Jean-Claude Camille François Van Varenberg (French:[ʒɑ̃klodkamijfʁɑ̃swavɑ̃vaʁɑ̃bɛʁɡ], Flemish:[vɑɱˈvaːrə(m)bɛr(ə)x]; born 18 October 1960), known professionally as Jean-Claude Van Damme (French:[vɑ̃dam], Flemish:[vɑnˈdɑmə]), is a Belgian martial artist and actor. Born and raised in Brussels, his father enrolled him in a Shotokan karate school at the age of ten, which led Van Damme to hold the rank of 2nd-danblack belt in karate, and compete in several karate and kickboxing competitions. As a teenager, he won the middleweight championship of the European Professional Karate Association in 1979 and the Mr. Belgium bodybuilding title in 1978. With the desire of becoming an actor in Hollywood, he moved to the United States in 1982, where he worked on several films, until he got his break as the lead in the martial arts film Bloodsport (1988).
From thereon, he continued starring in action films and doing extensive voice work, appearing in the well-received Enemies Closer (2013), The Bouncer, Kickboxer: Retaliation (both 2018), Minions: The Rise of Gru (2022), and Darkness of Man (2024). In television, he starred in the Ridley Scott-produced Jean-Claude Van Johnson (2016-2017). Regarded as an icon of action and martial arts cinema, his films have grossed over $1 billion worldwide, making him one of the most successful action stars of all time.[4] Outside his film career, Van Damme has publicly supported various conservationist causes and animal rights organisations.
Early life and education
Van Damme was born Jean-Claude Camille François Van Varenberg, on 18 October 1960, in Berchem-Sainte-Agathe, Brussels, Belgium, the son of Eliana and Eugène Van Varenberg, who was an accountant and florist.[5][6][7] His father is from Brussels and bilingual, and his mother is Flemish (Dutch-speaking).[8] Van Damme was brought up Roman Catholic. His paternal grandmother was Jewish.[9]
He began martial arts at the age of ten, enrolled by his father in a Shōtōkan karate school.[10] His styles consist of ShōtōkanKarate and Kickboxing.[11] He eventually earned his black belt in karate at 18, and earned the rank of 2nd-danblack belt.[12][13] He started lifting weights to improve his physique, which eventually led to a Mr. Belgium bodybuilding title in 1978.[14][15] At the age of 16, he took up ballet, which he studied for five years. According to Van Damme, ballet "is an art, but it's also one of the most difficult sports. If you can survive a ballet workout, you can survive a workout in any other sport."[16] Later he took up both Taekwondo and Muay Thai.[17]
Early 1970s to 1980: Martial arts and first film appearance
At the age of 12,[20] Van Damme joined the Centre National de Karaté (National Center of Karate) under the guidance of Claude Goetz in Belgium. Van Damme trained for four years and he earned a spot on the Belgian Karate Team; he later trained in full-contact karate and kickboxing with Dominique Valera.[21] According to Van Damme, "it was tough growing up. I was kind of geeky, and physically I was not gifted".[22]
At the age of 15, he started his competitive karate career in Belgium. From 1976 to 1980, he compiled a record of 44 victories and four defeats in tournament and non-tournament semi-contact matches.
He was a member of the Belgium Karate Team when it won the European Karate Championship on 26 December 1979 at La Coupe François Persoons Karate Tournament in Brussels.[21][23]
He placed second at the Challenge Coupe des Espoirs Karate Tournament (1st Trials). At the three-day tournament, he defeated 25 opponents before losing in the finals to teammate Angelo Spataro.[21]
On 8 March 1980, in Brussels, Belgium, he competed against his former teammate Patrick Teugels at the Forest National Arena on the undercard of the Dan Macaruso-Dominique Valera Professional Karate Association Light-Heavyweight World Championship bout.[21] Prior to this match, Teugels had defeated Van Damme twice by decision, including a match for the Belgium Lightweight Championship. Van Damme had a 1977 victory over Teugels. Teugels was coming off an impressive showing at the World Association of Kickboxing Organizations World Championships four months earlier, and was favored by some to win this match. According to reports, and Patrick Teugels' own interview (with photos), Teugels lost to Van Damme by TKO in the 1st round. Teugels was kicked in the nose and was unable to continue as a result.[21] In a 2013 interview, Van Damme called this fight his most memorable match.[24]
He began his full-contact career in 1977, when Claude Goetz promoted the first ever full-contact karate tournament in Belgium.
