Jackie Chan
成龍 |
Jackie Chan onboard the USS Kitty Hawk (CV-63) in 2002. |
| Chinese name | 成龍 (Traditional) |
| Chinese name | 成龙 (Simplified) |
| Pinyin | Chéng Lóng (Mandarin) |
| Jyutping | Sing4 Lung4 (Cantonese) |
| Birth name | Chan Kong-sang
陳港生 (Traditional)
陈港生 (Simplified)
Chén Gǎngshēng (Mandarin)
Can4 Gong2 Sang1 (Cantonese) |
| Ancestry | Linzi, Shandong, China |
| Origin | Hong Kong |
| Born | 7 April 1954 (age 57)
Victoria Peak, Hong Kong |
| Other name(s) | 房仕龍 (Fong Si-lung)
元樓 (Yuen Lou)
大哥 (Big Brother) |
| Occupation | Actor, martial artist, director, producer, screenwriter, action choreographer, singer, stunt director, stunt performer |
| Genre(s) | Cantopop, Mandopop, Hong Kong English pop, J-pop |
| Years active | 1962–present |
| Spouse(s) | Lin Feng-jiao (1982–present) |
| Children | Jaycee Chan (born 1982) |
| Parents | Charles and Lee-Lee Chan |
| Influences | Bruce Lee
Buster Keaton
Harold Lloyd
Jim Carrey[1] |
|
Jackie Chan,
SBS,
MBE[2] (born
Chan Kong-sang,
陳港生; 7 April 1954) is a
Hong Kong[3] actor,
action choreographer, filmmaker, comedian, director, producer,
martial artist, screenwriter, entrepreneur, singer and
stunt performer.
In his movies, he is known for his
acrobatic fighting style, comic timing, use of improvised weapons, and innovative
stunts. Jackie Chan has been acting since the 1960s and has appeared in over 100 films. Chan has received stars on the
Hong Kong Avenue of Stars and the
Hollywood Walk of Fame.
As a
cultural icon, Chan has been referenced in various pop songs,
cartoons, and video games. An
operatically trained vocalist, Chan is also a
Cantopop and
Mandopop star, having released a number of albums and sung many of the
theme songs for the films in which he has starred.
Early life
Chan was born on 7 April 1954, in
Victoria Peak, in the former
Crown colony of Hong Kong, as Chan Kong-sang, to
Charles and Lee-Lee Chan, refugees from the
Chinese Civil War. He was nicknamed
Paopao (
Chinese:
炮炮, literally meaning "Cannonball") because the high-energy child was always rolling around.
[4] Since his parents worked for the French
Consul to Hong Kong, Chan spent his formative years within the grounds of the consul's residence in the Victoria Peak district.
[5]
Chan attended the Nah-Hwa Primary School on
Hong Kong Island, where he failed his first year, after which his parents withdrew him from the school. In 1960, his father immigrated to
Canberra, Australia, to work as the head cook for the American embassy, and Chan was sent to the China Drama Academy, a
Peking Opera School run by Master
Yu Jim-yuen.
[5][6] Chan trained rigorously for the next decade, excelling in martial arts and acrobatics.
[7] He eventually became part of the
Seven Little Fortunes, a performance group made up of the school's best students, gaining the stage name Yuen Lo in homage to his master. Chan became close friends with fellow group members
Sammo Hung and
Yuen Biao, the three of them later to be known as the
Three Brothers or
Three Dragons.
[8]
At the age of 8, he appeared with some of his fellow "Little Fortunes," in the film
Big and Little Wong Tin Bar (1962), with Li Li Hua playing his mother. Chan appeared with Li again the following year, in
The Love Eterne (1963) and had a small role in
King Hu's 1966 film,
Come Drink with Me.
[9] In 1971, after an appearance as an extra in another Kong Fu film,
A Touch of Zen, Chan began his adult career in the film industry, initially signing to Chu Mu's Great Earth Film Company.
[10] At the age of 17, he worked as a stuntman in the
Bruce Lee films
Fist of Fury and
Enter the Dragon under the stage name Chan Yuen Lung (
Chinese:
陳元龍).
