Columbus woman beat cancer and acted in movie with husband – and John Travolta
Alex Tyra was 4 years old when she was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia in 1997. During one of her hospitalizations to treat the cancer in her blood and bone marrow, she had a vision while watching TV.
“All of these beautiful people were on screen walking around in this big building with a marble floor and lots of light, and a calm came over me, and I knew that I’d be OK and that nothing really bad would happen to me,” she said, “and I looked at the people on screen and thought, ‘I want to be there some day, in a place like that with people like that.’”
Twenty-five years later, her husband Clint, said, “she’s been cancer-free for 20 years and she’s on screen and is a beautiful person who gets to be in a movie with John Travolta.”
Last month, when Hollywood came to town to film the movie “Cash Out,” this Columbus couple with no acting experience ended up among the actors and stand-ins.
Oh, and many of the scenes in this movie were filmed in a “big building with a marble floor and lots of light” — the Synovus Bank in downtown Columbus.
The Tyras shared their story with the Ledger-Enquirer in an emailed interview.
Casting
“Cash Out” is an action thriller about a bank robbery gone wrong and a hostage crisis. Along with Travolta, the movie stars:
- Kristin Davis, who played Charlotte York in the “Sex and the City” TV series and movies;
- Noel Gugliemi, who played Moreno in “Training Day”;
- Lukas Haas, who played Nash in “Inception” and Samuel in “Witness”;
- Quavo, the Georgia-based rapper and cofounder of the trio Migos;
- Swen Temmel, who played the young Frank Henson in “Castle” and John Truby in “Backtrace.”
Alex and Clint got their chance to be in the movie through Stacy Cunningham of River City Casting in Columbus. Cunningham was hired to help find approximately 200 background actors.
The Tyras met Cunningham during an acting consultation in March; they became fast friends. When Cunningham told them about the opportunity, she encouraged them to audition, even though they didn’t have any film credits.
With hobbies such as martial arts and scuba diving, the Tyras are adventurous, so they gave it a try.
They were selected to meet with the film’s director, Randall Emmett, and executive producers Tyler Olson and Sean Stone to help with pre-production walk-throughs before the main cast arrived in Columbus.
“We had a blast with them and got along really well,” said Clint, who works for Aflac as a risk and quality analyst.
After they submitted audition tapes, Alex, 29, was cast as a stand-in for Davis, and Clint, 43, was cast as a bank security guard and a utility stand-in, mostly for Haas, Quavo and Temmel.
A stand-in is a person who substitutes for a principal actor during rehearsals, camera blocking or lighting setups.
“We jumped up and down in excitement and disbelief,” Clint said. “... Being able to share the experience with each other has been such a blessing.”
A few days later, Alex was additionally cast as an actress playing one of the hostages.
Encounters with stars
Alex appreciated the kindness Travolta showed her and another local actor, Maddie Ginter, when they were together for a few minutes between takes.
“John was so sweet to us,” said Alex, who left her part-time travel agency receptionist role to work in this movie. “… He was just so genuine.”
Clint saw Travolta’s compassion in action. On set in the bank for a hostage scene, one of the background actors mentioned to Travolta he needed to take his Parkinson’s disease medication. Travolta discreetly informed the director, and a break was called.
The Tyras know that was the reason for the break, because the background actor with Parkinson’s told them the story.
“No one else knew at the time why we stopped,” Clint said. “It was a selfless act of kindness that really impressed us because Travolta didn’t help in order to get attention for himself... he only stepped in because it was the right thing to do, and the director was of the same mindset.”
Clint stood in for Temmel while the crew prepped for a scene when Travolta arrived on set to rehearse lines and practice hitting marks. So the director asked Clint to stay in position as Temmel’s character – while Travolta rehearsed about 3 feet away.
“It was surreal,” Clint said. “And when Travolta was done rehearsing, he just smiled at me and asked how I was doing like we knew each other. I was stunned. We chatted briefly about our day. He was so down-to-earth.”
Alex described Davis as “very sweet and bubbly to everyone” between takes and “really focused” during filming.
She recalled being on set for a scene where Davis’ character was on the phone talking to Travolta’s character.
“She was making eye contact with me since she didn’t have John to talk to and couldn’t look into the camera,” Alex said. “So it was crazy because it felt like she was telling her lines to me, and that was such an amazing feeling.”
Alex got to know Haas and Temmel a bit more when she was in a group eating tacos together during a break.
“It was so much fun to just sit and talk with Lukas and Swen like normal people,” she said. “They both really like the relaxed atmosphere of Columbus and all of the restaurants downtown… They were all so kind. It was just wonderful.”
Clint made fun of himself for needing Alex and a background actor, George Woods, to tell him that Quavo is a famous rapper.
“He was such a cool guy,” Clint said. “He was really loose on set and playful with the other actors between takes. During rehearsals and filming, he was constantly collaborating with the other actors on how to coordinate their movements and the timing of their lines. It seemed like he practiced his acting the same way he would practice for the music stage. Just a super talented guy.”
Other memorable moments
In addition to meeting Hollywood stars, Alex had a memorable moment with a rare automobile on set.
While the crew worked on lighting for a scene featuring a Pagani Huayra — an Italian supercar worth about $3 million — Alex got to hop in the marvelous machine as Davis’ stand-in.
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“The Pagani was incredible,” she said. “It was like sitting in the Batmobile.”
Filming outdoors in the heat and until 2 a.m. for some scenes was tough, but Clint noted the officers from the Columbus Police Department and Muscogee County Sheriff’s Office had it tougher.
“Those men and women were in full uniform for the duration of the shoot,” he said. “… But they never showed any signs of discomfort. It was incredible to watch them.”
The funniest moments, Clint said, were when passersby took photos and videos of them “because people on the street thought we might be real actors worth photographing.”
The Tyras were surprised when they were asked to be stand-ins for a scene rehearsal at 1 a.m. on Broadway, where they acted as bank robbers interacting with the sheriff’s office Special Response Team.
“That was wild to act as criminals with the real SRT members simulating how they would respond to that situation in real life,” Clint said. “The SRT unit and the CPD officers were so professional, organized and kind to us between takes. They were just amazing. We are so glad that we have them and that, in real life, we are so well protected by them.”
Gratitude
The Tyras are grateful for their personal Hollywood experience and the privilege of helping to represent Columbus.
Clint was in his security guard costume waiting to film a bank scene during his second day on set when Olson told him Alex was also cast as one of the hostages.
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“I’ll never forget that moment,” he said. “ I was just elated that she was cast because that meant I got to watch her live out one of her dreams and I got to have the experience right along with her. I couldn’t ask for anything more.”
Alex indeed called it a dream come true.
“We are so grateful to Randall Emmett, the director, who along with Stacy and Tyler took a chance on us,” she said. “… It’s mind-blowing to me, really, and sometimes it feels like it was a dream until I look back through the scripts and photos. It’s hard for me to fathom how far I’ve come from the kid in the hospital and enduring all the intense ups and downs in my life along the way. I’m glad I got to go on living. It’s all been worth it to be where I am now and with the people I love.”
“Cash Out” is scheduled to be released in March 2023 on Netflix.
“We’ll have our popcorn ready,” Clint said.
This story was originally published July 13, 2022 at 5:12 AM.
