To travel more, to spend time with his family. Even as Hollywood has ignored Asian actors, it has over the years co-opted the visual techniques and tropes of Hong Kong cinema. Everybody, one way or the other, knows a Triad, he says. We literally spent the entire day coming up with moves, and then Yuen Woo-ping would say, Not cool enough. The entire day, without coming up with one shot., Those early films with Yuen provided Yen with a crash course in the art of making action movies. He is not diminished, not yet. 'Ip Man 2' was the biggest local hit of the year in China, and enjoyed a limited theatrical release in the US.The film's success led to Donnie being cast as a number of legendary Chinese heroes: He played General Qin-long in Daniel Lee's '14 Blades', Guan Yu in 'The Lost Bladesman' and reprised Bruce Lee's Chen Zhen role in Andrew Lau's 'Legend of the Fist'. But you might never have. Yen was on the set of Tsui Harks now classic 1992 sequelOnce Upon a Time in China II, filming the kind of action scene they really dont make anymore. It was heralded as a game-changer of how U.S. viewed the Asian film industry. The Last of Us Episode 7 Introduces a Close Friend From Ellie's Past, While Joel's Life . And Evelyn, who is I think it was the funniest when Evelyn realizes, what do you mean Im the worst failure of Evelyn Wang in all the universes? My first movie was an action film, but I played the normal damsel in distress where I was a social worker and bullied by the juvenile delinquents. You fight with, or you dance with, multiple partners. He also proposed letting his character have a sense of humor so that he could improvise jokes. Im curious for your perspective on the global industry, though, because youre such an international star and actor. Copyright 2018 Fandango. But he also knows that he cant go on forever being this Donnie Yen. Since 1957, GQ has inspired men to look sharper and live smarter with its unparalleled coverage of style, culture, and beyond. Why would you want me to do that? You can see after the huge success of Crazy Rich Asians, can you imagine the weight on our shoulders at that point? Its true. Like Li, Yen began his martial arts action career in Hong Kong in the mid-1980s with the Yuen Woo-Ping-directed film Drunken Tai Chi. He notably turned down a role in The Expendables franchise due to how Jet Li, who played the character Yin Yang, was portrayed in the first film. I saw stars. This article was first published in Geek Culture. Hong Kong action superstar Donnie Yen Ji-dan is revered globally for his martial arts prowess in films such as the Ip Man series and Rogue One: A Star Wars Story . But not Yen. His skills behind the camera began developing from his early days in the industry, and he was very much involved with the action choreography of his films for D&B Films. Star and director subsequently teamed to create the comic book inspired fantasy actioner 'Dragon Tiger Gate' and the gritty police thriller 'Flashpoint', in which Donnie created what fans feel is the definitive on-screen MMA action scene. And then we just attacked it. So, she has to work so hard into creating and achieving that American dream that they talked about when they first came here. Jackie Chan was on the roster several years ago. Thrown from horses. After about 30 takes, he missed. And I dont want to give away, but it plays a big role. In the early drafts of the script, Yens character, Chirrut mwe, was just the same generic martial arts warrior. . I did that . I mean, hes 60 years, a legacy thats been so nurtured and protected and well thought out. Let me take a look." The film, about an amnesiac warrior returning to his home village, has become a bona fide cult classic.As director, Donnie followed 'Legend of the Wolf' with a very different venture, 'Ballistic Kiss', an urban thriller about a conflicted assassin. You never walk away from someone in need. auditor, who is fantastic. Now, your Hollywood breakthrough was when you played a Bond and Im not going to use the term girl because Wai Lin was not a girl in the 1997 movie Tomorrow Never Dies. Can you talk about I love Bond movies, and I thought you were fantastic in it. When Yen was 10, the family was reunited and moved to Boston, where his father had landed a posting as an editor for a Chinese newspaper. The shot was simple: Yen had to block an incoming strike with his pole, while keeping the straight face of a badass wushu master. We do the best we can.. Yen joined Li in the sequel as the villainous Commander Lan. People who continue to keep thinking and to go forward no matter what the negativity or setback., Yen was upbeat. Because action movieswhich is what I do bestaction movies take a certain fire, a passion, and that is relative to physical ability, he says. At the time,Yen had no plans to be an actor. But when Evelyn makes the trip to the I.R.S., her world is shaken up. I had a very respectful experience working onJohn Wick. We have this mating dance. John Wick: Chapter 4 is set for release on March 24. As a kid from Hong Kong, let alone one whod spent the previous six years in America, he barely fit in. I do all of them, unless I mean, if its asking me to jump off the third floor, then I dont do that anymore. Why does he always have to be called Shang or Chang? Does this open up opportunities for you, do you think? If Bruce Lee could do it, I could do it, you know?, Movies also opened Yens eyes to martial arts styles outside of his mothers traditional forms of tai chi. Beyond the limitations of his mother's school, Yen began training in various different fighting arts, including Japanese karate, Korean taekwondo and western boxing. A dildo? Its the first Hollywood movie since the early 90s to have a modern story and all-Asian casts. In this movie, and his follow-up features for the company ('In the Line of Duty 4', 'Tiger Cage 2'), Yen showed off his own unique form of contemporary screen combat, a form that included elements of rapid fire kicking, Western boxing and grappling moves.Having established a worldwide fan base, Yen moved on to star in a string of independent Asian action features before director Tsui Hark tapped him to co-star in 'Once Upon A Time In China 2'. She calls herself a loser. Youll be able to catch up on Sway episodes you may have missed, like my conversation with Andrew Garfield. Although Jackie Chan began to move