[11] He received his first starring role later that year, in
Little Tiger of Canton, which had a limited release in Hong Kong in 1973.
[12] Due to the commercial failures in his early ventures into films and trouble finding stunt work, in 1975 Chan starred in a comedic
adult film,
All in the Family, which features Jackie Chan's first and possibly only nude sex scene filmed to date. It is also the only film he has made to date that did not feature a single fight scene or stunt sequence.
[13]
Chan joined his parents in Canberra in 1976, where he briefly attended
Dickson College and worked as a construction worker.
[14] A fellow builder named Jack took Chan under his wing, earning Chan the nickname of "Little Jack" which was later shortened to "Jackie" and the name Jackie Chan stuck with him ever since.
[15] In addition, in the late 90s, Chan changed his
Chinese name to Fong Si-lung (
Chinese:
房仕龍), since his father's original surname was Fong.
[15]
Film career
Early exploits: 1976–1979
In 1976, Jackie Chan received a telegram from Willie Chan, a film producer in the Hong Kong film industry who had been impressed with Jackie's stuntwork. Willie Chan offered him an acting role in a film directed by
Lo Wei. Lo had seen Chan's performance in the
John Woo film
Hand of Death (1976) and planned to model him after
Bruce Lee with the film
New Fist of Fury.
[10] His stage name was changed to Sing Lung (
Chinese:
成龍, also transcribed as Cheng Long,
[16] literally "become the dragon") to emphasise his similarity to Bruce Lee, whose stage name was Lei Siu-lung (
Chinese:
李小龍, meaning "Little Dragon"). The film was unsuccessful because Chan was not accustomed to Lee's martial arts style. Despite the film's failure, Lo Wei continued producing films with similar themes, resulting in little improvement at the box office.
[17]
Chan's first major breakthrough was the 1978 film
Snake in the Eagle's Shadow, shot while he was loaned to Seasonal Film Corporation under a two-picture deal.
[18] Under director
Yuen Woo-ping, Chan was allowed complete freedom over his stunt work. The film established the comedic kung fu genre, and proved to be a breath of fresh air for the Hong Kong audience.
[19] Chan then starred in
Drunken Master, which finally propelled him to mainstream success.
[20]
Upon Chan's return to Lo Wei's studio, Lo tried to replicate the comedic approach of
Drunken Master, producing
Half a Loaf of Kung Fu and
Spiritual Kung Fu.
[15] He also gave Chan the opportunity to co-direct
The Fearless Hyena with
Kenneth Tsang. When Willie Chan left the company, he advised Jackie to decide for himself whether or not to stay with Lo Wei. During the shooting of
Fearless Hyena Part II, Chan broke his contract and joined
Golden Harvest, prompting Lo to blackmail Chan with
triads, blaming Willie for his star's departure. The dispute was resolved with the help of fellow actor and director
Jimmy Wang Yu, allowing Chan to stay with Golden Harvest.
[21]
Success of the action comedy genre: 1980–1987
The film
Police Story, nicknamed "Glass Story" for its stunt work, is set in a modern period.
had become Jackie's personal manager and firm friend, and has remained so for over 30 years. He was instrumental in launching Chan's international career, beginning with his first forays into the
American film industry in the 1980s. His first Hollywood film was
Battle Creek Brawl in 1980. Chan then played a minor role in the 1981 film
The Cannonball Run, which grossed US$100 million worldwide. Despite being largely ignored by audiences in favour of established American actors like
Burt Reynolds, Chan was impressed by the
outtakes shown at the
closing credits, inspiring him to include the same device in his future films.
After the commercial failure of
The Protector in 1985, Chan temporarily abandoned his attempts to break into the US market, returning his focus to
Hong Kong films.
[17]
Back in Hong Kong, Chan's films began to reach a larger audience in East Asia, with early successes in the lucrative Japanese market including
The Young Master (1980) and
Dragon Lord (1982).
The Young Master went on to beat previous box office records set by
Bruce Lee and established Chan as Hong Kong cinema's top star. With
Dragon Lord, he began experimenting with elaborate
stunt action sequences,
[22] including a pyramid fight scene that holds the record for the most
takes for a single scene with 2900 takes,
[23] and the final fight scene where he performs various stunts, including one where he does a back flip off a
loft and falls to the lower ground.
