Jet Li

Jet Li is a Chinese actor, martial artist and producer who became one of the most internationally recognised stars of martial arts cinema. He was born Li Lianjie on 26 April 1963 in Beijing, China, and began training in wushu as a child.

Li demonstrated exceptional ability from an early age and became a member of the Beijing Wushu Team. He won multiple national championships before retiring from competitive wushu as a teenager and turning his attention to acting.

His movie career began with Shaolin Temple (1982), which became a major success and helped establish Li as a new martial arts star. Over the next decade, he became particularly associated with historical martial arts films, including the hugely influential Once Upon a Time in China series, in which he portrayed the legendary Chinese folk hero Wong Fei-hung.

Li continued to build his reputation with films including Fong Sai-yuk (1993) and Fist of Legend (1994). The latter, a reimagining of Bruce Lee's Fist of Fury, became one of Li's most celebrated martial arts movies and showcased the speed, precision and athleticism that defined his screen fighting style.

His international profile grew dramatically when he played the villain Wah Sing Ku in Lethal Weapon 4 (1998). Li subsequently became a Hollywood leading man with movies such as Romeo Must Die (2000), Kiss of the Dragon (2001), The One (2001) and Cradle 2 the Grave (2003).

Li also continued making major Chinese-language productions. Hero (2002) became an international success, while Fearless (2006) provided him with one of the defining dramatic and martial arts performances of his career.

Later appearances included The Forbidden Kingdom (2008) alongside Jackie Chan and the action ensemble The Expendables (2010) and its sequels.

Across a career spanning several decades, Jet Li has combined genuine martial arts ability with an unmistakable screen presence. His transition from Chinese wushu champion to Hong Kong movie star and, eventually, Hollywood action hero helped introduce another generation of audiences worldwide to martial arts cinema.

Today, Jet Li is regarded as one of the defining martial arts movie stars of his generation, with films such as Once Upon a Time in China, Fist of Legend, Hero and Fearless remaining essential entries in the genre.