James Lew
Known for Acting · 109 credits
- Born
- 1952-09-06 (age 73)
- Place of birth
- Escalon, California, USA
- Also known as
- James Jene Fae Lew
Biography
James Jene Fae Lew (born September 6, 1952) is an American actor and martial artist. Raised in South Central Los Angeles, James Lew's destiny was to answer a cattle call in Hollywood for the hugely popular Kung Fu (1972) television series. He went on to star in the now collectible Hong Kong film, Young Dragon (1976). He made the move to big budget studio films in 1984. John Carpenter handpicked him as the Martial Arts Choreographer for 20th Century Fox's now cult film, Big Trouble in Little China (1986).
Jackie Chan, Jet Li, Steven Seagal, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Mel Gibson, Brad Pitt, Tom Cruise, Dwayne Johnson, David Carradine, Chuck Norris, Dennis Quaid, Kurt Russell, Madonna, Charlie Sheen, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Kathleen Turner, Sylvester Stallone, Brandon Lee, Snoop Dogg and the list goes on and on.
James was voted "Favorite Action Star" by fans of Inside Martial Arts magazine. Internet fans voted him into the Hall of Fame in the Martial Arts History Museum. Inside Kung Fu Magazine inducted him as one of the "Martial Arts Greats" alongside legends as Bruce Lee, Chuck Norris, Steven Seagal, Jean-Claude Van Damme, and his longtime friend Jackie Chan.
Hit Parader Magazine dubbed him "the king of big-screen martial arts villains." From the deadly killer in Red Sun Rising (1994) to the deadly fighter in the comedy spoof Hot Shots 2 (1993), Lew has proven his chops in both drama and comedy. As a stunt/fight coordinator his creative talents shone in the television series The Crow to recent work on the hit video game, The Matrix: Path of Neo (2005). He handpicked elite members for his company, "Hong Kong Wire Action Team," to bring state of the art action to movies. His formula for longevity in the film industry is diversity, hard work and having a whole lot of fun.
Most recently, James Lew wrote, directed and starred in a movie inspired by his personal experiences in the business titled 18 Fingers of Death! (2006). The story follows Buford Lee (James Lew), the most famous unknown "B"-minus, low-budget, martial-arts movie star and Ronald Mack (Maurice Patton), a young black kid from the hood. Together they laugh and bond together on their quest to finally make Buford's break out movie, 18 Fingers of Death! (2006).
Known For
TV Shows (23)
CSI: Miami
2002
as ND Man #1
Frasier
1993
as Security Guard
Murder, She Wrote
1984
as Cambodian
MacGyver
1985
as Asian Thug
Entourage
2004
Strong Medicine
2000
as Cop
Babylon 5
1994
as Bloodhound Teep
Family Matters
1989
as Man in Bar
Chuck
2007
as Anad Chenerad
Childrens Hospital
2008
as Mosura
Power Rangers
1993
as Warrior
Walker, Texas Ranger
1993
as Tiger
T. J. Hooker
1982
as Asian Thug / Ton Li
Weird Science
1994
Nowhere Man
1995
as Thug with Knife
Eve
2003
Growing Pains
1985
as Movie Villain #2
Alias
2001
as Quan Li
Death Valley
2011
as Man on street (uncredited)
Nasty Boys
1990
as Fighter / Karate class fighter (uncredited)
I'm Dying Up Here
2017
as Sensei Phil
Roseanne
1988
Marker
1995
Movies (86)
Rush Hour
1998
as Juntao's Man in Los Angeles (uncredited)
G.I. Joe: Retaliation
2013
as Chinese Leader
Star Trek
2009
as Romulan (uncredited)
Rush Hour 2
2001
as Triad Gangster (uncredited)
Tropic Thunder
2008
as Flaming Dragon Compound Person (uncredited)
Safe
2012
as Underground Casino Guard (uncredited)
Big Trouble in Little China
1986
as Chang Sing #1
Rush Hour 3
2007
as Triad Assassin (uncredited)
Lethal Weapon 4
1998
as Freighter's Captain
Superhero Movie
2008
as Shaolin Monk (uncredited)
Traffic
2000
as DEA Agent - CalTrans
Hot Shots! Part Deux
1993
as Kick Boxer Opponent
Escape from L.A.