From 1977 to 1982, he compiled a record of 18 victories (18 knockouts) and one defeat. [citation needed]
In 1980, he caught the attention of Professional Karate Magazine publisher and editor Mike Anderson and multiple European champion Geert Lemmens. Both men tabbed Van Damme as an upcoming prospect.[25] Van Damme retired from competition in 1982.
During his early life, he sold flowers in restaurants, and got a loan to open a gym to save some money before his move to the United States.[26] Aptly titled California Gym, it was opened in 1979 and catered to "karate, dancing, aerobics, bodybuilding – everything". Van Damme adds that "I wrote special training programs for people, and it was a very upbeat atmosphere with music". At its peak, California Gym was making $15,000 per month; "when I decided to sell my gym my father thought I was crazy. He said, 'What the hell are you doing? You have the best gym in Brussels. You have a sports car, a beautiful apartment, you’re making so much money that you can have anything you want — and now you’re going to sell your business and go to America'. He was very upset".[27]
1982 to 1988: Early works and breakthrough
In 1982, he and childhood friend Michel Qissi moved to the United States in the hope of working as actors. They did a variety of jobs to support themselves. Their first job working on a film as extras in the hip hop dance film Breakin' (1984), made by Cannon Films; they are seen dancing in the background at a dance demonstration.[28]
Around that time he developed a friendship with action martial art film star Chuck Norris. They started sparring together, and Van Damme started to work as a bouncer at a bar named Woody's Wharf, owned by Norris.[29] He also supplemented his income as a limousine driver and private karate instructor.
He described his early days in the United States as being particularly difficult – excluding $2,000, he had placed all of his money from the sale of his gym into a European bank;[27] thus, he struggled financially.[30] To ensure his own emotional wellbeing, he would go for runs every night in Santa Monica. After that, he would train at the world-renowned Gold's Gym. This routine reportedly helped him survive for many years. He actively participated in casting calls and had a specific routine. On Wednesdays, he would purchase the Drama-Logue magazine; then Thursday mornings, he would send out his picture and resume in response to advertisements. He was willing to try anything to achieve success, even going so far as to fabricate a story. He would call movie studios and claim to be an actor from Brussels with an investor from Hong Kong. He also instructed a friend to play along and act as if they wanted him to star in a movie and were willing to invest money, but required additional funding. Armed with this, he approached producers and suddenly found that all his phone calls were being answered. Of course, his intention was simply to meet the person and put his name out there, as opposed to securing illegitimate deals.[27]
In the 1984 action film Missing in Action starring Norris, which was also released by Cannon Films, Van Damme is credited in the stunt team crew.[31] That same year he also had a role in the comedy short film Monaco Forever.[32][33]
Corey Yuen's martial arts film No Retreat, No Surrender, which premiered On 2 May 1986 in Los Angeles,[34] was his first sizeable role when he was cast as the Russian villain. It starred Kurt McKinney, and was released through New World Pictures.[35][36] McKinney stars as Jason Stillwell, a U.S. teenager who learns karate and defends his martial arts dojo against a Soviet martial artist played by Van Damme.[37] Both Vann Damme and McKinney were set to also star in No Retreat, No Surrender 2, but backed out.[38]
He worked for director John McTiernan for the film Predator (1987) as an early (eventually abandoned) version of the titular alien, before being removed and replaced by Kevin Peter Hall.[39] As the first choice to play the titular Predator character, with the intent that he would use his martial arts skills to make the alien an agile, ninja-like hunter, but after few days shot, he left the film. It was reported that he constantly complained about the monster suit being too hot and causing him to pass out; he allegedly also voiced reservations about only appearing on camera in the suit. Additionally, it became apparent that a more physically imposing actor was needed to make the creature appear threatening against the team of soldiers. The role eventually went to Kevin Peter Hall.[40] After Predator was a success, Van Damme said that he appreciated the movie and that he had no regrets about missing that role.
