Jet Li
ALL ABOUT JET Lİ
Full Name:Li Lian Jie
Date of Birth:26 April 1963
Place of Birth:Beijing, China
Spouse: Nina Li Chi (19 September 1999 - present) 2 children
Qiuyan Huang (1987 - 1990) (divorced) 2 daughters
Salary: Kiss of the Dragon (2001) $5,000,000
Romeo Must Die (2000) $2,400,000
Bio:
A brilliant performer in the league of Bruce Lee, Chow Yun-Fat and Jackie Chan, Jet Li is one of the most respected figures in the genre of martial-arts cinema today. Born Li Lian Jie, Jet Li came into the world on April 26th, 1963 in Heibei, Beijing, China. He was the youngest of five siblings, and his father having died when he was but two, he had an increasingly protective mother. His mother’s strict parenting produced a boy too timid to risk learning the bicycle till his teens.
It was in an ironic twist that his mother enrolled him one summer, when he was a boy of eight, in a school today known as the Beijing Sports and Exercises School. As luck would have it, Li was sent to the wushu class, where he turned out to be quite a success and was asked to return at the end of the season. This boosted his confidence in himself, and under the expert supervision of coach Wu Bin, he acquired the nickname of “Jet” for his quicksilver moves.
He was selected the following year to perform at the opening ceremony of Pan-Asian-African-Latin American Table Tennis Championships, where he earned praise from the then premier Zhou Enlai. This was the first time he had left home, and he followed it up with a rigorous training schedule under Bin. Two years later, in 1974, he entered the National Wushu Championships. Here he became the All-around Champion, impressing the judges with his skill at spear and swords. This gave him widespread fame as a child prodigy in martial arts, and he continued his strenuous routine at the special martial arts school, which he had been attending ever since he was nine.
He began to train with twenty of the finest young wushu exponents in China, and was sent the same year on a diplomatic mission to America, when China opened diplomatic relations with the country. Here he displayed his skill on the lawns of the White House for President Nixon. This was part of the program of his ongoing participation in state functions under which he was chosen to represent his country in front of foreign dignitaries. He won the All-China Youth Championships upon his return from America, and despite serious injuries, won the National Games the next year.
By the time he was sixteen, he had won numerous accolades unmatched till date by anyone else, had won praise for his contribution to Sino-American relations, and experienced a close encounter with death while flying on a faulty plane. He was no longer the timid boy of his childhood, and lived up to his image as the “All-Around Wushu Champion of China,” by practicing Taiji, which involved the internalization of his wushu through philosophy.
He entered the silver screen in a movie that was the first to be released worldwide, Shaolin Temple, in 1981. It was an instant and stupendous success in Honkong, China and Korea, and propelled him to movie stardom overnight, breaking all known box-office records. His successive movies, Kids from Shaolin and Martial Arts of Shaolin, became hits merely on the strength of his name. He started off a kung-fu trend and kept on blazing a trail of success till his directorial venture Born to Defend in 1986, which did not do well at all.
His image took a hit and he was not taken into any remarkable roles for a few years, till Once Upon a Time in China in 1991, which was equally acclaimed by stars and fans, and was followed by successful sequels. This helped him establish himself as the one of the greatest Asian movie stars, and continued to charm his fans. When Quentin Tarantino showed an interest in him, Hollywood woke up to his potential, and he was cast as a villain in Lethal Weapon 4, where he proved his star qualities beyond doubt. He worked in movies like Romeo and Juliet, The One and Kiss of the Dragon, and has definitely arrived in Hollywood.
He was also cast in Hero and Cradle to the Grave. Though he has yet to find true Hollywood movie stardom, Jet Li is on his way, and he has superb talent and his age on his side. A Huo Yuanjia biopic and an untitled movie collaboration with Malaysian director Ronny Yu are currently on the cards, but if Jet Li has to crack Hollywood, more directors have to take notice of his undeniable good looks, killer charm, martial arts abilities, and star potential.
Trivia:
Has broken a major record, raking in 100 million yuan ($13.4 million) for his latest movie THE WARLORDS, making him the highest paid actor in a Chinese-language film. (November 25, 2007)
Is urging audiences to keep expectations low for his eagerly anticipated fight scenes with Jackie
Chan in THE FORBIDDEN KINGDOM, saying he and Chan joke that between them, they have a total age of 100 and the movie’s plot doesn’t call for the intense duel that the audience may be expecting. (August 23, 2007)
Teamed up with Jackie Chan for the first time in THE FORBIDDEN KINGDOM. (2007)
Is being sued by relatives of FEARLESS’ main character, a Chinese Kung Fu master Huo Yuanjia.
They claim that the movie contains an untrue and unflattering picture of the legendary fighter. (March 29, 2006)
Has claimed his upcoming martial arts film HUO YUAN JIA (2006) (FEARLESS) will be his last martial arts movie, and that he will concentrate on other matters in the future. One of those matters is apparently a documentary about Buddhism.
