Donnie Yen
Donnie Yen ("子丹,
pinyin:
Zh"n Zǐdān, born
July 27,
1963), is a
martial artist and a
film actor.
The son of
martial arts master
Bow Sim Mark, Yen was born in
Guangdong (Canton) and raised in
Boston,
Massachusetts. He is a well known film and
television actor in
Hong Kong and, more recently, in the West, having been featured in many movies with prominent, internationally known actors such as
Jackie Chan,
Jet Li and
Michelle Yeoh. Donnie's younger sister Chris (Chi-Ching) is also an accomplished martial artist and rising actress, recently appearing in the small film "The Adventures of Johnny Dao."
From a young age, Yen was interested in martial arts of all kind, experimenting with various styles, from
Taekwondo to
Wushu. Yen decided to stick with Wushu, moved to
Beijing to train further and even joined the
Beijing Wushu Team for two years (Yen became the first non-PRC Chinese to be accepted at the school). During his training in China, his instructor Mr. Lee demanded Donnie cut his hippie-style mullet as it was inappropriate. When he wanted to return to the
United States, he made a side trip to
Hong Kong and it was there that he met
Yuen Woo-ping, an up and coming fight choreographer. Yen's first film role was at age 19 in 1984 in the film
Xiao Tai Ji. The film revolved around drunken
Tai Chi, and although not a critical success, the film helped Yen to achieve further notability. Over the years, Donnie would send martial arts magazines and books from North America back to Mr. Lee in China.
However, Yen gained his breakthrough role in 1992 as General Lan in
Once Upon a Time in China II. His finale fight against
Wong Fei-Hung (Jet Li) remains one of the most celebrated fights in martial arts films to this day. This fight scene could be considered one of the very best in martial arts films, and has been revisited to an extent in 2002's
Hero, where Yen and Li face off again.
In 1997, Yen started a production company known as
Bullet Films, and made his
directorial debut. Two of his films,
Legend of the Wolf and
Ballistic Kiss, in which he also starred, are widely considered to be groundbreaking in their style and tone.
Donnie was married in 2003 in
Toronto. He has a daughter, Jasmine. Donnie has a son from a previous relationship. His name is Man Cheuk Yen.
Donnie Yen choreographed most of the fighting animation in the 2004 videogame
Onimusha 3 (Also starring
Kaneshiro Takeshi and
Jean Reno).
Most recently, Donnie can be seen as Chu in Tsui Hark's
wuxia epic
Seven Swords, and opposite
Sammo Hung and
Simon Yam in the brutal crime drama
Sha Po Lang. Both films were featured this year at the Toronto Film Festival.
Donnie worked on
Stormbreaker, starring
Alicia Silverstone, as the
action choreographer and action director. He is also set to star as Wang Xiao Long in
Dragon Tiger Gate, an adaptation of a popular Chinese comic novel, together with
Nicholas Tse and
Shawn Yue.
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Miracle Fighters 2 (1983)
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Drunken Tai Chi (1984)
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Mismatched Couples (1985)
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Tiger Cage (1988)
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The Last Conflict (1988)
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In the Line of Duty IV: Witness (1989)
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Tiger Cage 2 (1990)
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Holy Virgin vs. the Evil Dead (1991)
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Crystal Hunt (1991)
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Cheetah on Fire (1992)
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Once Upon a Time in China II (1992)
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New Dragon Gate Inn (1992) aka
Dragon Inn*
Iron Monkey (1993)
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Butterfly Sword (1993)
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Hero Among Heroes (1993)
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Wing Chun (1994)
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Circus Kid (1994)
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Satan Returns (1996)
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Black Rose 2 (1996)
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Legend of the Wolf (1997)
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Asian Cops - High Voltage (1997)
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Ballistic Kiss (1998)
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Shanghai Affairs (1998)
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Highlander: Endgame (2000)
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Fist of Fury: The Sequel (2001)
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Shurayuki Hime (2001)
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Blade II (2002)
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Shanghai Knights (2003)
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Hero (2003)
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The Twins Effect (2003)
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Protege de la Rose Noire (2004)
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The Huadu Chronicles: Blade of the Rose (2004)
* (2005)
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Love on the Rocks (2004)
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Seven Swords (2005)
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StormBreaker (2006)
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Dragon Tiger Gate (2006)
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Cinema of China*
Cinema of Hong Kong*
Donnie Yen's Photo at
Asian Hunk*
IMDB*
Official Website*
Chinese Fan Club, DYN Chinese Branch*
DYN, Taiwan Branch*
DYN, Japanese Branch*
DYN, US Branch*
DYN, Korean Branch*
The Official Donnie Yen UK Fan Club