Van Damme's breakout film was Bloodsport, which opened on 26 February 1988, based on the alleged true story of Frank Dux.[41] It was shot on a $1.5-million budget for Cannon.[42][43] The film is about U.S. Army Captain Frank Dux (played by Van Damme), trained from his youth in the ways of ninjutsu by Senzo Tanaka, who takes the place of Tanaka's deceased son Shingo in the illegal martial-arts tournament Kumite in Hong Kong.[44][45] It became a U.S. box-office hit in the spring of 1988. Producer Mark Di Salle said he was looking for "a new martial arts star who was a ladies' man, [but Van Damme] appeals to both men and women. He's an American hero who fights for justice the American way and kicks the stuffing out of the bad guys."[46] In reality, Van Damme had begged for a starring role; at the point of casting, he was homeless, sleeping in cars and garages, and sometimes had to resort to stealing food to survive.[30] Also in 1988, he played another Russian villain in Black Eagle, opposite Sho Kosugi.[47]
1989 to 1999: International stardom
After the success of Bloodsport, Cannon Films offered him the lead in Delta Force 2, American Ninja 3 or Cyborg, a cyberpunk martial arts film directed by Albert Pyun.[48] He chose Cyborg which premiered in 1989. The film was a low budget box office success and led to two sequels, neither of which Van Damme appeared in.
Cannon used Van Damme again in Kickboxer released that same year. It was highly successful, returning over $50 million on a $3-million budget.[49] The film started the Kickboxer franchise. He did not appear in any of the film's four sequels, though he did return as a different character in the reboot series.
In 1990, he starred in Death Warrant, the first script credit for David S. Goyer. Also that year he starred in Lionheart.[50]Lionheart was directed by Sheldon Lettich who had co-written Bloodsport, and said the film was "the first movie to demonstrate that Van Damme was more than just a flash-in-the-pan "Karate Guy" who would never rise above simplistic low-budget karate movies."[51] It also featured rear nudity from Van Damme which Lettich says "became a very memorable moment for the ladies in the audience, and for the gay guys as well. Showing off his butt (clothed or unclothed) almost became a signature trademark of his after that."[51]
In 1991, Double Impact was released. Directed by Lettich, it features Van Damme in the dual role of Alex and Chad Wagner, estranged twin brothers fighting to avenge the deaths of their parents. Upon its opening it received mixed reviews. The Los Angeles Times said the film "delivers the goods", while Variety didn't like the plotline and predicted a flop. The film grossed $23,683,813 in its first 28 days.[52] It made a total of $30,102,717 in the US.[53] Retrospective critics perceive it to be a fun action film, with good comical moments, and a good performance by Van Damme who plays two distinct characters.[54][55][56][57]
In 1992, he starred in one of the biggest blockbusters of the year in the sci-fi action picture, Universal Soldier, directed by Roland Emmerich for Carolco. Van Damme (as Luc Deveraux) and Dolph Lundgren (as Sergeant Andrew Scott) play U.S. soldiers during the Vietnam War who end up shooting each other dead after Devereaux discovers that Scott has gone insane and resorted to mutilating civilians.[58] They are later reanimated in a secret Army project along with a large group of other previously dead soldiers and sent on a mission. At the 1992 Cannes Film Festival, Van Damme and Lundgren were involved in a verbal altercation that almost turned physical when both men pushed each other only to be separated, but it was believed to have only been a publicity stunt.[59][60]Universal Soldier opened in theatres on 10 July 1992, a moderate success domestically with $36,299,898 in US ticket sales, but a major blockbuster worldwide, making over $65million overseas, which earned the film a total of $102million worldwide, on a $23million budget.[61]
He was considered to play Simon Phoenix in Demolition Man[62] and was briefly considered for the role of Michael Cheritto in Heat.[63]
In 1993, he made a cameo in Last Action Hero, and starred in Nowhere To Run. The film was the first in a three-picture deal between Van Damme and Columbia Pictures and his fee was $3.5 million. Columbia said the film is "true to his audience and goes beyond his audience."[65]
In 1994, he starred in Hard Target for Universal Pictures, the first American film from director John Woo. Also released that year, he starred in Timecop, playing a time-traveling cop.[66] Directed by Peter Hyams, the film was a huge success, grossing over $100 million worldwide, and remains his highest-grossing film in a lead role to date. Also that year, he starred in Street Fighter, written and directed by Steven E. de Souza for Universal and based on the video game. It was poorly received critically. Though a commercial success, making approximately three times its production cost.