away from making American action movies in the mid-2000s, he still found time for a quick cameo in the first Twins Effect, which Donnie Yen co-directed alongside Dante Lam.As a result, there is certainly a sense of fulfillment here as Chan and Yen go head-to-head in Twins Effect II (released in the West of Blade of Kings). Donnie Yen recently revealed that the production team behind "John Wick: Chapter 4" redesigned his character Caine after he spoke out against it being an Asian stereotype. We came into this life naked. As appetite for Asian cinema has ebbed and flowed among non-Asian audiencesthrough the 90s Chan boom, the postCrouching Tiger wuxia craze, the more recent but short-lived breakouts helmed by the likes of Tony Jaa and Iko Uwaiseven huge stars like Yen have found their opportunities limited. Compared to Chan's usual Buster Keaton-inspired comedic fight scenes throughout Shanghai Knights, his and Yen's kung fu showdown is the movie's most straightforward martial arts fight and really showed what Yen could do better than any American film had managed to at the time. But she did not say, OK, lets just wrap it up and call it a day. I really, truly appreciate it. Given that he was by now a serious practitioner of modern Wu Shu, his parents decided to send him to Beijing to train at the Chinese capital's famed Wu Shu academy.It was when Yen returned to Hong Kong en route back to Boston that he met the famed martial arts movie director Yuen Woo-ping.Donnie exploded onto the Hong Kong movie scene when he was cast in the lead role of director Yuen Woo-ping's 'Drunken Tai Chi'. In Hong Kong I spent two weeks shooting this stuff!I think its a lack of respect, and a level of not understanding, not appreciating what we do.. Its a major project for Yen. One thing I pointed out is he was a stereotype. I was the outsider. He arrives at the Gordon Ramsay Bar & Grill in London wearing a leather Alexander McQueen jacket and sweats, the brim of his baseball capblazoned with the motivational slogan You Can Do Itpulled low. It wasnt a protest, okay, it was a riot, Yen says. In 2016, he starred in Netflix's Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: Sword of Destiny opposite Harry Shum Jr. and Michelle Yeoh. And two, did it do that? He grew up absorbing every book, movie, TV show that he could get his eyes on. In this movie, you were a singer. ALSO READ:John Wick: Chapter 4 gets longest runtime in the series, clocking near 3 hours, John Wick: Chapter 4 gets longest runtime in the series, clocking near 3 hours. They make these [MINION VOICES]. Her latest role is no exception she took on a part that was originally written for the actor Jackie Chan. We cant be invincible. Besides his on-screen performance, Donnie was also called on to choreograph the dynamic duel between himself and MMA champion Cung Le. Bullying a Dragon: Donnie has an anecdote in which he and his girlfriend were harassed in a Hong Kong club in the 1990s by a troublesome gang. Good fight scenes. That isnt, he says, a criticism directed solely atJohn Wick. He was signed to co-star in and action direct 'Highlander: Endgame', the latest in a series of fantasy actioners. Donnie Yen is making his "John Wick" debut in the upcoming fourth installment as Caine, a blind assassin caught between his ties to the villainous High Table and his friendship with Keanu. 01 March . I think action movies, he says, are a genre that everybody in the world can appreciate.. Really one of the worst times in my career, Yen says. The show was the top-rated action drama show around the region, and was subsequently re-edited for international distribution on video.Donnie went on to make his directorial debut with 'Legend of the Wolf', a stylish period actioner that even attracted the attention of legendary American film-maker Francis Coppola. These kinds of opportunities occasionally come up: You want to be in this? It doesnt mean anything, he says. But because she is so focused and weighed down by the sheer sense of responsibility of a failing business, and then being audited, and the daughter and then the father shows up on her doorstep, the one who is always disapproving, disappointed. He received his first full action directing credit on the Michelle Yeoh, kung fu drama 'Wing Chun', in which he also starred.Yen further developed his style of choreography in the high pressure world of Hong Kong television, where he created the action for his hit series 'Kung Fu Master' and 'Fist of Fury', and as a low-budget film-maker, when he directed, starred in and choreographed the movies 'Legend of the Wolf' and 'Ballistic Kiss'.It was after Yen had helmed his first two Chinese features that Hollywood made its first serious bid for his services. All of them are under attack by an evil force in the form of a giant spinning everything bagel you heard that right and Evelyn is being recruited to save the world. You said you wanted to do it, fine. But I think its Barbara Broccoli, Michael Wilson, the producers who realize, its like, yes, lets do something different. We talked about the way you prepped and trained for the movie, and the Daniels had to tell you to be worse at fighting and things like that because youre such, again, also an elegant and specific fighter, the way you do stunts, whether its in Shang-Chi or Crouching Tiger.. Bruce Lee vs. Jackie Chan vs. Jet Li vs. Donnie Yen. Were comparing these legends of global cinema across four categories Box Office, Tomatometer and Audience Scores, Iconic Moments, and a special Wild Card Round to see who is the one man left standing when all the dust has settled/limbs have been snapped/henchmen have been felled. I guess thats not the same thing, Animation? He would spend countless hours developing hisfa jing, or explosiveness, practicing high kicks on the heavy bag until he knocked it down. Its quite sad. So I went in the day after, and I finished the scene., Yen is not telling this story for the sake of some misguided bravado but more to explain the heady Hong Kong film scene of the 1980s and 90s. He notably turned down a role in The Expendables franchise due to how. Yes, because its all what I love about all the universes. Then It Changed My Life. But she never gives up trying, even though her business is failing. Stop trying to change the other person. Theyre not serving Chinese foodbecause they never had authentic Chinese.