By Batista Gremaud
Meet Raynald La Rochelle the up-and-coming Hollywood film notorious badass French Canadian Action Actor, Stuntman, and Stage-Fight Choreographer with a 6th-degree Black Belt in Martial Arts.
Born and raised in a small village in Quebec, Canada, his father was a truck driver and lumberjack. His mom raised eight children. They grew up poor.
Image composition by Batista Gremaud
Q: What brought you to Los Angeles?
At the time, I was working as a full-time electrician. By a stroke of luck, I had an opportunity through my Union to come to America to work in Colorado. It was an excellent opportunity to change the environment and heal my broken heart after discovering that my high school sweetheart slept with my best friend.
Later, I continued my journey to Los Angeles to visit my sister, who lived here. Being French Canadian, I learned to speak English on my own with a dictionary.
Q: Why did you start Karate?
I started Karate to learn how to defend myself after being beaten up for no good reason.
Q: When did you start acting?
I started acting in 1993. My first movie was with Jean Claude Van Damn. But when I retired at 63 from being a full-time electrician with DWP, I went into acting full-time.
Q: What inspired you to start acting?
Martial Arts brought me into acting. I started as a stuntman and fight choreographer.
I trained with Benny "The Jet" Urquidez, a world champion and legend. One day, I was 45; he asked me if I wanted to take some stunt training class. I questioned him, as I thought I was too old for that. He answered,
"You are never too old to do what you want to do in life."
Hearing this statement from such a legend inspired me. So I started, and I got hooked on stunt training. I began getting some parts in movies, but always as the bad guy, getting beat up. So I got tired of it. Finally, I realized I needed to upgrade myself to get better roles. That's when I started taking acting classes!
I've been in over 30 movies. However, I am best known for my roles in Elephant Stomp (2021), IN3 DRAGON (2022), and Jimmy Stomp the Bodyguards. In addition, I am working on The Secret Agent Action Series, a viral bilingual YouTube series, where you will see: action, drama, romance, seduction, elegance, and glamor. I perform extraordinary action scenes alongside secret agent Mike Jones. Danny Gabb produces the series, and German Hernandez is the action and stuntman coordinator.
Q: When did you start bodybuilding?
I have always loved sports; I played hockey and skiing in Quebec. I started bodybuilding when I came to Los Angeles after seeing Sylvester Stalone. I wanted to be like him and put some muscle on my body to look better!
Q: Does strength training give you an advantage over other actors who don't work out?
Absolutely! Producers like the way I look for my age. They think I am 50 years old, but I am 73 now!
Q: What benefits do you derive from bodybuilding?
Bodybuilding keeps me mentally and physically young and healthy. I have a gym in my garage, so I was able to keep training when the pandemic hit. Some of my friends stopped for three years and became very depressed. One of them tried to commit suicide!
That being said though I really enjoyed training at Gold's gym for many years. Now that I moved to Irvine I train at LA Fitness. It is a beautiful gym and I enjoy the variety of equipment. Also, training alongside people who work out is invigorating.
Bodybuilding boosts my testosterone naturally. It makes me happy and enables me to keep a positive mindset.
Q: Is nutrition a significant factor in your regimen?
Yes, I don't drink sodas or eat sugar. I cut down on pasta and bread. I eat very healthily.
Q: Do you take any supplements?
Yes, I take Creatine and protein before I work out, but no drugs; I am all natural. My body is a temple; I don't want to put anything harmful in it. So I don't believe in taking drugs.
Q: What is your biggest accomplishment?
Achieving the black belt rank in Karate was a huge success for me! I also received an award from the Martial Arts Wall Of Fame for best Martial Arts actor and from GAWA for Best Action Actor at the Celebrity Center in Hollywood. I couldn't believe it. Hard work pays off!
I was very timid, so getting into character in the movies and remembering my lines was tough. That was a big obstacle. But now I am very comfortable with it.
Q: What are your plans for the future?
I want to write a book on my life and everything I accomplished. Coming from a small farm at the top of the hill in a remote Canadian village, my parents struggled to make ends meet, to starring in movies in Hollywood as an award-winning 6-degree Martial Artist, stage fight choreographer, and stuntman; I've come a long way!
Q: Do you have any takeaways for our audience?
Keep training to stay young. It is the secret to longevity and remaining pain-free.
Training also helps fight depression and to keep a positive attitude.
Follow Raynald La Rochelle on social media:
Dr Fitness USA THE SHOW
The 8th episode was released on March 8th, 2023, with celebrity guest speaker Raynald La Rochelle: From Farmland To Hollywood
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Raynald La Rochelle is a French Canadian Action Actor, Stuntman, and Stage-Fight Choreographer with a 6th-degree Black Belt in Martial Arts. He is a testament that you are never too old to do what you want in life.
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Watch it on EZWAYTV
BATISTA GREMAUD
Batista Gremaud is the CEO and president of Dr Fitness International, an International Body Designer, Strength Training Expert, No1 Best Selling author of Feminine Body Design, Empowering Fitness For A Pain-Free Life, co-creator of the Feminine Body Design online strength training mentoring system, co-host of the Esoteric Principles of Bodybuilding, Recipient of the most outstanding fitness program 2019 by The Winners Circle, Mastermind at Sea. and producer of the Dr Fitness USA’s THE SHOW.
https://www.DrFitnessUSA.com
424-287-7181
Heart Of Hollywood Magazine Contributor
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https://www.heartofhollywoodmagazine.com/contributors