Van Damme and Hyams re-teamed for Universal's Sudden Death, released in 1995. Van Damme portrays a French Canadian-born firefighter with the Pittsburgh Fire Bureau who suffered a personal crisis after he was unable to save a young girl from a house fire. Now removed from active duty, he has become demoted to being fire marshal for the Pittsburgh Civic Arena, where a gang of terrorists are holding U.S. Vice President and several other VIPs hostage in a luxury suite during a game. The movie was a modest success.[67]
In 1996, he starred and directed The Quest. The film, though it under-performed domestically, did better internationally at the box-office and was a commercial success.[68][69][70] That year, he appeared in the TV show Friends in the two-part episode "The One After the Superbowl". He also starred in Maximum Risk, the first American film directed by Ringo Lam, and their first collaboration. The film was mildly successful at the box office.[71]
He followed up with Double Team (1997), a sci fi action film with basketball superstar Dennis Rodman. It was Hong Kong director Tsui Hark's American debut.
In 1998, he and Hark reunited on Knock Off, a box-office flop.[72] Also that year, Van Damme acted in the war film Legionnaire. Despite a $35 million budget, it was not released theatrically in the US, only overseas.[73]
Released in 2001, Replicant is the second collaboration between Van Damme and director Ringo Lam, and the fifth time that Van Damme has starred in a dual role. It co-stars Michael Rooker. Also that year he starred in The Order, directed by Sheldon Lettich, and written by Van Damme.[75]
In 2002, he starred in Derailed.In Hell is a 2003 American prison action film directed by Ringo Lam. It is the third collaboration between Van Damme and Lam. Van Damme plays an American working overseas in Magnitogorsk, Russia. That same year, he employed his dancing training in the music video for Bob Sinclar's "Kiss My Eyes".
In 2005, he played himself in the French film Narco. In 2006, he starred in Second in Command directed by Simon Fellows, and The Hard Corps directed by Sheldon Lettich.
Van Damme returned to the mainstream with the limited theatrical release of the 2008 film JCVD, which received positive reviews. Time Magazine named his performance in the film the second best of the year (after Heath Ledger's The Joker in The Dark Knight),[77] having previously stated that Van Damme "deserves not a black belt, but an Oscar."[78] Also in 2008, he starred in Isaac Florentine's The Shepherd: Border Patrol.
He then reprised his role as Luc Deveraux alongside Dolph Lundgren in the 2009 film Universal Soldier: Regeneration, directed by John Hyams. The film was released theatrically in the Middle East and Southeast Asia and directly to video in the United States and other parts of the world. Since its release, the film has received mostly positive reviews, with praise towards the performances and surprisingly high production values.[79][80][81]
2010–present: Current work
In 2010, he directed himself in the barely released Full Love. That same year, he turned down the role of Gunner Jensen in the first instalment of The Expendables and the role went to Dolph Lundgren.[82]
In 2011, he voiced Master Croc in the computer animation film Kung Fu Panda 2. In the film, he voices a character who helps the heroes of the previous film. That same year, he co-starred with Scott Adkins in Assassination Games. Also in 2011, he played a role in the French comedy Beur sur la ville. Also that year, he starred in his own reality TV show Behind Closed Doors. The show showcases his family life, his personal troubles, and an upcoming fight. Since 2009, he has been planning to make a comeback to fight former boxing Olympic gold-medalist Somluck Kamsing.[83][84][85] The fight was a focal point in his ITV reality show Behind Closed Doors. The fight has been repeatedly postponed, with many critics doubting it will occur, especially due to the difficulty of booking the venue.[86]
Also that year, he starred as the main villain in The Expendables 2. The film series follows a mercenary group as they undertake a mission which evolves into a quest for revenge against a rival mercenary (Van Damme). The film was a success, grossing over $310 million worldwide, and was his big return to the action genre.[89]Empire's Nick de Semlyen praised Van Damme's "grandstanding, plutonium-crazed baddie" and Lundgren's "action-troll" as high points in the film.[90] Also that year, he was seen as part of Kam Sing's ring crew when Kam Sing fought against Jomhod Kiatadisak.[91] He also appeared in commercials for Coors Light beer, showing him on a snow-covered mountain wearing a sleeveless denim jacket,[92] and for the washing powder Dash. On 21 October 2012, he was honored with a life-size statue of himself in his hometown of Brussels. He told reporters during the unveiling, "Belgium is paying me back something, but really it's to pay back to the dream. So when people come by here, it is not Jean-Claude van Damme but it's a guy from the street who believed in something. I want the statue to represent that".[93]
