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Jason Statham
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| Jason Statham | |
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 Jason Statham, 2007 |
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| Born | Jason Michael Statham 12 September 1972 London, England, UK |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1998 – present |
Jason Michael Statham (pronounced /ˈsteɪ θəm/;12 born 12 September 1972)3 is an English actor and martial artist, known for his roles in the Guy Ritchie crime films Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels; Revolver; and Snatch. Statham has appeared in supporting roles in several American films, such as The Italian Job, as well as playing the lead role in The Transporter, Crank, The Bank Job, War (opposite martial arts star Jet Li), and Death Race. He normally performs his own fight scenes and stunts.4
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Early life
Statham was born in Sydenham, London,56 the son of a lounge singer and dressmaker-turned-dancer. He later moved to Great Yarmouth, Norfolk and grew up initially following in his parents' footsteps to master the art of street theatre. He also played football for the local grammar school (1978-83), but his real passion was diving -- in particular, he finished 12th in the World Championships in 1992.7 He was also a member of Britain's National Diving Squad for twelve years.
Statham's life in media began when he was spotted by a talent agent specializing in athletes while training at London's Crystal Palace National Sports Centre. Afterwards, he became a model for the clothing brand French Connection. Statham is an expert of martial art Kickboxing.
Career
While working for French Connection, he was introduced to fledgling British director Guy Ritchie8 who was developing a film project and needed to fill the role of a street-wise con artist. After learning about Statham's past, Ritchie cast him to play the role of "Bacon" in Ritchie's breakout 1998 hit, Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels.9 The movie was well received by both critics and audiences, which helped catapult the unknown actor into the public eye. Statham's second collaboration with Ritchie came in the 2000 film Snatch.10 Cast alongside popular actors Brad Pitt, Dennis Farina and Benicio del Toro, and with the movie earning more than $80 million in box-office revenues, Statham was able to break into Hollywood and appeared in two movies in 2001: Ghosts of Mars and The One.
Statham was offered more film roles and in 2002 was cast as the lead role of driver Frank Martin in the action movie The Transporter, in which his background in martial arts enabled him to do most of his own stunts.10 A sequel, Transporter 2, followed in 200510 and a third Transporter film was released in 2008. He also appeared in supporting roles in The Italian Job (2003) (in which he played Handsome Rob)10 and Cellular (2004),10 and had a cameo in Collateral before taking the lead role in Crank (2006).10 Statham compares his role in Crank to his real life in the September 2006 issue of Maxim. In 2005, Statham was once again cast by Ritchie to star in his new project, Revolver. His most recent releases were the films In the Name of the King: A Dungeon Siege Tale, Transporter 3 and Crank: High Voltage.
In 2008, American film critic Armond White hailed Statham's ascension as the leading international action film star. On the occasion of Death Race, White championed Statham's "best track record of any contemporary movie star."11 Later in 2008, White praised Statham's Transporter 3 as a great example of kinetic pop art.
Statham is currently developing The Grabbers, written by David Peoples and Janet Peoples (Twelve Monkeys). Statham stated “We’ve got a movie we’re trying to do, written by David Peoples and Janet Peoples, in the vein of an old film, The Treasure of the Sierra Madre. It’s not a remake or anything, but it’s a little bit like that, about relationships and how greed contaminates the relationships these three people have. The working title is The Grabbers."12
Ritchie and Statham will reunite to work in a new musical, described as a cross between "Wurzel Gummidge and Bullitt", The Sun reports.
He will also star in the action film, The Killer Elite. According to Variety the film will be based on real events, which were the subject of Ranulph Fiennes' book The Feathermen. Statham will play a former Navy SEAL who comes out of retirement in order to save an old friend.
