Jean-Claude Van Damme dared to Take 25% of $30M ‘Street Fighter’ Budget, Leaving with No Money for Training Actors in Martial Arts

In the early 1990s, the arcade game Street Fighter II, owned by video game company Capcom, captured the attention of gamers around the world with its colorful cast of martial arts characters. Hollywood came knocking on Capcom’s door, wanting to capitalize on the game’s brand after its huge success. Next up is writer-director Steven de Souza, writer and director of blockbusters such as Die Hard and Commando. The creator had no idea that he would be caught up in a conflict involving a military coup, an expanding cast, and a self-destructing Jean-Claude Van Damme. A lack of money to train actors in martial arts has undermined the box office success of “Street Fighter: The Movie,” which was widely panned by critics. Ed Pressman, an experienced producer, saw the potential of turning the game into a film and immediately thought of Steven de Souza as someone to contact.

De Souza’s experience in action-oriented media made him an ideal choice for the role. He has many critically acclaimed films and television series to his credit. In Street Fighter: The Movie, all the details were in place. When Capcom first approached De Souza, he had bigger plans than making a film about the tournament. He has written a thrilling James Bond-inspired adventure with a gripping plot and expansive locations. Surprisingly, Capcom had similar ideas a few years ago. At the meeting, they showed De Souza concept art of Bison, the game’s main villain, in his James Bond-style underground lair.

10 Things You Might Not Have Known About Street Fighter “1994”

With just $30 million and just 10 weeks to shoot, De Souza planned to use part of the budget to train the actors in martial arts. This choice was made to ensure that the fight scenes in the film were realistic and interesting to watch. The project was to involve renowned martial arts choreographer Benny “Jet” Urquidez. Throughout the casting process, Capcom was adamant that A-list actors be cast in the film. Jean-Claude Van Damme, fresh off his success in Timecop, was cast in the lead role of Guile. Having Van Damme as the film’s main attraction and the biggest action movie star worldwide was expensive.

“Now we had a couple of big stars in the cast but less money to make the movie. It meant all the other actors had to be really new names. That was fine, but we no longer had the money to hire them in advance for fight training. I said: ‘OK, we’ll film all the ‘people talking in rooms’ scenes early on, and while we’re doing those, the other characters will be off training.’ I thought, we’ll be filming for 10 weeks, so everyone will have three to six weeks of choreography on these fights. That was the plan.”

most of the budget going toward the two A-listers, there wasn’t much room to bring in lesser-known actors and give them proper martial arts training. De Souza’s original 10-week shooting schedule could not include the choreography. The other characters were left to train independently, while the dialogue-heavy scenes were shot first. The production was already tense, and the tension behind the scenes didn’t help. The production hit a snag about halfway through shooting. All the characters seemed to use the same fighting style, making it clear that the fight scenes were repetitive.

The film’s credibility had been damaged, and the anticipated thrills and spectacle were in jeopardy. The December 1994 release of Street Fighter: The Movie was met with universally negative reviews. Its flat characters, dull action sequences, and choppy editing were all points of criticism. Nevertheless, the film was commercially successful, largely thanks to its international appeal and the enduring appeal of the Street Fighter franchise.