Chet Rowley – “From Tractor Accidents to Martian Mayhem: How a Wichita Falls Mechanic Became Ken’s Stunt Double”
Byline: Dusty Flores, Flyover Film Bureau Chief, Screen Rodeo Review
When Ryan Gosling tore his hamstring doing an unscripted line-dancing backflip on Day 4 of filming Barbie 2: Mars Mission, producers had three options: delay the shoot, write around Ken, or find someone who looked like him from 300 feet away and wouldn’t sue if he got electrocuted.
Enter Chet Rowley, 39, part-time mechanic, full-time philosopher, and the only man in Wichita Falls with both Gosling’s chin dimple and a tattoo of Dale Earnhardt riding a unicorn.
“They said, ‘You ever fall off a horse, slide down a dune, or punch yourself in the crotch for money?’ I said, ‘That’s a Friday for me.’”
Now, thanks to a bizarre twist of fate and six Monster Energy drinks, Chet is Ken’s official stunt double—and, unofficially, Barbie’s most unlikely Texas action hero.
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A Stuntman Is Born (While Changing an Alternator)
Chet was mid-repair on a Dodge Ram when a scout from the Barbie 2 team spotted him shirtless in the sun, singing karaoke into a wrench.
“I was doing Travis Tritt’s Here’s a Quarter (Call Someone Who Cares) into a crescent wrench when this lady runs up and goes, ‘Are you union?’”
He wasn’t. Still isn’t. But what he lacked in credentials, he made up for in raw Texan bravado and an ability to “fall backwards into mud with dignity.”
“They gave me a clipboard and said, ‘Can you look like you’re in love while being attacked by Martian butterflies?’ I said, ‘If you’re payin’, I’m cryin.’”
Highlights from the Set
Over the course of three months, Chet:
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Performed a barefoot ATV jump over a ditch lined with glitter bombs.
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Survived two goat stampedes and one accidental tasering from a prop technician named Steve.
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Hung from a crane disguised as a disco ball while holding a flaming torch shaped like a hairbrush.
“The weirdest part?” he says. “Ryan Gosling gave me his ChapStick after every take. Said it was a ‘sacred bond.’ I now own six of his ChapSticks. Framed.”
Chet even had a pivotal scene where he (as Ken) carries Barbie through a sandstorm, only for her to slap him and scream, “You left my curlers on Earth!”
“Margot Robbie can really slap. Like, lawyer-calling slap. But she apologized with a Whataburger gift card, so we’re good.”
His Favorite Stunt
“Definitely the emotional breakdown during zero gravity.” Chet tears up remembering it. “They put me in a kiddie pool on a rotating table, filled it with glitter, and played Shania Twain at half-speed. I just sobbed and floated. It was… it was cinema.”
He pauses.
“Also I got paid in pink crypto. Still don’t know how to cash it.”
A Local Legend is Born
Since filming, Chet has become something of a Wichita Falls folk hero. Kids call him “Kenny the Brave.” A mural now covers the side of the abandoned Kmart, depicting Chet astride a pink space llama, lassoing a falling star.
“One guy asked me to sign his baby. I said, ‘Sir, that’s not legal,’ but I did it anyway. Named the baby ‘Stunty.’”
He’s even started a side hustle: Ken’s Tough Love Bootcamp, which teaches aspiring actors how to cry, squat, and emotionally regress while wearing tight pants.
“Day one: How to ride a Roomba with dignity. Day two: Glitter immunity training.”
What He Thinks of Barbie
“Barbie’s real now. She eats brisket, cusses during tubing accidents, and donates glitter to charity. That’s the kind of role model I want for my niece.”
When asked if he’s now pursuing a Hollywood career, Chet laughs so hard he nearly chokes on a chili cheese Frito.
“Nah. I’m good right here. Hollywood can come to me — but bring kolaches and a decent lawn chair.”
He still works at the mechanic shop part-time.
“Oil changes by day, Martian stunts by night. Just like mama raised me.”
Final Thoughts from a Stuntman Philosopher
Chet looks out across Wichita Falls from the roof of the Holiday Inn Express where he’s been temporarily staying—paid for by production after a snake took over his trailer.
“You know what this movie really is?” he asks. “It’s hope. Covered in glitter, shot on VHS, and duct-taped to a firework.”
Then he raises a can of Dr Thunder and toasts the setting sun.
“To Barbie. To Ken. To Wichita Falls. And to every man who ever cried while wearing a cape made of tulle.”
Originally posted 2025-06-28 12:40:22.