James Lew

Raised in South Central Los Angeles, James Lew's destiny was to answer a cattle call in Hollywood for the hugely popular Kung Fu (1972) television series. He went on to star in the now collectible Hong Kong film, Young Dragon (1976). He made the move to big budget studio films in 1984. John Carpenter handpicked him as the Martial Arts Choreographer for 20th Century Fox's now cult film, Big Trouble in Little China (1986). Jackie Chan, Jet Li, Steven Seagal, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Mel Gibson, Brad Pitt, Tom Cruise, Dwayne Johnson, David Carradine, Chuck Norris, Dennis Quaid, Kurt Russell, Madonna, Charlie Sheen, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Kathleen Turner, Sylvester Stallone, Brandon Lee, Snoop Dogg and the list goes on and on. James was voted "Favorite Action Star" by fans of Inside Martial Arts magazine. Internet fans voted him into the Hall of Fame in the Martial Arts History Museum. Inside Kung Fu Magazine inducted him as one of the "Martial Arts Greats" alongside legends as Bruce Lee, Chuck Norris, Steven Seagal, Jean-Claude Van Damme, and his longtime friend Jackie Chan. Hit Parader Magazine dubbed him "the king of big-screen martial arts villains." From the deadly killer in Red Sun Rising (1994) to the deadly fighter in the comedy spoof Hot Shots 2 (1993), Lew has proven his chops in both drama and comedy. As a stunt/fight coordinator his creative talents shone in the television series The Crow to recent work on the hit video game, The Matrix: Path of Neo (2005). He handpicked elite members for his company, "Hong Kong Wire Action Team," to bring state of the art action to movies. His formula for longevity in the film industry is diversity, hard work and having a whole lot of fun. Most recently, James Lew wrote, directed and starred in a movie inspired by his personal experiences in the business titled 18 Fingers of Death! (2006). The story follows Buford Lee (James Lew), the most famous unknown "B"-minus, low-budget, martial-arts movie star and Ronald Mack (Maurice Patton), a young black kid from the hood. Together they laugh and bond together on their quest to finally make Buford's break out movie, 18 Fingers of Death! (2006).

My Stats

Total Watched: 0 / 42 (Ranked #0)

Average Grade: 0 (Ranked #0)

Top 250 Movies: 0

General Info

Date of Birth: 06/09/1952 (74 years old)

Place of Birth: Escalon, California, USA

IMDB TMDB

Biography:

Raised in South Central Los Angeles, James Lew's destiny was to answer a cattle call in Hollywood for the hugely popular Kung Fu (1972) television series. He went on to star in the now collectible Hong Kong film, Young Dragon (1976). He made the move to big budget studio films in 1984. John Carpenter handpicked him as the Martial Arts Choreographer for 20th Century Fox's now cult film, Big Trouble in Little China (1986). Jackie Chan, Jet Li, Steven Seagal, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Mel Gibson, Brad Pitt, Tom Cruise, Dwayne Johnson, David Carradine, Chuck Norris, Dennis Quaid, Kurt Russell, Madonna, Charlie Sheen, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Kathleen Turner, Sylvester Stallone, Brandon Lee, Snoop Dogg and the list goes on and on. James was voted "Favorite Action Star" by fans of Inside Martial Arts magazine. Internet fans voted him into the Hall of Fame in the Martial Arts History Museum. Inside Kung Fu Magazine inducted him as one of the "Martial Arts Greats" alongside legends as Bruce Lee, Chuck Norris, Steven Seagal, Jean-Claude Van Damme, and his longtime friend Jackie Chan. Hit Parader Magazine dubbed him "the king of big-screen martial arts villains." From the deadly killer in Red Sun Rising (1994) to the deadly fighter in the comedy spoof Hot Shots 2 (1993), Lew has proven his chops in both drama and comedy. As a stunt/fight coordinator his creative talents shone in the television series The Crow to recent work on the hit video game, The Matrix: Path of Neo (2005). He handpicked elite members for his company, "Hong Kong Wire Action Team," to bring state of the art action to movies. His formula for longevity in the film industry is diversity, hard work and having a whole lot of fun. Most recently, James Lew wrote, directed and starred in a movie inspired by his personal experiences in the business titled 18 Fingers of Death! (2006). The story follows Buford Lee (James Lew), the most famous unknown "B"-minus, low-budget, martial-arts movie star and Ronald Mack (Maurice Patton), a young black kid from the hood. Together they laugh and bond together on their quest to finally make Buford's break out movie, 18 Fingers of Death! (2006).

