James Lew
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James Jene Fae Lew (September 6, 1952 – August 23, 2026) was an American martial artist, stuntman and actor. 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)
Rush Hour 2 (2001)
as Triad Gangster (uncredited)
Star Trek (2009)
as Romulan (uncredited)
G.I. Joe: Retaliation (2013)
as Chinese Leader
Tropic Thunder (2008)
as Flaming Dragon Compound Person (uncredited)
Rush Hour 3 (2007)
as Triad Assassin (uncredited)
Big Trouble in Little China (1986)
as Chang Sing #1
Lethal Weapon 4 (1998)
as Freighter's Captain
Superhero Movie (2008)
as Shaolin Monk (uncredited)
Under Siege 2: Dark Territory (1995)
as Mercenary (uncredited)
Safe (2012)
as Underground Casino Guard (uncredited)
Hot Shots! Part Deux (1993)
as Kick Boxer Opponent
Traffic (2000)
as DEA Agent - CalTrans
The Replacement Killers (1998)
as Bodyguard
Escape from L.A. (1996)
as Hershe Gang Member
Showdown in Little Tokyo (1991)
as Yoshida's Man (uncredited)
The Shadow (1994)
as Mongol
Timecop (1994)
as Knife #1
Best of the Best (1989)
as Sae Jin Kwon
On Deadly Ground (1994)
as Mercenary at Aegis-1 (uncredited)
Rapid Fire (1992)
as Tau's Men at Laundry (uncredited)
Action Jackson (1988)
as Martial Arts Instructor
Undercover Blues (1993)
as Novacek's Man
The Perfect Weapon (1991)
as Crewcut
Savage Beach (1989)
as Agent #1
The Killing of a Chinese Bookie (1976)
as Guard (uncredited)
Martial Law II: Undercover (1991)
as Spencer Hamilton Man (uncredited)
Do or Die (1991)
as Lew
Red Sun Rising (1994)
as Jaho
American Ninja 5 (1993)
as Viper
Mission of Justice (1992)
as Akiro
Frankenstein (2015)
as Hotel Manager
The Girl from the Naked Eye (2012)
as Eddie
Guns (1990)
as Ninja #1
Fatal Blade (2000)
as James
Angel of Death (2009)
as Tommy
Martial Law (1990)
as Tong Member
Deep Core (2000)
as Lou Chang
High Voltage (1997)
as Harry
Cucuy: The Boogeyman (2018)
as Beat Cop
Going Berserk (1983)
as Kung Fu Fighter
Ultimate Fights from the Movies (2002)
as Knife #1 (Timecop) (archive footage)
Showdown (1993)
as Hit Man
Deadly Target (1994)
as Guard #2 (uncredited)
Robo Warriors (1996)
as Darius
Night Hunter (1996)
as Tom Cutter
Sin (2003)
as Leo Thamaree
Boogie Boy (1998)
as Jason
For Life or Death (1996)
as Kaan Woo
Night of the Warrior (1991)
as Hector Sabatei
Made in Chinatown (2021)
as Kane
18 Fingers of Death! (2006)
as Buford Lee
Aftershock (1990)
as Mr. James
Outside the Law (2002)
as Cho Sung
The Real Deal (2002)
as Black Belt
Ninja Academy (1989)
as Ninja Trainer
Safe House (1998)
as Asian (uncredited)
Star Raiders: The Adventures of Saber Raine (2017)
as Sinjin
Tough and Deadly (1995)
as Thug
Ballistica (2009)
as Chinese Guard #1
Ballistic (1995)
as Woo
Sting of the Black Scorpion (2002)
as Tong Leader
Ring of Steel (1994)
as Asian Fighter
Zodiac Power 2: Evil Destroyer (1988)
Actor
Mortal Kombat: Rebirth (2010)
as Shang Tsung (uncredited)
Midnight Man (1995)
as Prince Samarki
Excessive Force II: Force on Force (1995)
as Lee
Ulterior Motives (1993)
as Yakuza #5
Cage II: The Arena of Death (1994)
as Chin
Raven: Return of the Black Dragons (1992)
as Black Dragon Henchman
Assault on Dome 4 (1996)
as Quaid, Windham Henchman
Breakout (2016)
as Cap Ruch
Balance of Power (1996)
as Shinji Takamura
Young Dragon (1979)
as Shao Lung
Los Angeles Streetfighter (1985)
as Chan
Let Lorenzo (2011)
as Interior Design Older Partner
Private Wars (1993)
as Obata
Henchman: The Al Leong Story (2018)
as Self
Elwood (2014)
as Big O
Black Salt (2015)
as Abbot Xiao
Killpoint (1984)
as Nighthawk's Gunman #1
Big Time (1977)
as Karate Instructor
Shira: The Vampire Samurai (2005)
as Xu
Evil Destroyer (1988)
Actor
The Circuit III: Street Monk (2006)
as Spider Webb
Enforcer from Death Row (1976)
as Karate Fighter