In the 80s of the last century, "Shaolin Temple" starring Jet Li was born, leading mainland martial arts films to a golden age.
Although the martial arts films of that era could not be compared with the present in terms of shooting technology and hardware, they were just good when they were filmed. It has a lot to do with the actors. At that time, the actors who starred in martial arts films were mainly from professional teams. They are excellent in martial arts and full of heroism, although they are not professional actors, but their works have chivalry and chivalry, which is far from being comparable to the current "flower fist embroidered legs + special effects".
As a result, masterpieces such as "Wudang", "Southern Boxing King", "North and South Shaolin", "Kapok Robe", "Invincible Mandarin Duck Legs", "Divine Whip" and other masterpieces have come one after another, bringing a boom in martial arts films, and also giving birth to a large number of martial arts stars.
Time flies, and more than 30 years have passed since those glorious years. Now it seems that only Jet Li is internationally renowned, and what happened to those martial arts stars who were once smash hits?
First place: Zhao Changjun
Representative works: "Wudang" and "The Legend of the Sea Lantern"
Zhao Changjun, who has been practicing martial arts since childhood, entered the Shaanxi Provincial Wushu Team at the age of 10 and began professional training. In 1972, he participated in the national martial arts competition for the first time, and won the Excellence Award with his exquisite skills, which was favored by celebrities in the martial arts world.
Zhao Changjun gave the nickname "General Changsheng". From 1978 to 1987, he won the individual all-around championship in domestic and international martial arts competitions for 10 consecutive years, winning a total of 54 gold medals, which has not been surpassed so far. His rendition of "Dilian Boxing", "Wind Chaser" and "Crazy Devil Stick" is known as the "Three Uniques of the Zhao Family" because of its unique style.
Zhao Changjun's acting career is quite similar to Jet Li. In 1982, "Shaolin Temple" was released, and Li Lianzhuo was in the limelight, and the following year, Changchun Film Studio took advantage of the situation to launch "Wudang", which was regarded as a sister chapter of "Shaolin Temple", and invited Zhao Changjun to play the leading role. But the response to the fire did not live up to expectations.
Since then, Zhao Changjun has successively participated in many kung fu films such as "The First Knife in China", "Big Knife King Five", "New Fang Shiyu", "Blue Blood Treasure Knife", etc., and gradually entered the public eye. The TV series "The Legend of the Sea Lantern" starring him is even more well-known and has become a classic memory in the hearts of the post-70s and 80s.
However, after entering the 90s, Zhao Changjun was invited to participate in the movie "A Knife in the City" directed by Sammo Hung, although he partnered with well-known actors such as Guan Zhilin and Dillon, but the box office performance was not ideal.
In 1991, Zhao Changjun returned to his hometown of Xi'an to establish a martial arts school, officially bidding farewell to the film industry and devoting himself to martial arts education. Today, he is a member of the Chinese Wushu Association, vice chairman of the Shaanxi Wushu Association, vice chairman of the Shaanxi Youth Federation, head coach of the Shaanxi Wushu Corps and president of the Zhao Changjun Wushu Academy in Xi'an, China.
Part 2 Peak Hunting
Representative works: "Yue Family Junior" and "New Fang Shiyu"
Born in 1959 in Xi'an, Xun Feng was a member of the Shaanxi Provincial Wushu Team and won many national martial arts competitions. In 1982, he made his debut in the film industry by playing the role of Daokong Monk in the movie "Shaolin Temple" starring Jet Li.
In 1984, Xun Feng starred in Chinese mainland's first widescreen color martial arts film "Yue Family Junior", which won the audience's warm welcome with its bright colors and wonderful plot at a time when black and white television was still a luxury, and won the annual box office champion of the mainland film market that year. Xunfeng also became popular with Yue Yun.
Through this film, Xunfeng and the makeup artist of the crew met and fell in love, the two fell in love, and went to Hong Kong to develop together after marriage. Xunfeng's development in Hong Kong has a very high starting point, not inferior to Jet Li. He starred in the masterpiece "New Fang Shiyu", which tells the heroic deeds of Fang Shiyu who returned from Shaolin and defeated Lei Laohu in the ring. In 1986, the sequel "The Sequel to New Fang Shiyu" was released, and the response was still enthusiastic. Since then, Xunfeng has successively participated in many films such as "The Fifth King of the Great Sword" and "The Secret Edict of the Country", and the limelight is no different.
