Don't mess with this guy. Tony Jaa, who is now being called the Jackie Chan of Thailand, is practiced in several combat disciplines including Krabi Krabong, Pencak Silat, Capoeira and Muay Thai. A native of the Surin province of northeastern Thailand, Jaa is an accomplished stuntman and gymnast. In his first major film Ong-Bak he performed all of his own incredible stunts without computer enhanced effects, safety equipment or stunt doubles. That's really himjumping over a car and sliding under a SUV. It's hard to believe this easygoing, soft spoken man is one of the most skilled fighters in the world.
The Man and His Skills
Born in 1976 with the name Worawit Yeerum, as a young boy he enjoyed watching his idols Jackie Chan and Jet Li on television. He then got into show business when he went to study with Thai action star and choreographer Phanna Rithikrai. His martial arts training came when he attended university. He took Tae Kwon Do, Judo and Aikido and his first role was as a stunt double in Mortal Kombat: Annihilation. During the filming of Ong-Bak he did sustain a few injuries, the worst of them being a torn ligament and a sprained ankle. As a result the film's completion was delayed for months as replacement performers continued to hurt themselves.
In an interview with Time magazine Jaa was quoted as saying, "Jackie Chan, Jet Li and Bruce Lee are my masters; they're the inspiration for my work." Both movie fans and martial arts aficionados definitely need a new action star. Steven Seagal and Jean-Claude Van Damme have almost disappeared from the film business entirely. Jackie Chan, who is at the ripe old age of fifty, no longer has the strength or the agility to perform dangerous stunts. Tony Jaa is twenty-eight years old and can certainly defend himself against opponents who are twice his size.
His Work in the Film Industry
In 2005 another bone breaking film was released titled Tom Yum Goong. The story was closely related to Ong-Bak only this time Jaa goes to Australia to retrieve two stolen elephants. He displays the same awesome combat skills against a mixed group of criminals. There's also one very powerful scene with a Brazilian capoeira expert. It's exciting to see how many different fighting styles are combined in both Ong-Bak and Tom Yum Goong. No matter how big his enemy may be Jaa can use a knee to the chest or an elbow to the head to incapacitate him/her, and he looks stylish while he does it.
He is still relatively unknown to western audiences but give him some time. There's a good chance he'll be Hollywood's new leading man in martial arts movies.
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