Is retiring from Kung Fu films because he wants to be recognized as an actor, rather than a martial arts expert. (December 8, 2005)
Says his first marriage was out of a sense of obligation, and he didn’t develop a healthy loving relationship until he met actress Nina Li. (November 29, 2005)
Says the high number of suicides in China prompted him to make his new movie about kung-fu master Huo Yuanjia, saying he wants to inspire youngsters to live life to the fullest like Huo did. (July 20, 2005)
Survived the Asian tsunami disaster with nothing more than an injured foot when trying to protect his daughter from the waves. (2004)
Other than providing voice-overs for Kit Yun in Rise to Honor (2003) (VG), he also did the motion-capture for his fight scenes.
Was offered Chow Yun Fat’s role in CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON (2000), but opted to turn it down so he could make ROMEO MUST DIE (2000).
Has played both real life legend Huo Yuan Jia (in HUO YUAN JIA (2006)) and his semi-fictional student Chen Zhen (in JING WU YING XIONG (1994)).
Sustained bruised ribs while filming the fight stunts with Anthony Anderson for ROMEO MUST DIE
(2000).
Also credited as: Jet Lee / Lin-kit Lee / Lian Jie Li / Lianjie Li / Jet Li Lianjie / Jet Lee Lin-Kit
Quotes:
(prior to making “The Forbidden Kingdom”) “I have met Jackie Chan about 6 times up till now. And even though many people think we are natural enemies, I personally think he is a cool bloke and would honestly love to work with him in a film one time - that would a well brilliant movie!”
“You can beat me up, but don’t touch my hair, I will kill you!”
“Usually action films have a formula: good guy gets in trouble, his wife dies, friends have problems, so he goes to the mountain, learns martial arts, comes back, and kills the bad guy. But on this film, we talked about a totally different angle to see my character.”
“I stepped into the martial arts movie market when I was only 16. I think I have proved my ability in this field and it won’t make sense for me to continue for another five or 10 years. Huo Yuanjia is a conclusion to my life as a martial arts star.”
“So what’s so special about Jet Li, then? You need to show me something. That’s why I decided to make a hardcore fighting movie. More real. For real. That way I can help more people understand Jet Li’s style… my martial arts style.”
“I can feel very brave through all the action scenes in front of the people who are on the set, but when a girl comes close to me my face turns red because I’m so shy.”
“We need families to start taking more responsibility in understanding which movie is good for their children and which movie is not.”
“Wushu is a move in Chinese, a physical move. An attack. Wushu is like an art.”
“You can beat me up, but don’t touch my hair, I will kill you! ”
“My personal philosophy stems from the deep understanding of martial arts and Chinese culture, and especially in the past eight years, the Buddhism thoughts shaped my ideology.”
“Religion and politics are different topics. In my opinion, national borders and ethnic questions are political not religious questions. The issues concerning the Chinese government and Tibet are that of an administering country managing an internal situation. I personally don’t have any political opinions.”
“Nothing in this universe is permanent. If there is a beginning, then there is an end. After the end is another beginning. Life is like this. You are born, you die, and are born again and die again. This is samara. All things are in a continuous process of change, which Buddhists call impermanence.”
“When you learn something, always use the heart.”
Filmography:
Jet Li Filmography as an Actor:
2008 - The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor
2008 - The Forbidden Kingdom
2007 - Tau ming chong
2007 - War
2006 - Huo Yuan Jia
2005 - Danny the Dog
2003 - Rise to Honor (voice)
2003 - Cradle 2 the Grave
2002 - Ying xiong
2001 - The One
2001 - Kiss of the Dragon
2000 - Romeo Must Die
1998 - Lethal Weapon 4
1998 - Sat sau ji wong
1997 - Wong Fei Hung: Chi sai wik hung see
1996 - Hak hap
1996 - Mo him wong
1994 - Jing wu ying xiong
1994 - Zhong Nan Hai bao biao
1994 - Hong Xi Guan: Zhi Shao Lin wu zu
1993 - Wong Fei Hung ji saam: Si wong jaang ba
1992 - Xiao ao jiang hu zhi: Dong Fang Bu Bai
1992 - Wong Fei Hung II: Naam yi dong ji keung
1991 - Wong Fei Hung
1989 - Long xing tian xia
1988 - Shao Lin Hai Deng da shi
1986 - Nan bei Shao Lin
1986 - Zhong hua ying xiong
1984 - Shao Lin xiao zi
1983 - Zhong hua wu shu
1982 - Shaolin Si
Jet Li Filmography as a Producer:
2006 - Huo Yuan Jia
2005 - Danny the Dog
2001 - Invincible(TV) (executive producer)
2001 - Kiss of the Dragon(associate producer)
1994 - Jing wu ying xiong
1994 - Hong Xi Guan: Zhi Shao Lin wu zu
1993 - Yi tian tu long ji: Zhi mo jiao jiao zhu
1993 - Tai ji: Zhang San Feng
1993 - Wong Fei Hung: Chi tit gai dau neung gung
1993 - Fong Sai Yuk
1993 - Fong Sai Yuk juk jaap
Jet Li Filmography as a Director:
1986 - Zhong hua ying xiong
Jet Li Filmography as a Writer:
2001 - Kiss of the Dragon (story)
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