However, in the 90s, the Hong Kong kung fu film market gradually became saturated and the competition became increasingly fierce. Xunfeng switched to the field of TV dramas, and played the role of Zhanzhao in "Three Heroes and Five Righteousness", which once again attracted attention.
Despite this, he mostly played supporting roles in later works, such as playing Master Wu in Yuan Biao's version of "New Blue Blood Sword", playing a security guard in Jackie Chan's "New Police Story", and making a brief appearance in "Young Bao Qingtian". The future is not smooth, his career is stagnant, and after 2000, Xunfeng chose to retire, and now he only occasionally shows his face in some film and television dramas.
Third place: Wang Yawei
Representative work: "Divine Whip"
Wang Yawei won the 1984 and 1986 National Wushu Sanda Championships.
With the hot release of "Shaolin Temple", in 1986, Western Film Studio planned to adapt Feng Jicai's novel into the film "Divine Whip". The protagonist did not choose a young actor, but chose Wang Yawei with a unique vision, and his role as "Silly Er" was widely praised and remembered by the audience.
Since then, many directors have thrown olive branches to Wang Yawei, but he was unmoved, but chose to stick to the ring. From 1987 to 1990, he won the National Boxing Championships and the third place in the Asian Boxing Championships in the 81kg category. Later, he became the first captain of the Chinese national boxing team.
In 2019 and 2023, Wang Ya starred in two online movies "Hunting Raid" and "Hunting Raid 2". Today, he is a lecturer in the Enemy Capture Research Office of the Department of Combat Training of the Chinese People's Public Security University, focusing on combat teaching.
Fourth place: Qiu Jianguo
Dai Youzuo: "Southern Boxing King"
Qiu Jianguo began training at the Quang Ninh Amateur Sports School in 1970 and was selected for the Guangdong team in 1973. Since 1983, he has been an assistant coach of the Shenzhen team, specializing in southern boxing and steel fork skills. He has won the championship of the Nanquan event in the national wushu competition six times, so he enjoys the reputation of "the king of southern boxing".
1984's "Southern Boxing King" can be said to be tailor-made for Qiu Jianguo. The film brings together many domestic martial arts masters, including Zhang Shaocheng and Sun Genfa from the Beijing Sports Institute, and Zhang Heiying from the Wuhan Sports Institute. The film caused a sensation after its release, making Qiu Jianguo famous. In the same year, he also participated in the TVB short drama "Guangdong Iron Thirteen".
In 1986, Qiu Jianguo participated in many film and television works such as the 3D movie "Thirteen Sisters of Chivalry", but his performance was mediocre. Subsequently, he shared the position of coach of the Shenzhen Wushu team with Jet Li, and rarely appeared in the following years.
Until 1991, Qiu Jianguo appeared again in the "Once Upon a Time" series starring Jet Li, playing the villain role of the leader of the Shahe Gang, leaving a deep impression on the audience. Since then, he has successively participated in films such as "Southern Boxing King 2", "Huang Feihong's Boy Should Serve the Country", "Tai Chi Grandmaster", "New Shaolin Temple" and other films, although most of them are supporting roles or villains, but they have never become popular.
Unfortunately, during filming in 1998, Qiu Jianguo died of a recurrence of nasopharyngeal cancer at the age of 37.
Fifth place: Wang Qun
Representative works: "Golden Dart Huang Tianba" and "Invincible Mandarin Duck Legs"
Born in Beijing in 1960, Wang Qun graduated from Beijing Shichahai Sports School and is Jet Li's senior brother. He has won a number of national wushu team and individual event awards. His thick eyebrows, big eyes, handsome and dashing image make him stand out among many martial arts athletes.
Wang Qun was the first martial arts athlete to start acting at that time, and he was also an actor with little professional training. In 1979, he played the role of the second male lead "Shenshou Zhang" in "Treasure Hunting", which was widely acclaimed in Hong Kong and Taiwan, but missed the opportunity to become popular because it failed to be released in the mainland.
After that, Wang Qun entered the amateur acting class of Beijing Film Academy for further study, and became classmates with Zhang Guangbei, Zhang Baogang and others. After graduation, he successively participated in many film and television works, such as "The Thirteen Sisters of Chivalry", "Golden Dart Huang Tianba", "Beggar", "Invincible Mandarin Duck Legs", "A Generation of Gun King", etc., and gradually emerged.