In 2013, he acted in the comedy Welcome to the Jungle. Also that year, he played the main villain in Enemies Closer, an American actionthriller film directed by Peter Hyams.[94] On 13 November 2013, Volvo Trucks released an advertisement on YouTube that shows Van Damme doing the splits while perched with each of his feet on the outer rearview mirrors of one semi-trailer truck and one box truck moving backwards, which he describes in the commercial as "the most epic of splits". The video quickly went viral around the web, receiving more than 11 million views in three days,[95] 35 million in the first week.[96] It was dubbed as The Epic Split.[97]
Swelter is a 2014 American action film where he plays one of the leads. It stars Lennie James, and co-stars Grant Bowler, Josh Henderson, and Alfred Molina. James plays a sheriff in a small town who has a dark past that he can not remember, only to have to confront it when his ex-partners show up looking for stolen money they believe he has.
In 2018, he returned to his role in Kickboxer: Retaliation, a sequel to the reboot.[98] That same year, he acted in Black Water. It co-stars Dolph Lundgren in the fifth collaboration between both actors[99] as well as the first time they appear together as on-screen allies.[100] In 22 August of that same year, he starred in Julien Leclercq's The Bouncer.
In 2023, he featured his likeness and voice as Johnny Cage in the fighting game Mortal Kombat 1 (2023).[104] In 2024, he debuted in Hitman: World of Assassination as the game's latest "elusive target". The game features Van Damme in the role of Max Valliant, a former ICA agent who avoided a previous assassination attempt several years prior.[105]
Monument
Van Damme Monument in Qabala, Azerbaijan
In 2012, a statue of Van Damme was unveiled in Anderlecht, Belgium. The artwork, which depicts a younger incarnation of the Muscles from Brussels in one of his fighting poses from the movie Kickboxer, was commissioned to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the Westland Shopping complex. The unveiling took place on Boulevard Sylvain Dupuis and was attended by Van Damme, his parents, Wallonia-Brussels culture minister Fadila Laanan[nl] and nearly 2,000 fans. Van Damme said the statue "represented the dream of a Brussels kid" and was "for all the children who want something bad", adding that "if you believe in something strongly enough, it can come true".[106]
In 2019, a Van Damme monument was mounted in the Vandam village of Qabala, Azerbaijan, due to the similarity of the village name and Van Damme's name. The actor subsequently published a post on his Facebook account, thanking those responsible.[107]
Controversies
Lawsuit and fight record controversy
In 1997, Frank Dux, the martial artist whom Van Damme portrayed in Bloodsport, filed a lawsuit against him for $50,000 for co-writing and consultation work Dux did on the 1996 film The Quest. According to the lawsuit, Dux also accused him of lying to the public about his martial arts fight record, stating that when Dux tutored Van Damme while the latter was laying carpet for a living, Van Damme exhibited a lack of martial arts skills. Van Damme's lawyer, Martin Singer, responded, "There are records to document his martial arts acclaim. Why, just look at his movies; he didn't get those roles on his acting ability! He's the one who does those splits on chairs. He doesn't have a stuntman to do that."[108]
Chuck Zito incident
Tensions arose between Van Damme and bodyguard/stuntman Chuck Zito when Zito began dating Van Damme's estranged wife Darcy LaPier. Zito was reportedly unhappy about LaPier's claim in a divorce action that Van Damme had abused her.[109] On 6 February 1998, the New York Daily News reported that Van Damme had been punched by Zito the previous night at the Scores strip club in Manhattan, New York.[110] Zito, who had previously bodyguarded Van Damme and did stunts on the film Nowhere to Run, recalled the incident in his 2002 autobiography Street Justice, claiming that he suffered a broken hand as a result of striking Van Damme several times after Van Damme made disparaging remarks about him to a club bouncer, who then relayed the comments to Zito.[111] Van Damme denied in an appearance on Inside Edition days after the incident that he had been struck by Zito and challenged Zito to a fight.[109]
