Some people say that he is immortal. Tom Hanks calls him Jackie The Chantastic Chan.
We all know how incredible Jackie Chan is. The man is already 63, but still insists on doing his own stunts. While other actors work hard to make a killing with their movies, Chan almost kills himself every time he shoots an action movie.
While Chan has not been idle these past few years, it HAS been a while since his last true blue Hollywood film. Sure, he has provided the voices for animated films like Kungfu Panda and The Lego Ninjago Movie, but it has been seven years since The Karate Kid, his last live-action Hollywood film (last year’s Skiptrace doesn’t exactly count as it was a Hong Kong/China production).
His latest film, The Foreigner, is adapted from crime writer Stephen Leather’s best-selling 1992 novel The Chinaman.
It is helmed by New Zealand director Martin Campbell, 73, best known for his critically-acclaimed James Bond movies Casino Royale (2006) and Goldeneye (1995).
In it, Chan plays Quan Ngoc Minh, an elderly man who runs a restaurant in London. His tranquil existence is shattered when his teenage daughter (Katie Leung) is tragically killed in a terrorist bomb blast.
In his grief, the seemingly mild-mannered fellow embarks on a quest for retribution, and his long-buried past slowly emerges.
Former James Bond actor Pierce Brosnan, 64, plays the main antagonist, a British government minister named Liam Hennessy.
During a media conference to promote The Foreigner in Beijing last month, Chan said he took the part because he wanted to demonstrate his acting chops with a serious dramatic role.
“It’s a very interesting character. He fought in the Vietnam War, served as a CIA agent, and as a Navy SEAL. For reasons unknown, he fled to England to lead a quiet life with his daughter. But when tragedy strikes, he will stop at nothing to avenge his beloved child. It was a lot of fun for me to develop the character,” he said.
Chan’s biggest challenge was when the director initially wanted him to speak with a British accent. “But eventually he said it was OK to use Jackie Chan English and add some British accents here and there.”
A lasting bond
Chan has known Brosnan since the 1993 Miss World beauty pageant in South Africa, where he served as a judge and the James Bond star as presenter.
They later reconnected when Brosnan and Tan Sri Michelle Yeoh made the Bond movie Tomorrow Never Dies (1997).
“We’ve met before on other occasions, so we clicked on the set quickly. He is a very experienced actor. He will analyse his character and design his own features. He even had a fake nose made to make himself look different,” said Chan.
Pierce Brosnan wears a prosthetic nose for his role as Liam Hennessy in The Foreigner.
Chan also had to have his features altered, ironically, to look more like a man in his 60s, as the actor looked too young and energetic for his age! “Every day, they had to spend 45 minutes putting on makeup to make me look like an old man!” he said.
He also recalled “the most amazing thing” Brosnan did for him, which was during a scene involving a phone call.
In it, Quan continually asks for the names of the bombers over the phone, while Hennessy gets increasingly frustrated by the grieving father’s constant harassment.
“I saw him early one morning, wearing a coat and scarf, and looking very British. I thought he was there to shoot his scenes, but the director said I would go first,” Chan remembered.
“We did one take after another, then he started yelling at me using very strong language. That got the desired effect, and sparked the right response from me.
“When the director yelled cut and declared it the best shot, Pierce immediately came over to apologise to me for his inappropriate language, adding that his intention was to provoke me. It certainly worked!
“As I thanked him, he told me he was going home to sleep. That almost floored me. I realised that he did not have any scenes at all that day and he had gotten up early in the morning and come all the way to the set just to help me with a few lines of dialogue.”
At that moment, Chan was completely overwhelmed by Brosnan’s professionalism.
“I’ve never heard of anyone who would do that for a fellow actor. This is something I have to learn from him. The same way other young people say they want to learn from me. So, I told myself that if ever my help was needed I would make myself available too.”
Jackie Chan has expressed his desire to do more serious acting.
No action, all drama
Chan has always expressed a desire to do more serious dramatic acting besides the actioners that movie producers keep approaching him with.
But would there ever be a Jackie Chan movie that is 100% drama with zero action?
“Yes, I hope so. It is something that I really want to do,” Chan said, his eyes shining brightly as he prepared to fill us in.
“Actually, I already have something (in the pipeline). Will Smith has written a new drama for me. It’s a very compelling story. But, we haven’t been able to find a suitable director.
“I actually want Will Smith himself to helm the movie. I told him that I would do it if he agrees to direct it.
“In any case, we’re not in a hurry. It’s not an action movie, so it’s something we can do any time.”
According to him, it is a simple but good story that was inspired by Smith observing how Chan treated his son (Jaden Smith) while they were shooting The Karate Kid in 2010.
“We were doing the promotions for the movie when Will made his presentation on a plane.
“Both of our managers were there. He even had all the photographs and music already prepared.
“When he told us the story, all five of us ended up crying. I went home and told the story to my wife and she cried too.
“Some people may call it old-fashioned, but it is simple, it is special, and it is superb,” Chan said excitedly.
The Foreigner opens at local cinemas nationwide on Sept 30. For GSC showtimes, click here.