In 1984, Wang Qun won the Best Supporting Actor Award at the 7th China TV Drama Feitian Awards and the Best Supporting Actor Award at the 5th China TV Golden Eagle Awards for his wonderful performance in "Shen Wrestling Zhen San". In 1987, in the film "Golden Dart Huang Tianba", Wang Qun successfully portrayed the role of Huang Tianba and won high praise from industry insiders.
In 1989, Wang Qun went overseas to establish a martial arts school to spread Chinese martial arts culture. In 1990, Wang Qun married a foreign woman who loved Chinese martial arts, and they had a son. In the same year, he invested 1.8 million yuan to shoot the movie "Smiling Proud Life", which he wrote, directed, and acted in, and completed the production in only 26 days, with a good response and box office revenue exceeding expectations.
After getting married, Wang Qun returned to China for development and continued to be active on the screen, participating in popular film and television works such as "Operation Iron Eagle", "Yuhuazi", "Tai Chi Grandmaster", "New Shaolin Temple", "Young Zhang Sanfeng", "Golden Silk Rain" and other popular film and television works.
In 2007, Wang Qun devoted himself to the construction of the film and television base, and at the same time prepared to shoot a full-length historical series. However, due to over-devotion, neglect of family life, leading to the breakdown of marriage. At the end of 2007, Wang Qun's physical and mental exhaustion caused health problems, which did not attract enough attention. In early 2008, he tragically passed away from a myocardial infarction.
Sixth place: Wang Jue
Representative work: "Heroes and Heroes: Su Qier"
Wang Jue and Jet Li are friends in the same martial arts team, and their appearance is quite similar. He is known for his unique drunken fist and drunken sword skills, and once participated in the film "Shaolin Temple" and played the role of a half-empty monk, thus officially entering the film industry. He served as Jet Li's stand-in after the film ended, and participated in "Shaolin Kid", but he never shone brightly.
Wang Jue became a blockbuster at the CCTV Spring Festival Gala in 1983 with his drunken boxing performance, bringing him a steady stream of film appointments. filmed many works such as "Returning the Sword", "The Great Detective", "The Unknown Three Musketeers" and "Kangxi Havoc on Wutai Mountain", but the performance did not attract widespread attention. Until 1993, he played the leading role in "Heroes and Heroes: Su Qier" directed by Yuan Heping, but unfortunately was robbed of the limelight by Donnie Yen, and for many years, he has been tepid in the film and television industry.
In 2002, when director Zhang Xinyan filmed the TV series "Shaolin Warrior King", he invited the original cast of "Shaolin Temple" to have a commemorative reunion. Since then, Wang Jue has gradually faded out of the public eye, focusing on the field of martial arts education.
Seventh place: Xu Xiangdong
Representative work: "Kapok Robe"
Xu Xiangdong graduated from Beijing Institute of Physical Education. He is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Paris 7, France, and an international coach of Chinese Kung Fu invited by the French Ministry of Electricity. He is good at eagle claw boxing, proficient in various weapons, and has been the personal martial arts instructor of the king and prince of Brunei Darussalam.
In 1985, director Xu Xiaoming went to the mainland to shoot the Shaolin-themed film "Kapok Robe" and invited Xu Xiangdong to star, he was only 24 years old at the time, he had thick eyebrows and big eyes, and was heroic, and he was deeply loved by the audience.
The film received an enthusiastic response after its release, making Xu Xiangdong widely known. But he chose to give up the opportunity to become a kung fu superstar and continue his studies. After four years of study at the Beijing Institute of Physical Education, he joined the National Wushu Association and served as a referee at the 1990 Asian Games.
Subsequently, Xu Xiangdong went to France to study for a doctorate, becoming the most educated kung fu star in the mainland. After returning to China, he participated in "Wing Chun" starring Michelle Yeoh and many film and television dramas such as "Tai Chi Grandmaster", "New Shaolin Temple" and "Kung Fu Kid Love". The image gradually changed, growing a beard, and no longer showing the youthful vitality of the year.
Since 2000, he has been active in the film and television industry, and has participated in many well-known works such as "Seven Swords Under the Heavenly Mountain", "Huanhua Washing Sword Record", "Water Margin", "Da Song Gong Ci" and "Jinyiwei". Their latest work is to play the role of Xuan Yan in "The Legend of Qiao Feng" starring Donnie Yen in 2023. Although he doesn't have many works, they are all of high quality, and he has also become an indispensable gold medal supporting actor in kung fu films.