[24]
Chan produced a number of action comedy films with his opera school friends Sammo Hung and Yuen Biao. The three co-starred together for the first time in 1983 in
Project A, which introduced a dangerous stunt-driven style of martial arts that won it the Best Action Design Award at the third annual
Hong Kong Film Awards.
[25] Over the following two years, the "Three Brothers" appeared in
Wheels on Meals and the original
Lucky Stars trilogy.
[26][27] In 1985, Chan made the first
Police Story film, a US-influenced action comedy in which Chan performed a number of dangerous stunts. It was named the "
Best Film" at the
1986 Hong Kong Film Awards.
[28] In 1987, Chan played "Asian Hawk," an
Indiana Jones-esque character, in the film
Armour of God. The film was Chan's biggest domestic box office success up to that point, grossing over HK $35 million.
[29]
Acclaimed sequels and Hollywood breakthrough: 1988–1998
In 1988 Chan starred alongside Sammo Hung and Yuen Biao for the last time to date, in the film
Dragons Forever. Hung co-directed with
Corey Yuen, and the villain in the film was played by
Yuen Wah, both of whom were fellow graduates of the China Drama Academy.
In the late 1980s and early 90s, Chan starred in a number of successful sequels beginning with
Police Story 2, which won the award for Best Action Choreography at the 1989
Hong Kong Film Awards. This was followed by
Armour of God II: Operation Condor, and
Police Story 3: Super Cop, for which Chan won the Best Actor Award at the 1993
Golden Horse Film Festival. In 1994, Chan reprised his role as
Wong Fei-hung in
Drunken Master II, which was listed in
Time Magazine's All-Time 100 Movies.
[30] Another sequel,
Police Story 4: First Strike, brought more awards and domestic box office success for Chan, but did not fare as well in foreign markets.
[31] Jackie Chan rekindled his
Hollywood ambitions in the 1990s, but refused early offers to play villains in Hollywood films to avoid being
typecast in future roles. For example,
Sylvester Stallone offered him the role of
Simon Phoenix, a criminal in the futuristic film
Demolition Man. Chan declined and the role was taken by
Wesley Snipes.
[32]
Chan finally succeeded in establishing a foothold in the North American market in 1995 with a worldwide release of
Rumble in the Bronx, attaining a
cult following in the United States that was rare for Hong Kong movie stars.
[33] The success of
Rumble in the Bronx led to a 1996 release of
Police Story 3: Super Cop in the United States under the title
Supercop, which grossed a total of US $16,270,600. Jackie's first huge blockbuster success came when he co-starred with
Chris Tucker in the 1998
buddy cop action comedy
Rush Hour,
[34] grossing US$130 million in the United States alone.
[21] This film made a star of Jackie Chan, in Hollywood. As a publicity stunt, Jackie also wrote his autobiography in collaboration with
Jeff Yang entitled
I Am Jackie Chan.
Fame in Hollywood and Dramatization 1999–2007
Jackie Chan plays an anti-hero for the first time in
Rob-B-Hood: a burglar with gambling problems.
In 1998, Chan released his final film for Golden Harvest,
Who Am I? After leaving Golden Harvest in 1999, he produced and starred alongside
Shu Qi in
Gorgeous a romantic comedy that focused on personal relationships and featured only a few martial arts sequences.
[35] Chan then helped create a
PlayStation game in 2000 called
Jackie Chan Stuntmaster, to which he lent his voice and performed the motion capture.
[36] He continued his Hollywood success in 2000 when he teamed up with
Owen Wilson in the
Western action comedy
Shanghai Noon which was also a box office success and spawned the sequel
Shanghai Knights (2003). He reunited with Chris Tucker for
Rush Hour 2 (2001) which was an even bigger success than the original and experimented with special effects with
The Tuxedo (2002) and
The Medallion (2003). Despite the success of these films Chan became frustrated with Hollywood over the limited range of roles and lack of control over the film-making process.
