Fight Scenes That Kick A*s: 15 Examples of a Superbly Written Fight Scene

When you think of a fight scene, what film first comes to mind? Maybe you think of Stallone’s knock out punch in Rocky? Or perhaps you picture Keanu Reeves swerving slow-motion bullets in The Matrix?

Whether you’re a fan of highly choreographed martial art movies, or super polished CGI superhero battles: as a screenwriter it is always useful to have a set of ground rules on how to write a good fight scene. No matter what type of fight scene you’re writing you need a cheat sheet or playbook that you can refer to and grow from.

Your Fight Scene Playbook: How to Write a Fight Scene.

Top tips for writing a fight scene

• Do your research. We’ve done the first part for you by giving you a checklist as a set of ground rules for writing your scene. Now you need to do the research for your plot and characters. It is important to make them feel authentic to keep the audience entertained.
• Does the scene serve your story? Your fight scene should accomplish something for the purpose of your story. The fight should be relevant to the story and not just thrown in as a way to keep the audience engaged for five minutes.
• Does the scene serve your character? This goes hand in hand with servicing your story. If the scene serves your character, then it also serves your story as a reverberation.
• Pacing over detail. Your script is a guideline to work from so try not to make it an exhaustive list of stage directions. Typically, writers work with the director/stunt coordinator and ultimately might have to compromise on what they’ve written.
• Let the tone direct the scene. Think of the tone of your script, does the fight scene still live within the limits that the tone of your film offers, or does it feel out of place?
• In the aftermath of your fight scene, you can tell the audience how to feel. Do you want them to celebrate with the champion, or sympathise with the defeated? It also gives the viewer a second to think about what has just happened and, essentially, catch their breath.