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Roger Yuan | |||||||
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| Born | Roger Winston Tzi-Chun Yuan January 25, 1961 Carbondale, Illinois, U.S. | ||||||
| Occupations | Martial artist, stunt coordinator, stunt performer, actor | ||||||
| Years active | 1982–present | ||||||
| Relatives | Ron Yuan (brother) | ||||||
| Chinese name | |||||||
| Chinese | 袁之正 | ||||||
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Roger Winston Tzi-Chun Yuan (born January 25, 1961[ citation needed ]) is an American martial artist, stuntman, actor, and fight choreographer. [1] [2] He won an Actor Award for Outstanding Action Performance by a Stunt Ensemble in a Motion Picture for his work on the James Bond film Skyfall (2012), with four additional nominations. He has also worked on films such as Black Dynamite (2009), Jason Bourne (2016), Dune (2021) and its sequels.
Yuan was born in Carbondale, Illinois, to Taiwanese parents Theresa and Joseph Yuan, who were in the United States to study at the Southern Illinois University Carbondale. [3] Yuan was sent back to Taiwan as an infant to live with his grandparents, before moving back to America at the age of 5, living with his parents in New York City. He was inspired to pursue martial arts after seeing Bruce Lee on The Green Hornet. [3]
Though he taught himself karate and judo from manuals, he did not begin a formal martial arts education until the age of 17, when he enrolled in a Kyokushin Karate class. [3] After moving to Los Angeles for college, he enrolled in a Chun Kuk Do dojo under the direction of Chuck Norris' United Fighting Arts Federation (UFAF), eventually attaining a fourth dan black belt. He subsequently studied American kickboxing under Benny Urquidez, where he was a sparring partner for Pete "Sugarfoot" Cunningham, and also trained with Bill Wallace and Don "The Dragon" Wilson. [3]
Yuan has also trained in Wing Chun, Muay Thai, taekwondo, and qigong, as well as gymnastics and yoga. [2] [3] He has a blue belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.
As of 2024, Yuan has performed stunts in over 40 films, including: Rapid Fire , Escape from L.A. , Spawn , Blade , [4] Warcraft , Jason Bourne, [5] [6] John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum , Dune, and Dune: Part Two .
In 2011, he trained Jennifer Lawrence and Jason Flemyng in X-Men: First Class [7] as well as Henry Cavill in Immortals . He also trained Keanu Reeves in 47 Ronin . [8]
Yuan's first stunt double stint came in the 1986 film House . [9] His first role as a professional actor is in The Perfect Weapon (1991), Yuan's first credited acting debut is in Red Corner (1997), alongside Richard Gere. He also appeared in Lethal Weapon 4 , which is Jet Li's American film debut, as the role of Chu, a Chinese Triad gangster. In 2000, he played the main antagonist in the Western action-comedy Shanghai Noon alongside Jackie Chan, as the corrupt Imperial Guard Lo Fong; this role helped him become popular with audiences. In 2003, he appeared in the beginning of Bulletproof Monk , playing Chow Yun-fat's master. In Batman Begins , he appeared as the Hazmat Technician alongside Gary Oldman and as the Chinese Engineer in Syriana . In Skyfall , he also trained Daniel Craig and had a role as Sévérine's bodyguard. Yuan also appeared in many TV series, including Walker Texas Ranger , where he played multiple characters, with his most famous role being Lazarus in the episodes 'The Winds of Change' and 'Lazarus'. [10]
In 2016, he starred in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: Sword of Destiny , the sequel of the successful 2000 film Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon .[ citation needed ] Besides working in the film industry, he also was invited by Country singer Tim McGraw to get him in shape for his 2012 Brothers of the Sun Tour . [11]
Yuan's brother, Ron Yuan, is also a martial artist and stuntman.
Yuan was based in Ireland for 15 years. [5]
| † | Denotes films that have not yet been released |
| Year | Title | Contributed to | Role | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Acting | Stunts | ||||
| 1985 | House | No | Yes | N/a | Stunt performer |
| 1991 | American Kickboxer | Yes | Yes | Howard | Assistant fight choreographer |
| The Perfect Weapon | Yes | No | Diamond | ||
| Showdown in Little Tokyo | Yes | No | Kickboxer | ||
| No Secrets | No | Yes | N/a | Martial arts advisor | |
| 1992 | Ulterior Motives | Yes | No | Yakuza | |
| American Streetfighter | Yes | No | Ito | ||
| Rapid Fire | No | Yes | N/a | Stunt performer | |
| Rage and Honor | Yes | No | Dave | ||
| 1993 | Shootfighter: Fight to the Death | Yes | No | Po | |
| Son of the Pink Panther | No | Yes | N/a | Martial arts trainer | |
| 1994 | Ring of Steel | Yes | No | Ninja | |
| Death Match | Yes | No | Fighter | ||
