Rodney Mullen on Inventing the Kickflip and The Day a Gun Was Pulled on Him!

In this episode of Hawk vs Wolf, Tony Hawk and Jason Ellis sit down with the legendary Rodney Mullen to unpack his incredible life and influence on skateboarding. From midnight solo sessions and creating the kickflip to surreal Hollywood connections and near-unbelievable stories—like having a gun pulled on him—Rodney shares it all. They explore his iconic work ethic, his impact on skating culture, and how he helped shape legends like Tony himself. 00:00 Intro 00:28 Rodney’s lost nickname 02:07 Rodney ONLY skates on his own at midnight? 04:36 Rodney’s wife works on Marvel movies 05:34 Hollywood elites love skating culture 07:55 How Rodney helped Silicon Valley 09:19 Rodney’s drive and work ethic is insane 11:57 Every skater would stop and watch Rodney at contests 12:38 Matt Hoffman 13:45 Tony seeing Rodney skate at 14 16:18 Rodney’s parents wanted him to quit skating 17:53 Meeting Stacy Peralta 19:56 How Rodney got in Bones Brigade 21:43 Rodney doing Ted Talks 22:26 Jason’s dad thought he was a drug dealer 25:30 Did Rodney’s parents ever go his competitions 27:33 When Jason’s dad realised he was successful 31:35 How Ben Stiller convinced Rodney to be in “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty” 46:28 Rodney did an impossible on TV 48:06 Whe Rodney knew Tony was a huge star 49:05 How Rodney named Tony’s HBO documentary 51:06 Rondey’s “Wetboard” 55:21 Rodney and Tony marveling over their generational impact 59:26 What made Rodney step back from the limelight 01:04:14 Competitive Skateboarding 01:06:03 Retiring from a trick and filming the 360 video 01:11:45 Pain from skating 01:13:53 Rodney set the precedent for skating 01:14:57 The man that saved Rodney from quitting 01:19:01 Rodney loves chaos 01:21:11 Rocco and Tony learned from each other to invent new tricks 01:25:08 Rodney never got into drugs or alcohol 01:30:21 Tony went to Rodney’s farm 01:33:08 Diet and being vegetarian 01:35:10 The secret to Rodney’s success 01:37:09 Rodney was Robbed of money whilst skating 01:38:35 Rodney's Ridiculous nickname 01:40:19 Rodney had a gun pulled on him 01:50:56 Inventing the Kickflip #podcast #tonyhawksproskater #athlete #hawkvswolf #tonyhawksproskater1and2 #skateboarder #jasonellis #tonyhawk #rodneymullen #marvel #marvelstudios #motivation #nevergiveup #januarymotivation #inspiration #newyearmotivation #newyearsresolutions #christmas -- Get your signed prints now: https://tonyhawk.com/product/limited-edition-8-x-10-autographed-photo-of-tony-hawk-and-jason-ellis/ -- To listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6ZcNADIeqlXXCCLm1MJny7?si=8g_1SCbZRCSOfI5j6y40dQ To listen on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hawk-vs-wolf-podcast/id1553164725 -- Tony Hawk @tonyhawk Jason Ellis @wolfmate