Kadyrov event
In October 2011, Van Damme, along with other celebrities including Hilary Swank, Vanessa-Mae and Seal attracted criticism from human rights groups for attending an event in Russian federal subject Chechnya's capital Grozny on the 35th birthday of Chechen president Ramzan Kadyrov on 5 October.[112] Human rights groups, who had urged the celebrities to cancel their appearances because of abuses carried out under Kadyrov, criticised the celebrities for attending the event.[113]Human Rights Watch released a statement which said, "Ramzan Kadyrov is linked to a litany of horrific human rights abuses. It's inappropriate for stars to get paid to party with him [...] And getting paid to be part of such a lavish show in Chechnya trivializes the suffering of countless victims of human rights abuses there."[114][115]
The original video game Mortal Kombat (1992) was conceived as a fighting game based on Van Damme.[147] Creators Ed Boon and John Tobias had originally wanted to star Van Damme himself in the game. That fell through as he had allegedly a prior deal for another game under the auspices of the Sega Genesis platform. Boon and Tobias eventually decided to create a character named Johnny Cage, who is modelled after Van Damme, primarily from Van Damme's appearance and outfit in the martial arts film Bloodsport.[148][149] In the German version of the Donkey Kong 64 website, DK's greatest hero is Jean-Claude Van Kong.[citation needed]
From 1993 to 1996, the stress of the constant filming and promotion of his films, as Van Damme claims, led him to develop a cocaine habit, on which he spent up to $10,000 a week, and consuming up to 10 grams per day by 1996. He was arrested for driving under the influence in 1999.[151][152][153][154] Attempts at drug rehabilitation were unsuccessful, and he resorted to resolve his addiction via quitting cold turkey and exercise.[152] In 1998, he was diagnosed with bipolar disorder.[152][153][155] In 2011, he discussed the condition on the British reality show Jean-Claude Van Damme: Behind Closed Doors, saying, "Sometimes you're gonna like me, and sometimes you're gonna hate me. But what can I do? I'm not perfect... I'm an extreme bipolar, and I'm taking medication for this... When I was young, I was suffering those swing moods. In the morning, the sky was blue [when I was] going to school, and to me, the sky was black. I was so sad."[156]
He has been married five times to four different women. Until 1992 he was married to his third wife, bodybuilder Gladys Portugues, with whom he has two children, Kristopher (b. 1987) and Bianca Brigitte (b. 1990).[157] He had begun an affair with actress Darcy LaPier, whom he married in February 1994. From this marriage, they have a son named Nicholas (b. 10 October 1995). That same year he had an affair with his Street Fighter co-star Kylie Minogue during filming in Thailand.[158][159] LaPier, who was pregnant with their son at the time, did not become aware of the affair until Van Damme publicly admitted it in 2012.[160]
He had been in a decade-long relationship with model Alena Kaverina, though still married to Gladys Portugues. Kaverina was born in Ukraine; Van Damme visited the country during the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine to show his support.[163][164]
Martial arts films are a subgenre of action films that feature martial arts combat between characters. These combats are usually the films' primary appeal and entertainment value, and often are a method of storytelling and character expression and development. Martial arts are frequently featured in training scenes and other sequences in addition to fights. Martial arts films commonly include hand-to-hand combat along with other types of action, such as stuntwork, chases, and gunfights. Sub-genres of martial arts films include kung fu films, wuxia, karate films, and martial arts action comedy films, while related genres include gun fu, jidaigeki and samurai films.
Frank William Dux is a Canadian-American martial artist and fight choreographer. According to Dux, a ninjutsu expert named Senzo Tanaka trained him as a ninja when he was a teenager. He established his own school of ninjutsu called Dux Ryu Ninjutsu, and has said he won a secret martial arts tournament called the Kumite in 1975. His alleged victory at the Kumite served as the inspiration for the 1988 film Bloodsport starring Jean-Claude Van Damme. Dux's victory at the Kumite has been disputed, as has the existence of both the Kumite he described and Senzo Tanaka.
