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