Jet Li

Jet Li ({{zh-tspw |t=李連傑 |s=李连杰 |p=Li Lian Jie|w=Li Lien-chieh}}; Cantonese: Lei Lin Git; born April 26, 1963) is a Chinese martial artist and filmactor. Jet Li (as he would later be known) was born in either Hebei or Beijing, China, and orphaned at age 2. He was sent to the Wushu academy at age 8.

Career

Jet Li began his martial arts career as a member of the Beijing Wu Shu team, an athletic group organized to perform martial arts during the All China Games. As a member of the team, he received martial arts training and went on to win the Chinese Wushu national championship five times. Once, as a child, when the Chinese National Wushu Team went to perform for President Richard Nixon in the United States, Jet Li was asked by Nixon to be his personal bodyguard, to which Li replied, "I'm going to defend my one billion Chinese countrymen," which earned him much respect in his homeland. {{dubious}} The fame gained by his winnings led to a career as a martial arts film star, beginning in mainland China and then continuing into Hong Kong. After his success in Hong Kong, Jet Li established a presence in American films, beginning with his portrayal of a villain in Lethal Weapon 4. His first lead role in a Hollywood movie was in Romeo Must Die.

Related Topics:
Martial arts - All China Games - Wushu - Richard Nixon - United States - Mainland China - Hong Kong - Lethal Weapon 4 - Romeo Must Die

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Some of his more famous Chinese films include:

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• the Shaolin Temple series (1, 2 and 3);
• the Once Upon a Time in China series (Chinese title: Wong Fei Hung), about the semi-legendary Chinese folk hero;
• Fist of Legend, which, contrary to popular belief, was not a remake of Bruce Lee's The Big Boss (a.k.a. Fists of Fury), but rather of Bruce Lee's Chinese Connection, (Fist of Fury in Chinese); and
• the Fong Sai-Yuk films, which are about another Chinese folk hero. As one might expect from a martial artist of his caliber, he performs most of his own stunts.

Jet Li starred in the 1995 movie, Shu dan long wei, known in English as "Courage of a Mouse and Power of a Dragon". The movie, known in the US as either High Risk or Meltdown, portrays Jet Li as a cop who becomes disillusioned after his son is murdered by crimelords. Along the way, he pairs up with wacky sell-out actor, Frankie (played by Jacky Cheung), and proceeds to engage in a series of extremely violent battles in a high-rise building.

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In July 2001, Jet Li and Jackie Chan agreed to produce and star in an action movie which was to be released in 2002 or 2003, but there has since been no news of their collaboration. In 2004, the film Hero was released in the US market. This film was both a critical and commercial success.

Related Topics:
2001 - Jackie Chan - 2004 - Hero

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Li took a big risk with the 2005 action drama, Unleashed (a.k.a. Danny the Dog) where he portrays an adult with the mentality of a child who has been raised like an animal. A sombre film with more depth than had been previously seen in Li's films, it co-starred dramatic actors, Bob Hoskins and Morgan Freeman.

Related Topics:
2005 - Unleashed - Danny the Dog - Bob Hoskins - Morgan Freeman

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