hanging it up

Jackie Chan Has Made His Final Action Film [UPDATE]

Photo: PATRICK LIN/AFP Images/Getty

Jackie Chan, star of approximately 400,000 action movies, is done making those kinds of movies. Speaking to the AP at Cannes, Chan says Chinese Zodiac is his final actioner, a film he spent seven years writing, directing, choreographing fights for, and producing. Chan, 58, is starting to wear at the seams thanks to decades of DIY stunts. “They say ‘no, you’re still young, you can still do it,’ but I have to stop one day,” he says. “It hurts, it really hurts. The shoulder, the ankle, it really hurts. You don’t know because I still look healthy.” Now Chan will look to iconic actors like Robert De Niro (“he can do anything — comedy, drama”) and Clint Eastwood (“60-70 years old, he can still move”) to hone his dramatic chops for his next however many years onscreen. “Action star’s life is so short. Actor’s life is very long,” he says. “I want to show audiences I can act.” If your chips were on a second, action-light Rush Hour trilogy, it’s time to reconsider that bet. But one can hope. UPDATE: Not exactly true! Chan wrote on Facebook that he won’t retire from action movies, but will partake in “less of the life risking stunts.” Also: “I will continue to do international action movies. And I will keep improving my English :-).”

Jackie Chan Has Made His Final Action Film