Movies:

Actor

0/42 (42 unseen)

	Name	Grade
	Evil (2019) As Lee	(Not seen)
	New Amsterdam (2018) As Thug	(Not seen)
	I'm Dying Up Here (2017) As Sensei Phil (1 episode)	(Not seen)
	Midnight Sun (2016) (AKA "Midnattssol") As Agent #1	(Not seen)
	G.I. Joe: Retaliation (2013) (AKA "G.I. Joe: Back 2 Revenge") As Chinese Leader	(Not seen)
	Safe (2012) As Underground Casino Guard (uncredited)	(Not seen)
	Mortal Kombat: Rebirth (2010) As Shang Tsung (uncredited)	(Not seen)
	Star Trek (2009) (AKA "Star Trek: The Future Begins") As Romulan (uncredited)	(Not seen)
	Childrens Hospital (2008) As Mosura (1 episode)	(Not seen)
	Tropic Thunder (2008) As Flaming Dragon Compound Person (uncredited)	(Not seen)
	Superhero Movie (2008) (AKA "Superhero!") As Shaolin Monk (uncredited)	(Not seen)
	Chuck (2007) As Anad Chenerad (1 episode)	(Not seen)
	Rush Hour 3 (2007) As Triad Assassin (uncredited)	(Not seen)
	Entourage (2004) (1 episode)	(Not seen)
	Sin (2003) As Leo Thamaree	(Not seen)
	Rush Hour 2 (2001) As Triad Gangster (uncredited)	(Not seen)
	Traffic (2000) As DEA Agent - CalTrans	(Not seen)
	The Replacement Killers (1998) As Bodyguard	(Not seen)
	Rush Hour (1998) As Juntao's Man in Los Angeles (uncredited)	(Not seen)
	Lethal Weapon 4 (1998) (AKA "Lethal 4") As Freighter's Captain	(Not seen)
	Balance of Power (1996) As Shinji Takamura	(Not seen)
	Escape from L.A. (1996) (AKA "John Carpenter's Escape from L.A.") As Hershe Gang Member	(Not seen)
	Under Siege 2: Dark Territory (1995) (AKA "Under Siege 2") As Mercenary (uncredited)	(Not seen)
	The Shadow (1994) As Mongol	(Not seen)
	On Deadly Ground (1994) (AKA "Rainbow Warrior") As Mercenary at Aegis-1 (uncredited)	(Not seen)
	Timecop (1994) As Knife #1	(Not seen)
	Deadly Target (1994) (AKA "Fire Zone") As Guard #2 (uncredited)	(Not seen)
	Frasier (1993) As Security Guard (1 episode)	(Not seen)
	Power Rangers (1993) As Warrior (1 episode)	(Not seen)
	Undercover Blues (1993) As Novacek's Man	(Not seen)
	American Ninja 5 (1993) (AKA "American Dragons") As Viper	(Not seen)
	Hot Shots! Part Deux (1993) (AKA "Hot Shots 2! The Exploitation") As Kick Boxer Opponent	(Not seen)
	Rapid Fire (1992) As Tau's Men at Laundry (uncredited)	(Not seen)
	Martial Law II: Undercover (1991) As Spencer Hamilton Man (uncredited)	(Not seen)
	Showdown in Little Tokyo (1991) As Yoshida's Man (uncredited)	(Not seen)
	Martial Law (1990) As Tong Member	(Not seen)
	Best of the Best (1989) As Sae Jin Kwon	(Not seen)
	Roseanne (1988) (1 episode)	(Not seen)
	Action Jackson (1988) As Martial Arts Instructor	(Not seen)
	Big Trouble in Little China (1986) (AKA "John Carpenter's Big Trouble in Little China") As Chang Sing #1	(Not seen)
	MacGyver (1985) As Asian Thug (1 episode)	(Not seen)
	The Killing of a Chinese Bookie (1976) As Guard (uncredited)	(Not seen)

Producer
0/1 (1 unseen)

Name Grade

Big Trouble in Little China (1986) (AKA "John Carpenter's Big Trouble in Little China") (Not seen)