McKay Stewart: Flips, fights and facts Two stunt guys, one beach, zero fights.

I Made a Beach Comedy Sketch With Ashton Moio

· McKay Stewart

December 29, 2020. El Porto beach.

Sun going down. No shirts. Big thumbs up.

That’s me and Ashton Moio, mid-shoot on a short comedy.

McKay Stewart in an LMU Alumni cap and Ashton Moio, shirtless, giving thumbs up on the boardwalk at El Porto beach at sunset Me (LMU Alumni cap) and Ashton Moio between takes at El Porto. Photo: McKay Stewart, shared on X Dec 29, 2020.

I posted it with one line: we were shooting a short film at El Porto, and it was coming soon.

Hashtags: #dopeshorts, #hereztothefuture, #comedy.

Yes, that’s my LMU Alumni hat. I went to Loyola Marymount for performing arts. Old habits.

Who is Ashton Moio?

Ashton is an actor and a stuntman.

He started doing stunts as a kid. He has a black belt in Tae Kwon Do. Fans of ABC Family’s Twisted know him as Rico.

His IMDb lists 60 acting credits and 36 stunt credits. Stunt work includes The Hunger Games and Wrath of Man.

So when two stunt guys make a comedy, you’d expect a fight.

Nope.

We made a sketch about bad dating advice and bugs.

El Porto

El Porto is the surf spot at the north end of Manhattan Beach.

Wide sand. Long railings. A big parking strip right by the water.

Perfect for a cheap shoot. You park, you open the trunk, you have a set.

That’s pretty much what we did.

The sketch: “Itchy”

August 31, 2021. Ashton put the short on his YouTube channel.

Title: “Itchy.”

Runtime: 3 minutes, 38 seconds.

The credits on YouTube:

  • Written by Ashton Moio
  • Starring me and Ashton Moio
  • Filmed and edited by Ryan Houchin

His one-line pitch: two friends, romantic advice, pest control, and self-diagnosing.

That’s the whole show. And it works.

A lone surfer walks along the waterline at El Porto under a cloudy sunset, opening shot of Itchy The opening shot. Frame from “Itchy” by Ashton Moio, filmed by Ryan Houchin.

How it plays

It opens on the water. Surfers. Gold sky.

Then two friends warm up on the sand in wetsuits.

McKay Stewart and Ashton Moio in wetsuits doing warrior-pose stretches on the sand with surfboards beside them Pre-surf stretch. Frame from “Itchy”.

First up: girl trouble.

Three hangouts. No kiss. Now she’s “unsure.”

The whole mess gets walked through day by day. Saturday. Sunday. Monday. Today.

The advice back is simple. Stop trying to figure it out. You’ll just confuse yourself.

McKay Stewart in a black wetsuit on the beach, mid-conversation Talking it out on the sand. Frame from “Itchy”.

After the surf, they’re back at the car.

Trunk up. Towels out. Sun dropping behind them.

Two men changing out of wetsuits behind an open SUV trunk in the El Porto lot at sunset, surfboard on the ground The trunk set. Frame from “Itchy”.

And that’s when Ashton’s guy notices.

My guy can’t stop scratching his head.

He’s been itchy for weeks.

McKay Stewart, shirtless by the car, scratching his head The itch. Frame from “Itchy”.

My guy blames the laundry soap. Then spiders. Then the truth comes out: it started after a trip to Mexico. Six months ago.

Ashton’s guy is mostly worried about his car.

Ashton Moio, shirtless with a chain necklace, reacting by the open car door Ashton’s face says everything. Frame from “Itchy”.

It ends with a friend’s offer. Crash on my couch. Just don’t bring anything.

I won’t spoil the last line. Watch it:

“Itchy” on Ashton Moio’s YouTube channel. Uploaded August 31, 2021. Heads up: some salty language.

Ashton shared it on X the same day and tagged me and Ryan. I reposted it later.

Why a stunt guy does comedy

People see “stuntman” and think falls and fights.

But timing is timing.

A punch lands on a beat. A joke lands on a beat. Miss it by half a second and both die.

Comedy is also just acting with nowhere to hide. No wire. No pads. Just a face and a line.

I like that.

It made the reel

February 10, 2025. I posted an updated demo reel on X.

I thanked Ashton Moio and Garrett Warren for “the great scenes.”

The Itchy scenes are in there. Surf walk. The car. The scratching.

Here’s that part of the reel:

The “Itchy” section of my 2025 demo reel. From my Feb 10, 2025 X post. The full reel runs about 5 minutes, 40 seconds.

The full reel also has my Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. scenes and more. Watch the whole thing on X.

Old friends on a Civil War set

One more throwback, with a familiar tag on it.

November 9, 2021. I posted a throwback I called “Dorks vs. Badasses.”

It’s from Escape the Night, Joey Graceffa’s YouTube Red series.

Cast in Confederate gray uniforms face off with Dark Army fighters in black with silver face paint, fists raised, on the Escape the Night set Confederates vs. the Dark Army on the Escape the Night set. Photo: McKay Stewart, shared on X Nov 9, 2021.

I played a Confederate soldier on the show. IMDb lists me in 2 episodes:

  • “All Out War” (Season 1, Episode 8). Aired August 3, 2016. Credited as Confederate Soldier #1.
  • “A Nation Divided” (Season 2, Episode 4). Aired July 5, 2017. Credited as Confederate Soldier.

“A Nation Divided” is the Civil War episode. The guests split into two teams. One side runs with the Confederates. The other with the Dark Army. Then they play a wild game of capture the flag.

Gray coats on one side. Black leather and face paint on the other.

That’s the photo.

In the post I thanked Joey Graceffa and @GiftedRebelsCo for the job. I tagged Brad Coffey, who played the gunslinger Cash, plus Jasper Jeon and Ashton.

The Gifted Rebels account wrote back that they loved that episode.

Me too.

The short version

  • 2016–2017: Confederate soldier on Escape the Night, 2 episodes.
  • Dec 29, 2020: Shooting a comedy with Ashton at El Porto.
  • Aug 31, 2021: Itchy goes up on YouTube.
  • Nov 9, 2021: Civil War set throwback.
  • Feb 10, 2025: Itchy scenes land in my new demo reel.

Two stunt guys. One beach. Zero fights.

Thanks, Ashton. Thanks, Ryan. Let’s make another one.

Sources

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