THE MUAY THAI WARRIOR.
Born on February 7th, 1976, Jaa would spend majority of his time as a kid going to the cinema to watch his favorite martial arts action stars like Bruce Lee, Jackie Chan, Jet Li, and local Thai legend (and eventual mentor) Panna Rittikrai kick serious butt all over the big screen. He would then go home and practice everything he had seen in hopes that one day, he would become as great as they were.
Training in Muay Thai since age 10, by 15 he had started making serious inquiries about joining Rittikrai’s stunt team. Rittikrai would allow Jaa to join eventually, but only after Jaa fulfilled Rittikrai’s request to graduate from school first. After graduating, Rittikrai made good on his promise and let Jaa onto his stunt team, which allowed him to make appearances in a few of Rittikrai’s movies, such as Spirited Killer, Hard Gun, and Mission Hunter 2. He also doubled for Robin Shou in Mortal Kombat: Annihilation and for the legendary Sammo Hung in a energy drink commercial.