“Audiences want Burt, John Wayne and others to go on doing the same thing forever. It's critics and the actors themselves who want actors to try different things.”

American stuntman, film director, actor, writer, and NASCAR team owner

Hal Needham was an American stuntman, film director, actor, writer, and NASCAR team owner. He became known for his long association with Burt Reynolds and for work on action comedies built around cars and speed. His best-known credits include Smokey and the Bandit, Hooper, The Cannonball Run, and Stroker Ace. Across those films, his reputation grew from stunt work into directing and other screen roles, often in projects centered on automobiles and high-energy action.