Devyn Dalton owns an impressive television and movie resume that includes roles in Hypnotic, The Electric State, and Rise of the Planet of the Apes, but her latest role as Matt Damon’s stunt double in the box office smash, The Odyssey has gained attention for an extraordinary reason: In scenes and posters for the film, Dalton’s arms are used in the portrayal of Damon’s character Odysseus, leading the Oscar winner to praise his working partner as having “the greatest” arms that he’s ever seen.
So, wanting to find out more about those legendary arms, and what drives Dalton to dial-in her biceps, M&F Hers sat down with the 4-foot-6-inch powerhouse.
“Movement has honestly been part of my life for as long as I can remember,” Dalton tells M&F Hers. “I grew up dancing and performing, so I was active from a very young age, but my relationship with fitness evolved as my career did.”
As the actor’s resume expanded to motion capture, she began to challenge herself further as a stunt performer. “Stunt work became a natural extension,” she explains. “I love that it combines so many things I am passionate about; acting, movement, athleticism, storytelling and problem-solving. At 4’6,” I can double as children, creatures, and characters of different scales, but I’m also an adult with years of physical training and experience. That combination has allowed me to do some pretty unusual jobs. Over the years, the lines between acting, performance capture, and stunt work have really blurred for me. I don’t think of myself as only one thing. Ultimately, I’m a performer, and I love using my body as part of telling a story.”
Dalton’s ability to execute multiple roles was illustrated in 2011, when she donned a chimpanzee costume for Rise of the Planet of the Apes and was the first woman to play Cornelia, who is the mother of Cornelius. She also provided motion capture for Caesar’s scenes as a toddler on the same movie, returning to the franchise for 2017’s War of the Planet of the Apes and playing a young version of Cornelius.
“The Planet of the Apes films were incredibly formative for me, because they introduced me to a completely different way of performing,” Dalton says. “You’re building a character physically from the ground up and studying posture, weight distribution, behavior, and how that character exists in their environment. It could be incredibly physical. You’re spending long periods moving in ways that aren’t natural to a human body; often down on all fours, repeating movements and maintaining that physicality take after take. But I absolutely loved it. A fun fact is that the vocal sounds of the ape characters I played are also mine. It turns out I can make some pretty great chimpanzee noises!”
Devyn Dalton has the ‘Greatest Arms’ that Matt Damon Has Ever Seen
“I woke up in New Zealand to my phone blowing up, because Matt Damon had apparently been talking about my arms,” recalls Dalton, who had been praised during the Oscar winning actor’s appearance on the HappySadConfused podcast with Joshua Horowitz. During the show, Damon pulled back the curtain on why his biceps looked so great in certain scenes. “So, my double was a woman, a female stunt performer.” he revealed. “Who had the greatest arms I’ve ever seen.”
Dalton explains that she found Damon’s words to be incredibly flattering. “I’ve trained consistently for years, and I genuinely love being strong,” she explains. “Getting the opportunity to stunt double for Matt was also pretty surreal. Historically, we’ve seen men doubling women quite a lot in the stunt industry, so I love the fact that we’re now seeing women getting opportunities to double men too.” For her part, Dalton learned a lot from her experience of working with Matt Damon, noting that despite his stature in the industry, he was “down to earth” and “respectful,” carrying himself in a way that puts a lot of attention into the details of what he’s doing.
What Is Devyn Dalton’s Upper-Body and Arm Training Routine?
“I love body weight training because you can do it almost anywhere, anytime,” explains the well traveled star. “Pull-ups, chin-ups, dips, and push-ups have built my upper body more than anything else,” she reveals. “I also love boxing for cardio and arm definition. It’s an amazing way to build endurance, coordination and power, while keeping the workouts fun and dynamic.”
In the gym, Dalton is a proponent of cables. “I love using cable machines on upper-body days, because they keep a constant tension on the muscles and allow you to work through different angles,” she explains. “For someone wanting to build upper-body strength and definition, I would start with two upper-body sessions per week, with at least a couple of days between them,” adds the actor. “You don’t have to destroy yourself in the gym every day to make progress. Consistency, progressive overload, good nutrition and recovery are what make the difference.”
Working out, boxing, and practicing martial arts has not only honed Dalton’s body for Hollywood, but sweating it out on a consistent basis has also given her the mental prowess to meet life’s personal challenges head-on. “I lived through extreme physical and mental domestic violence in my twenties, and finding martial arts gave me a sense of strength, confidence and self-defense that I believe every girl and woman deserves to have,” explains the strong female. “My only regret is that I didn’t start younger. Being able to physically defend yourself is such a crucial skill for women. It isn’t about living in fear; it’s about feeling capable, aware and empowered in your own body.”
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