Personal life
Statham is unmarried, but was in a relationship with actress Kelly Brook for several years.1314
Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels | Bacon | |
| 2000 | Snatch | Turkish | |
| Turn It Up | Mr. B | ||
| 2001 | Ghosts of Mars | Sgt. Jericho Butler | |
| The One | MVA Agent Evan Funsch | first time partnered with Jet Li | |
| Mean Machine | Monk | ||
| 2002 | Thai Boxing: A Fighting Chance | Narrator | |
| The Transporter | Frank Martin | ||
| 2003 | The Italian Job | Handsome Rob | |
| 2004 | Collateral | Frank Martin (presumed) | Cameo appearance |
| Cellular | Ethan Greer | ||
| 2005 | Transporter 2 | Frank Martin | |
| Revolver | Jake Green | ||
| London | Bateman | ||
| 2006 | Chaos | Det. Quentin Conners | |
| The Pink Panther | Yves Gluant | Uncredited role | |
| Crank | Chev Chelios | ||
| 2007 | War | FBI Agent John Crawford | second time partnered with Jet Li |
| 2008 | The Bank Job | Terry Leather | |
| In the Name of the King: A Dungeon Siege Tale | Farmer Daimon | ||
| Death Race | Jensen "Frankenstein" Ames | ||
| Transporter 3 | Frank Martin | ||
| 2009 | Crank: High Voltage | Chev Chelios | |
| Truth In 24 | Narrator | ||
| 2010 | 13 | Jasper | post-production |
| The Expendables | Lee Christmas | third time partnered with Jet Li | |
| Blitz | pre-production | ||
| Pretty, Baby, Machine | Pretty Boy Floyd (rumored) | pre-production | |
| The Mechanic | pre-production | ||
| 2011 | The Brazilian Job | Handsome Rob | |
| Crank 3 | Chev Chelios | Unknown |
Box office performance
Since 1998, Statham has appeared in over 20 films. Several have been box office hits, such as Snatch and The Bank Job. He has starred in two sets of film series, The Transporter and Crank. The films he has been in have grossed a total of more than $1 billion USD at the box office, with the highest individual film being Transporter 3.
Video game voice-overs
| Video game | Year | Character |
|---|---|---|
| Red Faction II | 2002 | Shrike |
| Call of Duty | 2003 | Sgt. Waters |
References
- ^ "BBC Jason Statham interview" (video). BBC. http://www.bbc.co.uk/films/bbci/new_bbci/?video3 BBC. Retrieved 2009-05-18.
- ^ "Jason Statham interview on ROVE (live in studio) - Bank Job" (video). Australia: Rove. 13 July 2008. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0aE9RKm3viE. Retrieved 2009-05-18.
- ^ "Statham, Jason". British Film Institute. http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/individual/784287. Retrieved 2009-07-18.
- ^ Endelman, Michael (1 September 2006). "Five Things You Should Know About Jason Statham". Entertainment Weekly. http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,1516061,00.html. Retrieved 2009-11-01.
- ^ Iley, Chrissy (5 October 2008). "Jason Statham, last action hero". The Times. http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/film/article4860979.ece. Retrieved 2009-06-08.
- ^ Barlow, Helen (13 July 2008). "All action". The Sydney Morning Herald. http://www.smh.com.au/news/film/all-action/2008/07/12/1215658193266.html. Retrieved 2009-11-01.
- ^ Interview with Jason Statham
- ^ Jason Statham at askmen.com
- ^ Jason Statham at Filmbug
- ^ a b c d e f Jason Statham at the Internet Movie Database
- ^ http:www.nypress.com/article-19048-transcendent-thrill-drive.html
- ^ Sampson, Thomas (2008-09-17). "Jason Statham up for The Grabbers". The Hollywood News. http://www.thehollywoodnews.com/artman2/publish/movie_news/Jason-Statham-up-for-The-Grabbers-26170908.php. Retrieved 2009-01-26.
- ^ Nashawaty, By Chris (24 August 2007). "Cut To The Chase". Entertainment Weekly. http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20053079,00.html. Retrieved 2009-11-01.
- ^ Day, Elizabeth (1 November 2009). "Kelly Brook". The Guardian. http://www.guardian.co.uk/culture/2009/nov/01/kelly-brook-interview-elizabeth-day. Retrieved 2009-11-02.