[37] In response to Golden Harvest's withdrawal from the film industry in 2003, Chan started his own film production company,
JCE Movies Limited (Jackie Chan Emperor Movies Limited) in association with
Emperor Multimedia Group (EMG).
[21] His films have since featured an increasing number of dramatic scenes while continuing to succeed at the box office; examples include
New Police Story (2004),
The Myth (2005) and the hit film
Rob-B-Hood (2006).
[38][39][40]
Chan's next release was the third installment in the
Rush Hour series:
Rush Hour 3 in August 2007. It grossed US$255 million.
[41] However, it performed poorly in Hong Kong, grossing only HK$3.5 million during its opening weekend.
[42]
New experiments and change in style: 2008–present
As Chan had stated years before, there would be a point in his life in which he would have to be modernized and use special effects, and try new different things than martial arts flicks.{citation needed} This began{citation needed} in 2007, with the filming of
The Forbidden Kingdom (released in 2008), Chan's first onscreen collaboration with fellow Chinese actor
Jet Li, which was completed on 24 August 2007 and the film was released in April 2008. The film featured heavy use of effects and wires.
[43][44] Chan voiced the character Master Monkey in the
DreamWorks Animation film,
Kung Fu Panda, released in June 2008, appearing with stars
Jack Black,
Dustin Hoffman and
Angelina Jolie.
[45] In addition, he has assisted Anthony Szeto in an advisory capacity for the writer-director's film
Wushu, released on 1 May 2008. The film stars
Sammo Hung and Wang Wenjie as father and son.
[46]
In November 2007, Chan began filming
Shinjuku Incident, a dramatic role featuring no martial arts sequences with director
Derek Yee, which sees Chan take on the role of a Chinese immigrant in Japan.
[47] The film was released on 2 April 2009. According to his blog, Chan discussed his wishes to direct a film after completing
Shinjuku Incident, something he has not done for a number of years.
[48] The film is expected to be the third in the Armour of God series, and has a working title of
Armour of God III: Chinese Zodiac. Chan originally stated that he would start filming on 1 April 2008, but that date had passed and the current state of the film is unknown.
[49] Because the Screen Actors Guild did not go on strike, Chan started shooting his next Hollywood movie
The Spy Next Door at the end of October in
New Mexico.
[50] In
The Spy Next Door, Chan plays an undercover agent whose cover is blown when he looks after the children of his girlfriend; Chan most likely did the film to appeal to his younger audience in America{citation needed}. In
Little Big Soldier, Chan stars, alongside
Leehom Wang in a non-martial arts comedy movie based on the
Warring States Period.
On 22 June 2009, Chan left Los Angeles to begin filming
The Karate Kid, a remake of
the 1984 original, in Beijing.
[51] The film was released in America on 11 June 2010 and sees Chan's first dramatic American film. In the film, he plays Mr. Han, a kung fu master and maintenance man who teaches
Jaden Smith's character, Dre, kung-fu so he can defend himself from school bullies. In Chan's next movie,
Shaolin, he plays the cook of the temple instead of one of the major characters.
Jackie Chan's 100th film
1911 will be released in 26 September 2011. He is both the co-director and star of the movie.
[52]
Jackie Chan wins Favorite Buttkicker award at the Nickelodeon's Kids' Choice Awards in 2011 for
The Karate Kid.
[53]
Stunts
Jackie Chan prepares to slide down the side of a high rise building in
New Police StoryUntil recently,
[54] Jackie Chan performed all of his own stunts, which are choreographed by the
Jackie Chan Stunt Team. He has stated in interviews that the primary inspiration for his more comedic stunts were films such as
The General directed by and starring
Buster Keaton, who was also known to perform his own stunts. Since its establishment in 1983, Chan has used the team in all his subsequent films to make choreographing easier, given his understanding of each member's abilities.
[55] Chan and his team undertake many of the stunts performed by other characters in his films, shooting the scenes so that their faces are obscured.
[56]
The dangerous nature of his stunts makes it difficult for Chan to get insurance, especially in the United States, where his stunt work is contractually limited.