Eighth place Yu Chenghui
Representative work: "Yellow River Hero"
From a martial arts champion to a martial arts star, and eventually an outstanding swordsmanship master, Yu Chenghui has loved the art of martial arts all his life. Among them, he is not only proficient in two-handed sword techniques, but also has a deep grasp of internal boxing techniques such as Xingyi Boxing and Drunken Boxing.
In 1982, although he played the role of a bully in "Shaolin Temple" on his screen debut, the audience was deeply impressed by his skillful acting skills and vigorous skills, and thus stepped into the entertainment industry. In the same year, he starred in the TV series "Wu Song", which also served as a martial arts designer, which was broadcast on Shandong TV. Subsequently, he participated in works such as "Shaolin Kid" and "North and South Shaolin".
In 1988, the two directors Zhang Xinyan and Zhang Zien tailored the movie "Yellow River Hero" for him, and Yu Chenghui played the blind hero Ma Yi in the film. Ma Yi was a brave man in the Tang Dynasty, although he was blind, he was determined to eliminate harm for the people. Yu Chenghui showed the shocking scene of "two-handed sword" in the film, and successfully created the image of Ma Yi, a swordsman.
In the 90s, he temporarily left the film industry and only directed and acted in the costume action film "The Legend of Heroes Returning to the East". After entering the new millennium, Yu Chenghui is still active in the field of martial arts film and television. Feng Qingyang, Huang Laoxi, Zhang Sanfeng, Ip Man and other characters are all classic images in the minds of generations of people he has created. The firm will and sense of vicissitudes of time he showed in the role of ancient costume martial arts, coupled with his snow-white beard and full hair, make him more of a worldly and well-rounded temperament, which is deeply loved by the audience.
However, Yu Chenghui passed away in 2015 at the age of 76. His life showed the charm of martial arts and the pure pursuit of swordsmanship. Many people praised him as a real martial artist, who entered the martial arts with a sword, and was called the "Chinese Sword Saint".
Ninth place: Ding Lan
Representative works: "Shaolin Temple" and "Thirteen Sisters of Chivalry"
"Shaolin Temple" not only made Jet Li popular, but also made Ding Lan very popular. With his graceful dancing and superb martial arts, he won the love of many male fans in the 80s.
She is not from a martial arts class, but has studied dance for many years. She skillfully applied her dance skills to theatrical performances, mastered a rich variety of martial arts skills, and was deeply loved by the audience.
Since then, she has successively participated in many well-known films such as "Shaolin Kid", "Tanglin Thief", "Thirteen Sisters of Chivalry", "Dream of Red Mansions" and "Carrying a Sedan Chair". However, in 1991, when her career was in full swing, she made the decision to move to Singapore and became a Singaporean citizen. In the following ten years, her development in the Singapore film and television industry was not satisfactory, and most of them played some supporting roles.
In 2001, Ding Lan returned to his homeland and began to set foot in the business field, founded his own company with excellent business talents, and has now successfully become a business elite with assets of more than 100 million yuan.
Tenth place: Huang Qiuyan
Representative: "Shaolin Kid"
Huang Qiuyan, who learned martial arts at the age of 11, was selected into the Beijing professional martial arts team in 1971 at the age of 13, specializing in guns and swords, and won the snake fist and double sword awards in the Beijing Wushu Competition. is Jet Li's sister, who is also his ex-wife, and the two have two daughters.
Huang Qiuyan has only participated in two films, both of which have been with Jet Li. In 1984, she played the heroine "Sanfeng" in "Shaolin Kid" and performed a love affair with Jet Li. In the play, Huang Qiuyan created a brave, confident and resolute female image, which is very pleasing and makes the audience remember this heroic girl. In 1986, she co-starred with Jet Li again in "North and South Shaolin", once again playing a pair of happy enemies.
In real life, Huang Qiuyan takes care of her young junior and younger brothers, and long-term coexistence makes each other have a deep affection for each other. In 1987, the two entered the palace of marriage, after which Huang Qiuyan retired from the film industry to focus on family and children's education, while Jet Li developed his career in Hong Kong. However, the marriage did not last long, and Jet Li's affair led to the divorce of the two. After the divorce, Huang Qiuyan lived overseas all the year round and rarely appeared in public.
In 2015, the cast of "Shaolin Kid" reunited, and Huang Qiuyan attended the event, Jet Li was 52 years old at this time, and Huang Qiuyan was 54 years old, which was the only photo they had taken together after 25 years. It can be seen that they have already let go of each other.
Time flies, and it's embarrassing. The screen heroes of those memories are long gone. We can only recall the great years that have passed in the light and shadow.