Jono, Ben & Megan - The Podcast - The Prank That Looked Way Too Real | Itty Bitty Bit

Episode Date: June 17, 2026

A seemingly serious on-air moment takes a wild turn when it’s revealed to be an elaborate prank Jono masterminded with professional stunt performers.   Join the Itty Bitty Hitty Committee HERE!Instagram:  @THEHITSBREAKFASTFacebook: The Hits Breakfast with Jono, Ben & MeganSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Like, oh my God. So this is fresh off the prank on, are you right, Megan? Yeah. So I like, I'm like shaking. It is, it is. Because I was like, I was so concerned. And when I saw one of you had a hammer, I was like, I'm about to see someone get in there with hammer. The hammer was, the hammer was full on.

Oh, the fath was full on. And then, wow, yeah. Yeah, you know, when these things happen and you're like, okay, maybe it is. There was a small part of the prank. But then when you got involved and you're looking quite corporately day and it, I was like, oh, no, that's not a prank. That was the moment I was like, wow, you know. It was a, well, you're very good at your job, guys. Yeah.

Yeah, well, and I think, like, when you see them filming stunt stuff, I'm like, it looks real on the TV, but in real life you'd see, I had no clue that that was not real. Now, Dana, because we met you a couple of weeks ago, and you've had an incredible career in stunt work. Yeah, jump up to the mic, mate. You've stunt double for some of the world's biggest stars. Ah, yeah.

Yeah, Shalys. Theron. Oh, wow. Heard of Shalise Theron? Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. What, are we allowed to ask, like, what,

what movie you stunt doubled in for her? Mad Max, Fury Road. Oh, wow. Cool. So I would have seen you in that. Yeah, did all the stunts for that. Did like Wonder Woman and... Gail Godot, you were her stunt over.

Really? Yeah. Did have a heaps of them, yeah. Can you watch, when you see in the movies now, I mean, obviously, do you know every moment that is you that's used? Yeah, I know it, but a lot of times we, have like the dots on our face so we get face replaced. God. Well, they replace your face nowadays.

Yeah, don't want to see this. No, it's a beautiful face. It's a beautiful face. It's obviously like a costume, but like you just look like, you know, like an everyday person. I don't know what I would expect, but like I don't usually wear a suit. Oh my God. So how did you all get into this, this line of work?

I've been doing it for 30-odd years now, so over 30 years now. So, and then I started the New Zealand stunt school. But yeah, just, just, I'm still, I'm still wrestling. Yeah, yeah. Are you okay, mate? Yeah, I'm just so glad that you're okay. It was a very convincing performance. You are a lot bigger than him.

I was like, I was banging on the window. I'm like, why are you not looking at me? I was trying not for looking at you because that is not as soundproof as we were expecting. We could hear you. Oh, could you? Yeah, hey, stop that. You're like, you're like to get the hose down. like dogs mating on the lawn.

I was going to go out, but then I saw you get hit, and I was like, oh, I'm not going out. At any point, did any of you, like, make contact with each other? No. Oh, my God, I would never have known. I really thought you got hit. Wow, okay. What is the, like, have you hurt yourself? Yeah, yeah.

I had, um, I've had more injuries than most stunt performers, but plus 30 years. And back then, it was not the safety performance. that it is now. Right. So I've had spinal neck surgery, brain surgery, went to cardiac arrest. Oh my God. Reconstructed shoulder.

And you carry on. Oh, yeah. I wouldn't change it for the world. I love it. Yeah. Wouldn't change it for the world. Cardiac arrest, brain surgery, spinal reconstruction. Yeah.

What about you guys? Yeah. Yeah. Have you had injuries, Mark? Yeah, but not through this. I was a professional hockey player. And most mine is from that. Especially as a fighter.

You were a fighter on the ice rink? Yeah, I had over 200 on ice fights. 200 fights? You're convincing when you do the fighting out there. It's a little harder not to hit someone, to be honest. Yeah, because, I mean, what do you think's been the biggest movie that you've been on there, Dana? Oh, the biggest stunt movie was Mad Max. They said that Fury Road was one of the biggest action films of all time.

Right. That was action-wise, yep, that one. but then I've done like Avatar and all those sort of ones What's the one stunt that you're the most proud of then? It's probably the slide under the moving truck possibly. I'm going to have to go back and re-watch this. I might look up for Dana.

There's a truck going along. Is it in the desert or is it? Yeah, running and then I do a slide underneath it trying to judge between the wheels and then grab something underneath which I actually missed the stuff first time and then grab something further down under it. But yeah, so there's stuff like that.

You kind of sort of on the fly. That's not really any rehearsals for it. Are you like, does the truck have to be moving? Could we like do some sort of trickery, some witchcraft here? But the truck's going fast. Dana. And then, but that was, that was, they had, that movie was known for having real stunts.

So you've worked with Charlize Theron? Who else have you worked with? Double Tilda Swinton. Gwyneth Paltrow. Lucy Lawless all the time. She's amazing. So what, did you hang out with these people? I guess you have to really get to know them, do you?

Yeah, when you're on there, you do. You get to know them. You learn to mimic them and take on all their mannerisms and movements and everything to try and be able to trick the audience that it's actually them, not you. We're the hidden one. Yeah, and they've only just added stunt people to the Oscars, right? Yeah, yeah, which is amazing. But back in the day, we were never even allowed to talk to anybody to say that we doubled anybody or did stuff.

Oh, really? Yeah. Yeah, it was very much hidden and had. to trick the viewers into thinking that. Oh, that the actor was doing it? That the actor was actually doing. There's no such thing as a stunt person when I started. Wow.

So you never spoke about it. So it's very different now. Does the actor want to do the stunt themselves? Does that happen from time to time? Yeah, and we try to get them to do it as much as possible, as long as it's safe. Our job is to be able to teach them and get them looking amazing that they can do as much as possible.

So that's a big part of our job. And then whatever they can't do, then we just step in and do it. Yeah, got you. So are you guys training in New Zealand? Who knew? I didn't even know that we'd like did that here. We got, so I own New Zealand's dance school and we have workshops through the year. Like we've got one coming up on the 5th and 6th of July and then we've got an agency that we can get them on to to start getting them work and everything. That's great.

That is great. John, you did fire burns years ago, did you not? Yeah, Dana said, I see you on fire a few years ago and I said, oh. Was that the rock? Was it or was that somewhere else? Oh, I can vaguely remember being set on fire. I don't know how much safety's got to be that. Yeah, you wouldn't be sending people on fire nowadays at radio stations, would you?

No, I don't know. Just doing choreographed fights out in the... Hey, well, listen, thank you guys for coming out. Wow, yeah. That was very realistic, clearly. Totally. A lot of talk around the building now. I mean, yeah.

I've just made to be a few work emails. I'm just happy everyone's okay. I was confused when Jono was lying on the floor after being hit, laughing. I was like, oh, what? He must be okay. What's opening? Your reaction when we bowed didn't really, uh, you didn't catch on at that point. He was like, what is going on?

Jeez. Yeah. I'm, um, I'm so gullible. I will thank you guys. Have a good one. Thank you.