Jackie Chan’s quest to always pull off his own stunts began with one movie in the 1980s. Widely regarded as one of the greatest martial arts icons of all time, Chan is known for more than just his fighting ability. Chan also has a reputation for doing all his own stunts, even when the action requires his character to be placed in potentially life-threatening situations.
Jackie Chan’s long career in the film industry is filled with stories of the actor risking his life and getting seriously injured on set. It’s a model that dates back to decades when Chan was involved in a long list of spectacular headline stunts, many of which were long fall scenes. The actor was regularly joined by his own group of trained stuntmen, Jackie Chan’s stunt team, and made a name for himself around the world jumping from high-rise buildings, jumping through glass windows, hanging from helicopters and fighting in moving vehicles.
In his 2015 autobiography Never Grow Up, Chan explained why it was important that his stunt double never do his stunts for him. According to the actor, his penchant for putting himself in danger – unlike a stuntman – began with 1983’s Project A, one of the Hong Kong films he made with Yuen Biao and Sammo Hung. Chan, sincerely believing that he could pull off a dangerous stunt, passed it despite the objections of the cast and crew. This set a trend for Chan because, according to the actor, doing his own stunts makes Jackie Chan stand out from all other actors in the industry. He calls it one of several traits that help define a “Jackie Chan movie”.
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Project A’s Clock Tower Stunt Explained.
As For Project Trickthat started it all, the fall of the famous clock tower at the end of the movie. In the film, Jackie Chan’s character was hanging from one of the clock hands atop a 72 Foot (22 meters) tower when he lost his grip and fell through two canopies before hitting the ground. In his book, Chan revealed that fear prevented him from filming the scene for days on end as he took position and then reflected on the long fall. Chan finally got over it, but ended up filming two more times to make sure the scene was perfect. While movie studios would naturally prefer to keep their lead actors out of harm’s way, it actually makes sense for Chan to prefer doing his own stunt work on films like Project A. A star of the arts, Chan certainly had the ability. And as a result of his commitment to ensuring that all of his films follow this particular formula, Jackie Chan has managed to create what he considers to be the “core element” of his image.RELATED:
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