Jean-Claude Van Damme
Jean-Claude Van Damme 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-dan black belt in karate, and compete in several karate and kickboxing competitions. With the desire of becoming an actor in Hollywood, he moved to the United States in 1982, where he did a variety of jobs and worked on several films, until he got his break as the lead in the martial arts film Bloodsport (1988). He became a popular action film star and followed up with commercially successful films such as Cyborg (1989), Kickboxer (1989), Lionheart (1990), Death Warrant (1990), Double Impact (1991), Universal Soldier (1992), Nowhere to Run (1993), Hard Target (1993), Timecop (1994), Street Fighter (1994),
Sudden Death (1995), The Quest (1996), which marked his directorial debut, and Maximum Risk (1996). After a decline in popularity in the late 1990s and early 2000s, he returned to prominence with the critically acclaimed crime drama JCVD (2008). His big return to the action genre was in The Expendables 2 (2012), in which he starred as the villain, opposite Sylvester Stallone. From thereon, he continued starring in action films and doing extensive voice work.
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.
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Jean Claude Van Damme From 1980 To 2023