[56] Chan holds the
Guinness World Record for "Most Stunts By A Living Actor", which emphasizes "no insurance company will underwrite Chan's productions, in which he performs all his own stunts".
[57] In addition, he holds an unrecognised record for the most number of takes for a single shot in a film, having shot over 2900 retakes for a complex scene involving a
Jianzi game in
Dragon Lord.
[58]
Chan has been injured numerous times attempting stunts; many of them have been shown as outtakes or as
bloopers during the closing credits of his films. He came closest to death filming
Armour of God, when he fell from a tree and fractured his skull. Over the years, Chan has dislocated his pelvis and broken his fingers, toes, nose, both cheekbones, hips, sternum, neck, ankle and ribs on numerous occasions.
[59][60] Promotional materials for
Rumble in the Bronx emphasized that Chan performed all of the stunts, and one version of the movie poster even diagrammed his many injuries.
Filmography and screen persona
Jackie Chan created his screen persona as a response to Bruce Lee, and the
numerous imitators who appeared before and after Lee's death. In contrast to Lee's characters, who were typically stern, morally upright heroes, Chan plays well-meaning, slightly foolish regular guys (often at the mercy of their friends, girlfriends or families) who always triumph in the end despite the odds.
[15] Additionally, Chan has stated that he deliberately styles his movement to be the
opposite of Lee's: where Lee held his arms wide, Chan holds his tight to the body; where Lee was loose and flowing, Chan is tight and choppy. Despite the success of the
Rush Hour series, Chan has stated that he is not a fan of it since he neither appreciates the action scenes in the movie, nor understands American humour.
[61]
In recent years, the aging Chan grew tired of being typecast as an action hero, prompting him to act with more emotion in his latest films.
[62] In
New Police Story, he portrayed a character suffering from alcoholism and mourning his murdered colleagues.
[63] To further shed the image of Mr. Nice Guy, Chan played an anti-hero for the first time in
Rob-B-Hood starring as Thongs, a burglar with gambling problems.
[64]
Television work
In 2000, Chan hosted a fictionalized version of himself in the
animated series Jackie Chan Adventures, which ran until 2005.
[65]
In July 2008, the
BTV reality television series entitled
The Disciple (
simplified Chinese:
龙的传人;
traditional Chinese:
龍的傳人, lit. "Disciple of the Dragon") concluded. The series was produced by, and featured Jackie Chan. The aim of the program was to find a new star, skilled in acting and martial arts, to become Chan's "successor" and student in filmmaking. Contestants were trained by Jackie Chan Stunt Team members Alan Wu and He Jun and competed in various fields, including explosion scenes, high-altitude wire-suspension, gunplay, car stunts, diving, obstacles courses etc. The regular judges on the program were
He Ping,
Wu Yue and
Cheng Pei Pei. Guest judges include
Stanley Tong,
Sammo Hung and
Yuen Biao. The "Finals" began on 5 April 2008, with 16 contestants remaining, and concluded on 26 June 2008. Amongst those in attendance were
Tsui Hark,
John Woo,
Ng See Yuen and
Yu Rongguang.
The winner of the series was Jack Tu (Tu Sheng Cheng). Along with runners up Yang Zheng and Jerry Liau, Tu is now set to star in three modern Chinese action films, one of which was scripted by Chan, and all three will be co-produced by Chan and his company
JCE Movies Limited. The films will be entitled
Speedpost 206,
Won't Tell You and
Tropical Tornado and will be directed by
Xie Dong,
Jiang Tao and
Cai Rong Hui. All 16 finalists will be given the opportunity to work on the films, or to join the
Jackie Chan Stunt Team. Production on the first film is due to begin in September 2008. In addition, the finalists will be given roles in a forthcoming BTV action series.
[66][67][68]
Music career
Jackie Chan had vocal lessons whilst at the Peking Opera School in his childhood. He began producing records professionally in the 1980s and has gone on to become a successful singer in Hong Kong and Asia. He has released 20 albums since 1984 and has performed vocals in Cantonese, Mandarin, Japanese, Taiwanese and English. He often sings the theme songs of his films, which play over the
closing credits. Chan's first musical recording was "Kung Fu Fighting Man", the theme song played over the closing credits of
The Young Master (1980).