1996
as Hershe Gang Member
Under Siege 2: Dark Territory
1995
as Mercenary (uncredited)
Timecop
1994
as Knife #1
Cage II: The Arena of Death
1994
as Chin
Deep Core
2000
as Lou Chang
The Replacement Killers
1998
as Bodyguard
On Deadly Ground
1994
as Mercenary at Aegis-1 (uncredited)
Showdown in Little Tokyo
1991
as Yoshida's Man (uncredited)
The Shadow
1994
as Mongol
Ultimate Fights from the Movies
2002
as Knife #1 (Timecop) (archive footage)
Action Jackson
1988
as Martial Arts Instructor
Martial Law II: Undercover
1991
as Spencer Hamilton Man (uncredited)
The Perfect Weapon
1991
as Crewcut
Do or Die
1991
as Lew
Savage Beach
1989
as Agent #1
Best of the Best
1989
as Sae Jin Kwon
Rapid Fire
1992
as Tau's Men at Laundry (uncredited)
The Killing of a Chinese Bookie
1976
as Guard (uncredited)
Undercover Blues
1993
as Novacek's Man
Guns
1990
as Ninja #1
The Girl from the Naked Eye
2012
as Eddie
Martial Law
1990
as Tong Member
Night of the Warrior
1991
as Hector Sabatei
Let Lorenzo
2011
as Interior Design Older Partner
Red Sun Rising
1994
as Jaho
High Voltage
1997
as Harry
Boogie Boy
1998
as Jason
Frankenstein
2015
as Hotel Manager
Showdown
1993
as Hit Man
American Ninja 5
1993
as Viper
Angel of Death
2009
as Tommy
Sin
2003
as Leo Thamaree
Tough and Deadly
1995
as Thug
Fatal Blade
2000
as James
Robo Warriors
1996
as Darius
Outside the Law
2002
as Cho Sung
Mortal Kombat: Rebirth
2010
as Shang Tsung (uncredited)
Night Hunter
1996
as Tom Cutter
Going Berserk
1983
as Kung Fu Fighter
Deadly Target
1994
as Guard #2 (uncredited)
Excessive Force II: Force on Force
1995
as Lee
Zodiac Power 2: Evil Destroyer
1988
Cucuy: The Boogeyman
2018
as Beat Cop
Ninja Academy
1989
as Ninja Trainer
The Real Deal
2002
as Black Belt
Mission of Justice
1992
as Akiro
18 Fingers of Death!
2006
as Buford Lee
Balance of Power
1996
as Shinji Takamura
Shira: The Vampire Samurai
2005
as Xu
Ring of Steel
1994
as Asian Fighter
Los Angeles Streetfighter
1985
as Chan
Midnight Man
1995
as Prince Samarki
Ballistic
1995
as Woo
Killpoint
1984
as Nighthawk's Gunman #1
Assault on Dome 4
1996
as Quaid, Windham Henchman
Sting of the Black Scorpion
2002
as Tong Leader
For Life or Death
1996
as Kaan Woo
Private Wars
1993
as Obata
Ulterior Motives
1993
as Yakuza #5
Made in Chinatown
2021
as Lew
Safe House
1998
as Asian (uncredited)
Ballistica
2009
as Chinese Guard #1
Evil Destroyer
1988
Enforcer from Death Row
1976
as Karate Fighter
Raven: Return of the Black Dragons
1992
as Black Dragon Henchman
The Circuit III: Street Monk
2006
as Spider Webb
Aftershock
1990
as Mr. James
Henchman: The Al Leong Story
2018
as Self
Star Raiders: The Adventures of Saber Raine
2017
as Sinjin
Breakout
2016
as Cap Ruch
Elwood
2014
as Big O
Big Time
1977
as Karate Instructor
Young Dragon
1979
as Shao Lung
Black Salt
2015
as Abbot Xiao
About James Lew
James Jene Fae Lew (born September 6, 1952) is an American actor and martial artist. Raised in South Central Los Angeles, James Lew's destiny was to answer a cattle call in Hollywood for the hugely popular Kung Fu (1972) television series. He went on to star in the now collectible Hong Kong film, Young Dragon (1976). He made the move to big budget studio films in 1984. John Carpenter handpicked him as the Martial Arts Choreographer for 20th Century Fox's now cult film, Big Trouble in Little China (1986). Jackie Chan, Jet Li, Steven Seagal, Jea… With 109 credits spanning from 1976 to 2021, James Lew has appeared in 86 films and 23 TV shows.
Fans searching for James Lew movies, James Lew filmography, or the latest projects starring James Lew can stream many of these titles on Bowood.TV, free and in HD, with no subscription required.
Most Popular James Lew Movies
- Rush Hour (1998) — as Juntao's Man in Los Angeles (uncredited)
- G.I. Joe: Retaliation (2013) — as Chinese Leader
- Star Trek (2009) — as Romulan (uncredited)
- Rush Hour 2 (2001) — as Triad Gangster (uncredited)
- Tropic Thunder (2008) — as Flaming Dragon Compound Person (uncredited)
Where to Watch James Lew Films
Most James Lew movies and series are available to stream on Bowood.TV in full HD, completely free and without signup. Browse the complete filmography above to jump directly to any title. For more films and the latest web series featuring James Lew, check our movies catalogue and browse page.