Charlize Theron shocked New Yorkers on Friday night when she scaled a towering fake rock wall atop the Pentacular in Times Square.
The Oscar winner performed the stunt to promote her new Netflix action thriller. Apex.
Wearing safety harnesses but climbing unassisted, Theron ascended several stories before waving and dancing to the applause of the crowd gathered along Seventh Avenue.
“Is that really her?” gasped a pedestrian in a clip shared by digital creator Mickey Blank.
In ApexTheron plays Sasha, a widow who turns to rock climbing for solace after a tragedy, only to be pursued by a serial killer (played by Taron Egerton) in the Australian outback.
To prepare, he trained with elite climber Beth Rodden, famous for her ascents of Yosemite.
“She’s the OG,” Theron told Netflix, admitting that she had never climbed before beyond climbing trees in South Africa as a child.
Theron performed all of her own stunts for the film, channeling both physical stamina and instinct.
“There were days where I would go and I was going through things and it felt like a way to forget about things,” he said of his training.
Apex is now streaming worldwide on Netflix.
