Episode 47 – Roger Yuan

Derek and Kieran offer a deep bow to the most excellent Roger Yuan.  Roger Yuan is a much sought-after talent who has worn many hats over the course of a film career that spans three decades. As an actor, Roger has gone toe-to-toe with Jackie Chan in SHANGHAI NOON, and with Michael Jai White in BLACK DYNAMITE.  His first major role was opposite Richard Gere in RED CORNER, and he also played the role of the “Master Monk” in BULLETPROOF MONK, starring Chow Yun Fat.  In addition, Roger has made cameos in international blockbusters like SKYFALL, SYRIANA and BATMAN BEGINS and alongside Keanu Reeves (JOHN WICK: CHAPTER 3). Roger Yuan also has global appeal outside of “Hollywood” having starred in ONCE UPON A TIME IN VIETNAM (with Dustin Nguyen) and CHANDNI CHOWK TO CHINA (with Akshay Kumar), not to mention having also worked with Jet Li, and Sammo Hung in ONCE UPON A TIME IN CHINA AND AMERICA earlier in his career.  With such an acting resume, it’s no surprise that legendary director Yuen Wo Ping personally selected Roger to play the role of “Iron Crow” in CROUCHING TIGER HIDDEN DRAGON 2: THE GREEN LEGEND. As a fight choreographer/action director, Roger has drawn from a lifetime of martial arts training in Chung Kuk Do, Kyokushinkai, Tai Chi, Wing Chun Kung Fu, Muay-Thai Kickboxing, Western Boxing, and Shaolin Chi Gung, as well as yoga and gymnastics while demonstrating an uncommon gift for creating realistic action sequences with flair and grace.  Recent credits include the upcoming DUNE (2020), JASON BOURNE, WARCRAFT, EAT LOCAL, and X-MEN: FIRST CLASS, as Fight Coordinator, 47 RONIN, SKYFALL, as Fight Trainer/Choreographer. In recent years, Roger has garnered a reputation due to his unique approach to physical training.  This one-of-a-kind philosophy has cast him as a bit of philosophical fitness guru, and has added a new facet to his already busy career.  It started when in preparation for THE IMMORTALS, actor Henry Cavill came to Roger for help.  Henry wanted to enhance his aesthetic physical look and his martial arts abilities.  In short, Henry wanted to be able to move like Roger.  So, Roger took Henry on a physical journey that prepared him for his role as the Greek Hero, Theseus, which led to stints training Jason Flemyng and Jennifer Lawrence (X MEN: FIRST CLASS), and Daniel Craig (SKYFALL), and most recently, Travis Fimmel and Paula Patton (WARCRAFT)