Bloodsport is a 1988 American martial arts film directed by Newt Arnold. The film stars Jean-Claude Van Damme, with a supporting cast of Leah Ayres, Forest Whitaker, Donald Gibb, Roy Chiao, and Bolo Yeung. The film centers on Frank Dux, a United States Army Captain and ninjutsu practitioner who competes in an underground full-contact martial arts tournament called the Kumite in Hong Kong. Based on Dux's real-life claims, the film was marketed as a true story. It was one of Van Damme's first lead roles and showcased his abilities, launching his career as a mainstream action star.
No Retreat, No Surrender is a 1985 martial arts film directed by Corey Yuen in his American film directorial debut. It is the first title in the No Retreat, No Surrender franchise, whose plot lines and characters are mostly unrelated. It stars Kurt McKinney, with a supporting cast of Jean-Claude Van Damme, J.W. Fails, Kathie Sileno, and Kim Tai-chung. The film was released in Italy on October 20, 1985, and in the United States on May 2, 1986. McKinney performs as Jason Stillwell, an American teenager who learns martial arts from the spirit of Bruce Lee. Stillwell uses these lessons to defend his martial arts dojo against Soviet martial artist Ivan Kraschinsky.
Yeung Sze, better known as Bolo Yeung, is a Hong Kong former competitive bodybuilder, martial artist, and actor. Primarily known for playing villains in action and martial arts films, he is regarded as one of the most influential actors in martial arts cinema.
The elderly martial arts master is a mentor/teacher stock character in fiction, especially Wuxia, Chanbara, and other martial arts films. Typically an East Asian male, he is a near-invincible master of the martial arts, despite being advanced in age and presumably having a decrease in physical strength. Often he possesses the rank of sensei and is referred to as such by his student. The elderly master most often teaches either generic kung fu or an exotic style specific to the fictional period. During the films, the master often becomes close with his students, with the master becoming a guardian figure to the trainees, who are, in turn, looked upon as the master's children. Usually, when the master is captured or killed, or an iconic portrait of the deceased master has been desecrated by some villains, the students will take it upon themselves to rescue or avenge their master.
The Quest is a 1996 American martial arts adventure film starring and directed by Jean-Claude Van Damme, in his directorial debut. It co-stars Roger Moore, James Remar and Janet Gunn. The plot, set in 1925, follows New York thief Chris Dubois who is sold into slavery by Lord Edgar Dobbs (Moore) and, after receiving Muay Thai training in Siam, enters an ancestral martial arts tournament in Tibet to earn back his freedom.
Double Impact is a 1991 American action film written and directed by Sheldon Lettich, and written, produced by and starring Jean-Claude Van Damme as Chad and Alex Wagner. The film marks Van Damme's third collaboration with director Sheldon Lettich and second collaboration with Bolo Yeung. Double Impact was released in the United States on August 9, 1991.
Kickboxer is a 1989 American martial arts film directed by David Worth and starring Jean-Claude Van Damme. Former world kickboxing champion Dennis Alexio is also featured. The plot revolves around Kurt Sloane seeking revenge on the fearsome kickboxing champion Tong Po who paralyzed his brother Eric Sloane. The film is regarded as the first movie to bring Muay Thai to a global audience.
Michael Jai White is an American actor and martial artist. He is the first Black American to portray a major comic book superhero starring as Al Simmons, the protagonist in the 1997 film Spawn. White appeared as Marcus Williams in the Tyler Perry films Why Did I Get Married? (2007) and Why Did I Get Married Too? (2010), and starred as the character on the TBS/OWN comedy-drama television series Tyler Perry's For Better or Worse. White portrayed Jax Briggs in Mortal Kombat: Legacy and the Cyborg Seth in Universal Soldier: The Return, opposite Jean-Claude Van Damme. He portrayed boxer Mike Tyson in the 1995 HBO television film Tyson. He also played the title role in the blaxploitation parody film Black Dynamite (2009), as well as the animated series of the same name.