[69] At least 10 of these recordings have been released on soundtrack albums for the films.
[63][70] His cantonese song
Story of a Hero (英雄故事) (theme song of
Police Story) was selected by the
Royal Hong Kong Police and incorporated into their recruitment
advertisement in 1994.
[71]
Chan voiced the character of Shang in the Chinese release of the
Walt Disney animated feature,
Mulan (1998). He also performed the song "I'll Make a Man Out of You", for the film's soundtrack. For the US release, the speaking voice was performed by
B.D. Wong and the singing voice was done by
Donny Osmond.
In 2007, Chan recorded and released the song "We Are Ready", the official one-year countdown song to the
2008 Summer Olympics. He performed the song at a ceremony marking the one-year countdown to the
2008 Summer Paralympics.
[72]
The day before the Beijing Olympics opened, Chan released one of the two official Olympics albums,
Official Album for the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games – Jackie Chan's Version, which featured a number of special guest appearances.
[73] Chan, along with
Andy Lau,
Liu Huan and
Wakin (Emil) Chau, performed "Hard to Say Goodbye", the farewell song for the
2008 Summer Olympics closing ceremony.
[74]
Image and celebrity status
Jackie Chan has received worldwide recognition for his acting, having won several awards including an Innovator Award from the
American Choreography Awards and a lifetime achievement award from the
Taurus World Stunt Awards.
[75] He has stars on the
Hollywood Walk of Fame and the Hong Kong
Avenue of Stars.
[76] Despite considerable box office success in The Northsouth Territories, Chan's American films have been criticised with regard to the action choreography. Reviewers of
Rush Hour 2,
The Tuxedo, and
Shanghai Knights criticised the toning down of Chan's fighting scenes, citing less intensity compared to his earlier films.
[77][78][79] The comedic value of his films is questioned; some critics stated it can be childish at times.
[80]
Chan is a cultural icon, having been referenced in
Ash's song "
Kung Fu",
Heavy Vegetable's "Jackie Chan Is a Punk Rocker",
Leehom Wang's "
Long Live Chinese People", as well as in "Jackie Chan" by
Frank Chickens, and television shows
Celebrity Deathmatch and
Family Guy. He has been the inspiration for
manga such as
Dragon Ball (including a character with the alias "
Jackie Chun"),
[81] the character
Lei Wulong in
Tekken and the fighting-type
Pokémon Hitmonchan.
[82][83][84] In addition, Jackie Chan has a sponsorship deal with
Mitsubishi Motors. As a result, Mitsubishi cars can be found in a number of Jackie Chan films. Furthermore, Mitsubishi honoured Chan by launching Evolution, a limited series of cars which he personally customised.
[85][86][87]
A number of video games have featured Jackie Chan. Before
Stuntmaster, Chan already had a game of his own,
Jackie Chan's Action Kung Fu, released in 1990 for the
PC-Engine and
NES. In 1995, Chan was featured in the arcade fighting game
Jackie Chan The Kung-Fu Master. In addition, a series of Japanese Jackie Chan games were released on the
MSX by Pony, based on several of his films (
Project A,
Project A 2,
Police Story,
The Protector and
Wheels On Meals).
[88]
Chan has always wanted to be a role model to children, remaining popular with them due to his good-natured acting style. He has refused to play villains and has
almost never used the word "
fuck" in his films (He's only said that word in two films,
The Protector and
Burn, Hollywood, Burn), but in
Rush Hour, in an attempt to be "cool" and imitate his partner Carter, who said "What's up, my nigga?" to a club of black men, he said the same thing when Carter was in another room and they all attacked him, so he had to pull out his fighting skills to beat them down and escape.
[89] Chan's greatest regret in life is not having received proper education,
[90] inspiring him to fund educational institutions around the world. He funded the construction of the Jackie Chan Science Centre at the
Australian National University[91] and the establishment of schools in poor regions of China.
[92]
Chan is a spokesperson for the
Government of Hong Kong, appearing in
public service announcements. In a
Clean Hong Kong commercial, he urged the people of Hong Kong to be more considerate with regards to
littering, a problem that has been widespread for decades.
