized a phone meeting about the stunt, but both performers allegedly were not informed of that call.[19]
When I find that I'm afraid before performing any stunt, it tells me that further preparation is necessary.[1]
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