| Double Dragon | Yes | Yes | Ninja Wraith | Stunt performer | |
| 1995 | Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie | No | Yes | N/a | Stunt double: David Yost |
| 1996 | Space Truckers | No | Yes | N/a | Stunt performer |
| 1997 | Once Upon a Time in China and America | Yes | No | Dick | |
| Beverly Hills Ninja | No | Yes | N/a | Stunt performer | |
| Drive | No | Yes | N/a | ||
| Spawn | Yes | Yes | North Korean Soldier | ||
| Red Corner | Yes | No | Huan Minglu | ||
| 1998 | Blade | No | Yes | N/a | Stunt performer |
| Lethal Weapon 4 | Yes | No | Chu | ||
| 2000 | Shanghai Noon | Yes | No | Lo Fong | |
| 2001 | The Silent Force | Yes | No | Jimmy Thai | |
| 2003 | Bulletproof Monk | Yes | No | Master Monk | |
| 2004 | Ella Enchanted | No | Yes | N/a | Stunt performer / fight choreographer |
| Home on the Range | Yes | No | Additional Voice | ||
| 2005 | Batman Begins | Yes | No | Hazmat Technician | |
| Syriana | Yes | No | Chinese Engineer | ||
| Vampires: The Turning | Yes | No | Kiko | ||
| 2007 | Strength and Honour | No | Yes | N/a | Fight coordinator |
| 2008 | The Fifth Commandment | Yes | No | Z | |
| 2009 | Blood and Bone | No | Yes | N/a | |
| Chandni Chowk to China | Yes | No | Inspector Chiang Kohung | ||
| Black Dynamite | Yes | Yes | Fiendish Dr. Wu | Fight coordinator | |
| 2010 | Shanghai Blue | Yes | No | Husband | |
| 2011 | X-Men: First Class | No | Yes | N/a | Stunt performer |
| Immortals | No | Yes | N/a | Trainer: Henry Cavill | |
| 2012 | Skyfall | Yes | Yes | Severine's Bodyguard | Fight trainer |
| 2013 | Once Upon a Time in Vietnam | Yes | Yes | General Long | Action consultant |
| 47 Ronin | No | Yes | N/a | Fight trainer | |
| 2016 | Warcraft | No | Yes | N/a | Fight coordinator / associate stunt coordinator |
| Jason Bourne | No | Yes | N/a | Fight coordinator | |
| Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: Sword of Destiny | Yes | No | Iron Crow | ||
| 2017 | American Assassin | No | Yes | N/a | Fight trainer |
| 2018 | Accident Man | Yes | No | Swordmaster | |
| Blindsided | Yes | No | Gordon | Short film | |
| Venom | Yes | No | Village Eel Shop Owner | ||
| 2019 | John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum | Yes | Yes | Huang | Stunt performer |
| 2020 | Mulan | Yes | No | Duba Tegin | |
| The Paper Tigers | Yes | No | Sifu Cheung | ||
| 2021 | Dune | Yes | Yes | Lieutenant Lanville | Fight coordinator |
| 2023 | Outlaw Johnny Black | Yes | No | Lee | |
| The Machine | No | Yes | N/a | Stunt coordinator | |
| 2024 | Dune: Part Two | Yes | Yes | Lieutenant Lanville | Fight coordinator / stunt coordinator |
| 2026 | Dune: Part Three † | No | Yes | N/a | Fight coordinator Post-production |
| Year | Title | Functioned as | Role | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Acting | Stunts | ||||
| 1993–2000 | Walker, Texas Ranger | Yes | No | Various | 5 episodes |
| 1994 | Vanishing Son | Yes | Yes | Button Man | TV movie Fight choreographer / stunt performer |
| Vanishing Son II | No | Yes | N/a | ||
| Vanishing Son III | No | Yes | N/a | ||
| Vanishing Son IV | No | Yes | N/a | ||
| 1994 | Renegade | Yes | No | Glen Kawahowa / The Black Wind | Episode: "Black Wind" |
| 1995 | Vanishing Son: The Series | No | Yes | N/a | 9 episodes Fight coordinator |
| 1997 | Tracey Takes On... | Yes | No | Guard at Palace | Episode: "Childhood" |
| 1998 | Brimstone | Yes | No | Da Ming Po | Episode: "Poem" |
| 1999 | Nash Bridges | Yes | No | Mr. Lee | Episode: "Girl Trouble" |
| 2001 | The District | Yes | No | Tuan Tran | Episode: "New World" |
| 2002 | Red Skies | Yes | No | Zhao Lo | TV movie |
| 2003 | Angel | Yes | No | Wo-Pang | Season 4; 2 episodes |
| 2008 | Fifth Street | Yes | No | Vincent | Short film |
| 2009 | Spooks | Yes | No | Heng | Series 8, Episode 8 |
| 2010 | CSI: Miami | Yes | No | Takashi Yamada | Episode: "Die by the Sword" |
| 2011 | Camelot | No | Yes | N/a | Episode: "Homecoming" Stunt performer |
| 2018 | Hawaii Five-O | Yes | Yes | Kang | Episode: "Ka ‘owili’oka’i" |
| 2023 | The Continental: From the World of John Wick | No | Yes | N/a | Miniseries Fight coordinator |
| Institution | Year | Category | Work | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Actor Awards | 2012 | Outstanding Action Performance by a Stunt Ensemble in a Motion Picture | X-Men: First Class | Nominated |
| 2013 | Skyfall | Won | ||
| 2017 | Jason Bourne | Nominated | ||
| 2022 | Dune | Nominated | ||
| 2025 | Dune: Part Two | Nominated | ||
| Austin Film Critics Association | 2025 | Best Stunt Work | Nominated | |
| Denver Film Critics Society | 2025 | Best Stunts | Nominated | |
| Houston Film Critics Society | 2025 | Best Stunt Coordination | Nominated | |
| Seattle Film Critics Society | 2024 | Best Action Choreography | Nominated | |
| Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association | 2024 | Best Stunts | Nominated |
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