Lionheart is a 1990 American martial arts film directed by Sheldon Lettich, starring Jean-Claude Van Damme, Deborah Rennard, Harrison Page, Lisa Pelikan and Brian Thompson. It also features the acting debut of Ashley Johnson. Van Damme plays a French Foreign Legionnaire stationed in Africa, who must desert to the United States and enter the underground fighting circuit to raise money for his murdered brother's family.
Bloodfist is a 1989 American martial arts film directed by Terence H. Winkless, starring Don "The Dragon" Wilson, Rob Kaman, Billy Blanks and Cris Aguilar. The plot sees an American former kickboxer travel to Manila, where he re-enters competition to avenge the murder of his brother and fellow fighter.
Scott Edward Adkins is a British actor and martial artist. He gained prominence with his villainous portrayal of the Russian prison fighter Yuri Boyka in the American martial arts film Undisputed II: Last Man Standing (2006), a role he reprised in its sequels Undisputed III: Redemption (2010), which won him an Action on Film Award for Breakout Action Star, and Boyka: Undisputed (2017), which won him a Jackie Chan Action Movie Award for Best Action Movie Actor.
Sheldon Lettich is an American screenwriter, film director and producer. He is best known for his collaborations with Jean-Claude Van Damme and his work in the action film genre.
Michel Qissi is a Moroccan Belgian actor, filmmaker, and martial artist best known for his action films. Qissi is the co-founder of The World Cinema Combat Federation (WCCF), an organization he formed with Grand Master Beom Jhoo Lee which teaches fight choreography in filmmaking.
Daniel Bernhardt is a Swiss actor, stuntman, martial artist, and former model. He is known for his work on various action films. He made his acting debut in the leading role in the martial arts film Bloodsport II: The Next Kumite (1996), and appeared in two of its sequels, Bloodsport III (1997) and Bloodsport 4: The Dark Kumite (1999).
Dimitri Logothetis is a Greek-American filmmaker and actor.
Kickboxer: Vengeance is a 2016 American martial arts film directed by John Stockwell, and starring Dave Bautista, Alain Moussi, Gina Carano, Georges St-Pierre, and Jean-Claude Van Damme. It is the sixth film in the Kickboxer franchise and also serves as a reboot. The film has a similar premise as the first film in the franchise. The film was released in select theaters and on VOD by RLJ Entertainment on September 2, 2016.
Alain Moussi is a Canadian actor, stuntman, and martial artist trained in jujitsu, kickboxing, and karate. He plays the lead role of Kurt Sloane in the reboot of the Kickboxer series, Kickboxer: Vengeance (2016) and Kickboxer: Retaliation (2018), a role that was originated by Jean-Claude Van Damme, who portrays his mentor in the films. Moussi also played the lead role in the action film Jiu Jitsu (2020), the role of Charlie Nash in the web series Street Fighter: Resurrection (2016), and Batman in the first season of the television series Titans (2018).
The Bloodsport franchise consists of American martial arts-sports action-thriller installments including two theatrical films, two straight-to-home video sequels, and one limited release reimagined genderswap-followup. Based on the purported true story experiences of Frank Dux, which have since been called into question, the series centers around the original story written by Sheldon Lettich. The plot involves American characters who compete in underground life-or-death mixed martial arts tournaments, while also competing for the honor of their instructors.
↑ "Jean-Claude van Damme unveils his statue in Belgium". The Reel Place. Standing next to his Flemish mother and his Walloon father, the actor talked about the linguistic conflict: "It's a dispute between two cultures that are, in fact, the same. But, there's a lot of love in this war" he concluded, true to himself.; Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine : "Jean-Claude van Damme - Bifff 2007". VanDammeTV. 21 March 2008. Mijn moeder is Vlaamse en mijn vader is van Brussels [My mother is Flemish and my father is from Brussels]
↑ Van Damme Collection: Bloodsport // Timecop (Warner Bros. Double Feature) (film) (in English, French, and Japanese). Warner Home Video. 19 May 2009. ISBN1-4198-8152-3. 8 83929 06918 7.
↑ Corliss, Richard; Grossman, Lev; Ponewozik, James; Zoglin, Richard (13 November 2008). "Short List". Time. Archived from the original on 21 November 2008. Retrieved 1 October 2009.
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