James Lew
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James Jene Fae Lew (born September 6, 1952) is an American actor and martial artist. Raised in South Central Los Angeles, James Lew's destiny was to answer a cattle call in Hollywood for the hugely popular Kung Fu (1972) television series. He went on to star in the now collectible Hong Kong film, Young Dragon (1976). He made the move to big budget studio films in 1984. John Carpenter handpicked him as the Martial Arts Choreographer for 20th Century Fox's now cult film, Big Trouble in Little China (1986). Jackie Chan, Jet Li, Steven Seagal, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Mel Gibson, Brad Pitt, Tom Cruise, Dwayne Johnson, David Carradine, Chuck Norris, Dennis Quaid, Kurt Russell, Madonna, Charlie Sheen, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Kathleen Turner, Sylvester Stallone, Brandon Lee, Snoop Dogg and the list goes on and on. James was voted "Favorite Action Star" by fans of Inside Martial Arts magazine. Internet fans voted him into the Hall of Fame in the Martial Arts History Museum. Inside Kung Fu Magazine inducted him as one of the "Martial Arts Greats" alongside legends as Bruce Lee, Chuck Norris, Steven Seagal, Jean-Claude Van Damme, and his longtime friend Jackie Chan. Hit Parader Magazine dubbed him "the king of big-screen martial arts villains." From the deadly killer in Red Sun Rising (1994) to the deadly fighter in the comedy spoof Hot Shots 2 (1993), Lew has proven his chops in both drama and comedy. As a stunt/fight coordinator his creative talents shone in the television series The Crow to recent work on the hit video game, The Matrix: Path of Neo (2005). He handpicked elite members for his company, "Hong Kong Wire Action Team," to bring state of the art action to movies. His formula for longevity in the film industry is diversity, hard work and having a whole lot of fun. Most recently, James Lew wrote, directed and starred in a movie inspired by his personal experiences in the business titled 18 Fingers of Death! (2006). The story follows Buford Lee (James Lew), the most famous unknown "B"-minus, low-budget, martial-arts movie star and Ronald Mack (Maurice Patton), a young black kid from the hood. Together they laugh and bond together on their quest to finally make Buford's break out movie, 18 Fingers of Death! (2006).
Known for
Credits
Rush Hour (1998)
as Juntao's Man in Los Angeles (uncredited)
G.I. Joe: Retaliation (2013)
as Chinese Leader
Star Trek (2009)
as Romulan (uncredited)
Rush Hour 2 (2001)
as Triad Gangster (uncredited)
Tropic Thunder (2008)
as Flaming Dragon Compound Person (uncredited)
Safe (2012)
as Underground Casino Guard (uncredited)
Big Trouble in Little China (1986)
as Chang Sing #1
Rush Hour 3 (2007)
as Triad Assassin (uncredited)
Lethal Weapon 4 (1998)
as Freighter's Captain
Superhero Movie (2008)
as Shaolin Monk (uncredited)
Traffic (2000)
as DEA Agent - CalTrans
Hot Shots! Part Deux (1993)
as Kick Boxer Opponent
Escape from L.A. (1996)
as Hershe Gang Member
Under Siege 2: Dark Territory (1995)
as Mercenary (uncredited)
Timecop (1994)
as Knife #1
Cage II: The Arena of Death (1994)
as Chin
Deep Core (2000)
as Lou Chang
The Replacement Killers (1998)
as Bodyguard
On Deadly Ground (1994)
as Mercenary at Aegis-1 (uncredited)
Showdown in Little Tokyo (1991)
as Yoshida's Man (uncredited)
The Shadow (1994)
as Mongol
Ultimate Fights from the Movies (2002)
as Knife #1 (Timecop) (archive footage)
Action Jackson (1988)
as Martial Arts Instructor
Martial Law II: Undercover (1991)
as Spencer Hamilton Man (uncredited)
The Perfect Weapon (1991)
as Crewcut
Do or Die (1991)
as Lew
Savage Beach (1989)
as Agent #1
Best of the Best (1989)
as Sae Jin Kwon
Rapid Fire (1992)
as Tau's Men at Laundry (uncredited)
The Killing of a Chinese Bookie (1976)
as Guard (uncredited)
Undercover Blues (1993)
as Novacek's Man
Guns (1990)
as Ninja #1
The Girl from the Naked Eye (2012)
as Eddie
Martial Law (1990)
as Tong Member
Night of the Warrior (1991)
as Hector Sabatei
Let Lorenzo (2011)
as Interior Design Older Partner
Red Sun Rising (1994)
as Jaho
High Voltage (1997)
as Harry
Boogie Boy (1998)
as Jason
Frankenstein (2015)
as Hotel Manager
Showdown (1993)
as Hit Man
American Ninja 5 (1993)
as Viper
Angel of Death (2009)
as Tommy
Sin (2003)
as Leo Thamaree
Tough and Deadly (1995)
as Thug
Fatal Blade (2000)
as James
Robo Warriors (1996)
as Darius
Outside the Law (2002)
as Cho Sung
Mortal Kombat: Rebirth (2010)
as Shang Tsung (uncredited)
Night Hunter (1996)
as Tom Cutter
Going Berserk (1983)
as Kung Fu Fighter
Deadly Target (1994)
as Guard #2 (uncredited)
Excessive Force II: Force on Force (1995)
as Lee
Zodiac Power 2: Evil Destroyer (1988)
Actor
Cucuy: The Boogeyman (2018)
as Beat Cop
Ninja Academy (1989)
as Ninja Trainer
The Real Deal (2002)
as Black Belt
Mission of Justice (1992)
as Akiro
18 Fingers of Death! (2006)
as Buford Lee
Balance of Power (1996)
as Shinji Takamura
Shira: The Vampire Samurai (2005)
as Xu
Ring of Steel (1994)
as Asian Fighter
Los Angeles Streetfighter (1985)
as Chan
Midnight Man (1995)
as Prince Samarki
Ballistic (1995)
as Woo
Killpoint (1984)
as Nighthawk's Gunman #1
Assault on Dome 4 (1996)
as Quaid, Windham Henchman
Sting of the Black Scorpion (2002)
as Tong Leader
For Life or Death (1996)
as Kaan Woo
Private Wars (1993)
as Obata
Ulterior Motives (1993)
as Yakuza #5
Made in Chinatown (2021)
as Lew
Safe House (1998)
as Asian (uncredited)
Ballistica (2009)
as Chinese Guard #1
Evil Destroyer (1988)
Actor
Enforcer from Death Row (1976)
as Karate Fighter
Raven: Return of the Black Dragons (1992)
as Black Dragon Henchman
The Circuit III: Street Monk (2006)
as Spider Webb
Aftershock (1990)
as Mr. James
Henchman: The Al Leong Story (2018)
as Self
Star Raiders: The Adventures of Saber Raine (2017)
as Sinjin
Breakout (2016)
as Cap Ruch
Elwood (2014)
as Big O
Big Time (1977)
as Karate Instructor
Young Dragon (1979)
as Shao Lung
Black Salt (2015)
as Abbot Xiao