10. Scott Adkins
Scott Edward Adkins is a British actor, film producer and martial artist. He is best known for his role as the Russian prison fighter Yuri Boyka in the Undisputed franchise. He has played Yuri Boyka in Undisputed II: Last Man Standing (2006) and its two sequels, Undisputed III: Redemption (2010) and Boyka: Undisputed (2017); Casey Bowman in Ninja (2009) and its sequel Ninja: Shadow of a Tear (2013). He also starred as French in The Debt Collector (2018) and its 2020 sequel Debt Collectors (starring alongside Louis Mandylor). He worked in four films with his idol Jean-Claude Van Damme: The Shepherd: Border Patrol, Assassination Games, Universal Soldier: Day of Reckoning and The Expendables 2. He also had starring roles in The Legend of Hercules, Wolf Warrior and Ip Man 4:
9. Michael Jai White
Michael Jai White is an American actor, director and martial artist. He was the first African American to portray a major comic book superhero in a major motion picture, starring as Al Simmons, the protagonist in the 1997 film Spawn. White appeared as Marcus Williams in the Tyler Perry films Why Did I Get Married? and Why Did I Get Married Too?, and starred as the character on the TBS/OWN comedy-drama television series Tyler Perry’s For Better or Worse. White portrayed Jax Briggs in Mortal Kombat: Legacy and the Cyborg Seth in Universal Soldier: The Return. He portrayed boxer Mike Tyson in the 1995 HBO television film Tyson. He also played the title role in the blaxploitation parody film Black Dynamite, as well as the animated series of the same name.
8. Bolo Yeung
Yeung Sze (born July 3, 1946 ), better known as Bolo Yeung, is a Hong Kong former competitive bodybuilder, martial artist and a martial arts film actor. He is globally known for his performances as Bolo in Enter the Dragon (starring Bruce Lee), and the dominant Chong Li in Bloodsport (starring Jean-Claude Van Damme) as well as other numerous appearances and long career in Hong Kong martial arts films.
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7. Sammo Hung
Sammo Hung (born 7 January 1952) is a Hong Kong actor, martial artist, film producer and director, known for his work in martial arts films, Hong Kong action cinema, and as a fight choreographer for other actors such as Jackie Chan.
Hung is one of the pivotal figures who spearheaded the Hong Kong New Wave movement of the 1980s, helped reinvent the martial arts genre and started the zombie-like jiangshi genre. He is widely credited with assisting many of his compatriots, giving them their starts in the Hong Kong film industry, by casting them in the films he produced, or giving them roles in the production crew.
Both Sammo Hung and Jackie Chan were often addressed as “Dai Goh”, meaning “Big Brother”, until the filming of Project A, which featured both actors.
6. Jean-Claude Van Damme
Jean-Claude Van Damme (born 18 October 1960), is a Belgian martial artist, actor, filmmaker, and fight choreographer. Born and raised in Brussels, Belgium, at the age of ten his father enrolled him in martial arts classes, which led Van Damme in several competitions. With the desire of becoming an actor, he moved to the United States in 1982, where he did odd jobs and worked on several films, until he got his break as the lead in the martial arts film Bloodsport (1988). Van Damme became a popular action film star and followed up with Cyborg (1989), Kickboxer (1989), Lionheart (1990), Death Warrant (1990), Double Impact (1991), Universal Soldier (1992), Nowhere to Run (1993), Hard Target (1993), etc.
5. Tony Jaa
Tony Jaa is a Thai martial artist, actor, action choreographer, stuntman, director, and traceur. His martial arts films are credited with helping to showcase the combat systems of Muay Thai, Muay Boran, and “Muay Kotchasaan” (a fighting style Jaa and his mentor Panna Rittikrai developed). His most famous works include films such as Ong-Bak: Muay Thai Warrior (2003), Tom-Yum-Goong (2005), Ong Bak 2: The Beginning (2008), Ong Bak 3 (2010), Tom Yum Goong 2 (2013), Furious 7 (2015), SPL II: A Time for Consequences (2015) and Expend4bles (2023).
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4. Donnie Yen
Donnie Yen (born 27 July 1963) is a Hong Kong actor, martial artist, action director and politician. He is regarded as one of Hong Kong’s top action stars.
Yen is credited by many for contributing to the popularisation of Wing Chun in China. He portrays Wing Chun grandmaster Ip Man in the Ip Man film series, which has garnered box office success. He has also gained international recognition for playing Chirrut Îmwe in Rogue One (2016) and Xiang in XXX: Return of Xander Cage (2017), as well as Commander Tung in Mulan (2020) and Caine in John Wick: Chapter 4 (2023).
3. Jackie Chan
Jackie Chan (born 7 April 1954) is a Hong Kong actor, filmmaker, martial artist, and stuntman known for his slapstick acrobatic fighting style, comic timing, and innovative stunts, which he typically performs himself. Chan has been acting since the 1960s, performing in more than 150 films. He is one of the most popular action film stars of all time.
Chan is one of the most recognisable and influential film personalities in the world, with a widespread global following in both the Eastern and Western hemispheres. He has received fame stars on the Hong Kong Avenue of Stars and the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Chan has been referenced in various pop songs, cartoons, films, and video games. He is also a globally known philanthropist and has been named one of the top 10 most charitable celebrities by Forbes magazine.
2. Jet Li
Li Lianjie (born 26 April 1963), better known by his stage name Jet Li, is a Chinese-born Singaporean martial artist, retired Wushu champion, film actor, film producer, and philanthropist. He is widely regarded as one of the most iconic Chinese film stars and one of the most renowned martial arts stars of his generation.
After three years of training with acclaimed Wushu teacher Wu Bin, Li won his first national championship for the Beijing Wushu Team. Between 1974 and 1979, he won the title of Men’s All-Around National Wushu Champion five times. After retiring from competitive Wushu at age 18, Li went on to win great acclaim in China as an actor, making his debut with the film Shaolin Temple (1982), which instantly catapulted him to stardom in East Asia. He went on to star in many critically acclaimed films, most notably as the lead in Zhang Yimou’s Hero (2002), Fist of Legend (1994), the first three films in the Once Upon a Time in China series (1991–1993).
1. Bruce Lee
Bruce Lee (born November 27, 1940 – July 20, 1973) was a Hong Kong-American martial artist and actor whose career spanned Hong Kong and the United States. He was the founder of Jeet Kune Do, a hybrid martial arts philosophy drawing from different combat disciplines that is often credited with paving the way for modern mixed martial arts (MMA). Lee is considered by critics, media, and other martial artists to be the most influential martial artist of all time and a pop culture icon of the 20th century, who bridged the gap between East and West. He is credited with promoting Hong Kong action cinema and helping to change the way Chinese people were presented in American films.
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