[93] Furthermore, in an advertisement promoting nationalism, he gave a short explanation of the
March of the Volunteers, the national anthem of the People's Republic of China.
[94] When
Hong Kong Disneyland opened in 2005, Chan participated in the opening ceremony.
[95] In the United States, Chan appeared alongside
Arnold Schwarzenegger in a government advert to combat
copyright infringement and made another public service announcement with Los Angeles County Sheriff
Lee Baca to encourage people, especially
Asians, to join the
Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department.
[96][97]
Construction has begun on a Jackie Chan museum in Shanghai. Work began in July 2008, and although it was scheduled to be completed on October 2009, construction continues as of January 2010.
[98]
Controversies
During a news conference in Shanghai on 28 March 2004, Chan referred to the recently concluded
Republic of China presidential election, 2004 in Taiwan, in which
Democratic Progressive Party candidates
Chen Shui-bian and
Annette Lu were re-elected as President and Vice-President as "the biggest joke in the world."
[99] Chan's comments were criticized by Parris Chang, a Taiwanese legislator and senior member of the DPP, who called for the government of Taiwan to take punitive steps against Chan for his comments, such as banning his movies and barring him the right to visit Taiwan.
[100] Some 50 police and security personnel were required to separate protesters from Chan, as they were attempting to spit at him when he arrived at Taipei airport for a charity sponsored by cable TV channel
TVBS on 18 June 2008.
[101] Chan insisted that his remarks were not intended to insult the people of Taiwan.
[102]
Referring to his participation in the
torch relay for the
2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, Chan spoke out against demonstrators who disrupted the relay several times attempting to draw attention to a wide-ranging number of grievances against the Chinese government, including
China's human rights record and the
political status of Taiwan. He warned that he would lash out against anyone planning to stop him from carrying the Olympic Torch, saying, "Demonstrators better not get anywhere near me." In addition, Chan felt that the protesters were publicity seekers. "They are doing it for no reason. They just want to show off on the TV," he said. "They know, 'if I can get the torch, I can go on the TV for the world news'." Chan felt the country was trying to improve and the Olympics is a chance for the country to open up and learn from the outside world and vice versa. "We are not right about everything. Things are getting better in China but we can change and are changing. We want to learn from the rest of the world as well as teach others about our ways and our culture."
[103]
On 18 April 2009, during a panel discussion at the annual
Boao Forum for Asia titled "Tapping into Asia's Creative Industry Potential," Chan said "...in the 10 years after Hong Kong's return to Chinese rule, I can gradually see, I'm not sure if it's good to have freedom or not."
[104] Chan went on to say, "If you're too free, you're like the way Hong Kong is now. It's very chaotic. Taiwan is also chaotic." He also added, "I'm gradually beginning to feel that we Chinese need to be controlled. If we're not being controlled, we'll just do what we want." Chan however complained about the
quality of Chinese goods, saying, "...a Chinese TV might explode."
[105] but refrained from criticizing the Chinese government for banning his 2009 film
Shinjuku Incident.
[106] Chan's comments prompted an angry response from some legislators and other prominent figures in Taiwan and Hong Kong. Hong Kong Legislator
Leung Kwok-hung said that Chan "insulted the Chinese people. Chinese people aren't pets."
[107] The
Hong Kong Tourism Board stated that it had received 164 comments and complaints from the public over Chan's remarks.
[108] A spokesman for Chan told reporters that the actor was referring to freedom in the entertainment industry rather than Chinese society at large and that certain people with "ulterior motives deliberately misinterpreted what he said."
[109]
On 24 August 2010, Jackie Chan tweeted about the botched rescue operation on the
Manila hostage crisis that left 8 Hong Kong tourists dead. Although saddened by the news, he also tweeted "If they killed the guy sooner, they will say why not negotiate first? If they negotiate first, they ask why not kill the guy sooner?"
