Any Chinese star that is not a martial arts star?

Lucy Liu, Anna May Wong, BD Wong, Garrett Wang (one you should
know, Mogul) may be the closest to “stars”. But I'm sure you'll say
they do not fit your criteria of "known all over the world" like Peter
Falk. I wonder how well known Falk is on mainland China.
 
Aspiring Mogul said:
So ... is there an actor of Chinese descent who is famous and is not a martial arts star? I can't think of one.

For the Japanese, I can think of George "Sulu" Takei, but not for the Chinese.
Click to expand...

Well I did say that I think the first four on my list qualify, and if anything Chow Yun-Fat MUST qualify as a star. He is the definitive action star, greater than Bruce Willis, Sylvester Stallone, and Arnold Schwarzenegger. But idk, I guess my views are a little less American-centric thus less reliable, as I am more familiar with the works of all of the stars I listed compared to Seth Rogen or Peter Falk (this has more to do with my viewing tastes which generally fall out of the mainstream I think; although it seems like Falk is in Cassavetes' films, I can't wait to watch those!).

As for Japan, I know more non-martial arts stars than ones associated with martial arts but again they are probably not as well-known with a mainstream international audience even though they were huge in Japan and within Japanese film lovers.
 
directorik said:
Lucy Liu, Anna May Wong, BD Wong, Garrett Wang (one you should
know, Mogul) may be the closest to “stars”. But I'm sure you'll say
they do not fit your criteria of "known all over the world" like Peter
Falk. I wonder how well known Falk is on mainland China.
Click to expand...

Anna May Wong is a good choice - I never knew of her, so thanks again for the education.

Lucy Liu was in Kill Bill as a sword mistress, so no. Garrett Wang is not known all over the world in the same way as, say, Peter Falk or John Ritter (from earlier times).


MiniJames, Chow Yun-Fat appeared as a tough guy, and, looking at his wiki entry, seemed to have been in martial arts films. So, no, he would not qualify.
 
Aspiring Mogul said:
Lucy Liu was in Kill Bill as a sword mistress, so no.
Click to expand...
This is why I find it so difficult to have a discussion with you. You
change your criteria from your first post as you get answers:
Aspiring Mogul said:
Someone told me that every Chinese film star got his fame in the martial arts genre. IOW, no Chinese actor got it made in romance or Westerns or sci-fi.
Click to expand...
Lucy Liu got her fame in TV (ER, X-files and Ally McBeal) and movies
(Jerry Maguire, City of Industry, Payback) long before she was in the
Kill Bill movies.

I sure would be respectful to make your specific criteria clear when
you star a discussion. You actors of Chinese decent who have never
been in a martial arts film and are world-wide names.
 
Last edited:
Aspiring Mogul said:
MiniJames, Chow Yun-Fat appeared as a tough guy, and, looking at his wiki entry, seemed to have been in martial arts films. So, no, he would not qualify.
Click to expand...

Maybe it's subjective, but I don't think Chow is a martial arts star (aside from Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon which is a late career film). I think that Chow is a gangster film star and a romance star (he actually has a lot of romatnic roles that he is famous for in Hong Kong). The wiki even says that he primarily stars in dramatic roles and is known for his films in the heroic bloodshed genre. Being in a martial arts film does not make you a martial arts star IMO. Chow was also in soap operas, but I wouldn't consider him to be a soap opera star.

Still, I don't see how Tony Leung or Leslie Cheung wouldn't qualify.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top