[110][111][112][113] Chan's comments caused outrage in Hong Kong. Several anti-Jackie Chan groups were set up on Facebook with tens of thousands of supporters. Some fellow actors and directors told local newspapers that they were also upset by his remarks. Chan reportedly has business interests in the Philippines. He issued a statement on 27 August 2010 apologizing for his comments and claiming that his assistant who helped him post the tweets had misunderstood the meaning of his original message.
[114]
Entrepreneurship and philanthropy
In addition to his film production and distribution company,
JCE Movies Limited, Jackie Chan also owns or co-owns the production companies JC Group China, Jackie & Willie Productions
[115] (with Willie Chan) and Jackie & JJ Productions.
[116]
Chan has also put his name to Jackie Chan Theater International, a cinema chain in China, co-ran by Hong Kong company Sparkle Roll Group Ltd. The first—Jackie Chan-Yaolai International Cinema—opened in February 2010, and is claimed to be the largest cinema complex in China, with 17 screens and 3,500 seats. Chan expressed his hopes that the size of the venue would afford young, non-commercial directors the opportunity to have their films screened. 15 further cinemas in the chain are planned for 2010, throughout Beijing, Shanghai and
Guangzhou, with a potential total of 65 cinemas throughout the country proposed.
[117][118]
In 2004, Chan launched his own line of clothing, which bears a
Chinese dragon logo and the English word "Jackie", or the initials "JC".
[119] Chan also has a number of other branded businesses. His sushi restaurant chain, Jackie's Kitchen, has outlets throughout Hong Kong, as well as seven in South Korea and one in Hawaii, with plans to open another in
Las Vegas. Jackie Chan's Cafe has outlets in Beijing,
Singapore,
Kuala Lumpur and the
Philippines. Other ventures include Jackie Chan Signature Club gyms (a partnership with
California Fitness), and a line of chocolates, cookies and nutritional oatcakes. He also hopes to expand into furniture and kitchenware, and is also considering a branded supermarket.
[120] With each of his businesses, a percentage of the profits goes to various charities, including the Jackie Chan Charitable Foundation.
Chan is a keen philanthropist and a
UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador, having worked tirelessly to champion charitable works and causes. He has campaigned for
conservation, against
animal abuse and has promoted disaster relief efforts for
floods in mainland China and the
2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami.
[6][121][122] In June 2006, he announced the donation of half his assets to charity upon his death, citing his admiration of the effort made by
Warren Buffett and
Bill Gates to help those in need.
[123] On 10 March 2008, Chan was the guest of honour for the launch, by Australian Prime Minister
Kevin Rudd, of the
Jackie Chan Science Centre at the
John Curtin School of Medical Research,
Australian National University in
Canberra. Jackie Chan is also a supporter of the
Save China's Tigers project which aims at saving the endangered
South China Tiger through breeding and releasing them into the wild; he is currently an ambassador for this conservation project.
[124] Chan has many historic artifacts, such as old door frames from 2000 years ago. He also owns the Jinricksha Station in Singapore.
In April 2008, Jackie Chan was invited for the audio launch of an Indian film, entitled
Dasavathaaram (2008) in
Chennai (Madras), where he shared the dais with Indian celebrities, including
Amitabh Bachchan,
Mammootty and
Kamal Hassan. Though he did not understand a word of
Tamil, Chan was touched by the Indian community's love for him and his films, and was impressed with the movie
Dasavathaaram, expressing a keen interest in working with the star of the film,
Kamal Hassan. Hassan himself reciprocated the desire to work with the action superstar, urging Chan to keep his promise of working with him on a possible film project.
Following the
2008 Sichuan earthquake, Chan donated RMB ¥10 million to help those in need. In addition, he is planning to make a film about the Chinese earthquake to raise money for survivors.
In response to the
2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, Jackie Chan and fellow Hong Kong-based celebrities, including American rapper
Jin, headlined a special three-hour charity concert, titled
Artistes 311 Love Beyond Borders, on 1 April 2011 to help with Japan's disaster recovery effort,
[125] where Jackie Chan addressed the victims of the earthquake and tsunami by saying:
"You will not be alone, we will be by your side".
[126] The concert raised over $3.3 million dollars in just three hours for disaster relief.
[127]
