Trivia: Following closely on Jackie Chan's well-calloused heels as one of the most dazzling physical performers of the silver screen, Jet Li's lightning-fast moves, friendly sense of humor, and genuine concern for his fans have endeared him to a generation of international action-film lovers as one of the most respected figures in martial arts cinema. The youngest of five siblings (consisting of two brother and two sisters) whose father died when he was only two years old, one might say that the painfully honest momma's boy has, since reaching adulthood, slightly overcompensated for his admittedly over-protected childhood (the future daredevil didn't even learn how to ride a bicycle until in his early teens). Sent during summer recess to what is now referred to as the Beijing Sports and Exercise school, Li was fatefully assigned to the wushu class and was one of a mere handful of students asked to return when the season ended and students filed back into classrooms in the fall. An exceptionally adept wushu student despite being only eight years of age, the experience boosted the confidence of the shy youth despite urges to join his classmates in after-school play. Leaving home for the first time the following year to attend competition, Li took first place at the event and was concurrently given the honor of performing at the opening ceremony of the eagerly anticipated Pan-Asian-African-Latin American Table Tennis Championships, an honor which also included the youth receiving personal praise from none other than Premier Zhou Enlai. No longer required to attend conventional schooling, the young wonder was admitted to a rigorous sports school. Eventually remaining with a group that consisted of 20 of China's finest young wushu practitioners, the students were then put through another kind of training entirely -- this time of the Western etiquette persuasion -- for an extremely important goodwill tour of the United States. Despite a potentially embarrassing international incident in which the overly excited youngster expressed his excitement when he spotted what he thought was a Chinese airplane in Hawaii (the plane was actually Tawianese, an extremely sensitive and important distinction at the time) and travels with a heavily guarded entourage, the journey went fairly well and gave Li a newfound sense of independence. Winning the coveted All-China Youth Championships upon his return to China provided Li with his first national championship title, though it was only a prelude to a slew of awards to come including a bloodied performance at the qualifying round of China's National Games, during which Li accidentally cut his head with his saber (the determined youngster didn't even realize what had happened, assuming he was simply perspiring, until his form was nearly finished). Despite his serious injury, the 12-year-old Li went on to win first place in the National Games to the amazement of the enraptured crowd. Competing frequently in the following years and surviving a close brush with death in a faulty cargo plane (the passengers were literally given pads of paper to write out their wills), Li was later appointed to an official welcoming committee for American presidents due to his previous contributions to positive Sino-American relations. Later attempting to live up to his title of "All-Around Wushu Champion of China," the 16-year-old who many referred to as all capable decided to do all he could to live up to the title by internalizing his understanding of the wushu practice through philosophy. Operating on the basic principle of Taiji (similar to yin/yang in the balance/counterbalance theory), Li began an internal voyage that would be just as rewarding as the physical labors he had so diligently pursued. Breaking into the world of film with an exciting performance in 1979's Shaolin Temple, Li's screen presence was undeniable and ignited a boom in the kung-fu film industry during the 1980s. Though he took an unsuccessful attempt at directing a few short years later with Born to Defend (1986), his acting career continued to accelerate at high speed with such hits as the Once Upon a Time in China and the Fong Sai-Yuk series in the early '90s. Rising to remarkable celebrity status due to his charm and unmatchable moves, Li gained fans in both the young and old and continued to thrill Eastern moviegoers in increasingly awe-inspiring ways. A crossover to American films began with his role as the villain in Lethal Weapon 4 (1998) (a role originally offered to Chan but turned down due to his inclination never to play the bad guy), and continued with more likable roles in Romeo Must Die and Kiss of the Dragon (2000 and 2001 respectively). Li caused something of a sensation with the release of Kiss of the Dragon when he made a special plea to parents not to bring their children to the film due to the unusually (for Li) adult-oriented violence of the film. A request virtually unheard of in the Hollywood system, Li promised parents that they would soon be able to share his high-kicking escapades with their children with the decidedly more family friendly The One a few short months later. In 2003 Li would return to stateside screens alongside DMX in Cradle to the Grave (2003), a remake of the classic Fritz Lang film M (1931) which fared only moderatly well at the box office.Just as it began to seem as if Li had forsaken the period martial arts genre on which he was weaned in favor of mainstream Hollywood success, his memorable return to the format with director Zhang Yimou's richly textured 2002 effort Hero proved to fans that he still possessed all the talent and charm he had so skillfully displayed in the previous Hong Kong hits produced before his crossover success. Despite the fact that the film drew some of the best reviews of Li's later career, however, the inexplicable decision made by U.S. distributor Miramax to sit on Hero for nearly two years before unceremoniously dumping it into stateside theaters in August of 2004 eventually caused many fans to seek out foreign releases of the critically-praised effort well before it's official U.S. release; a mournful mistake that likely resulted in diminshed sales at stateside multiplexes. A second collaboration with Kiss of the Dragon collaborator Luc Besson resulted in Unleashed, an effort many fans considered to be a notable improvement over his previous U.S. efforts, and in 2006 Li would return to the genre that launched his career one last time with the throwback martial arts biopic Fearless. A traditional-minded kung-fu epic that eschewed wirework and digital effects to focus on character and the art of fighting, Fearless proved an enormous success when it out-grossed such recent hits as House of Flying Daggars, Hero, and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon upon being released into East Asian theaters in January of 2006. He made The Warlords and The Forbidden Kingdom, and had one of this most high-profile successes in the United States being part of the superstar ensemble in The Expendables, signing on for that movie's sequel two years later as well. In between those two films he could be seen in Flying Swords of the Dragon Gate and Emperor and the White Snake.

Trivia: British director Guy Ritchie frequently attributes the success of his unorthodox crime films -- 1998's Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels, 2000's Snatch -- to the fact that his offbeat miscreants are more than believable, they are real. Preferring to cast for authenticity rather than resumé, Ritchie handpicks many of his actors from the true-life cult figures and rascals of London's underbelly. Actor Jason Statham is among the best of them.A one-time Olympic diver, fashion model, and black-market salesman, Statham came to acting by way of commercials and "street theater" -- a euphemism for hustling tourists on London's Oxford Street. Raised in Syndenham, London, he was the second son of a lounge singer and a dressmaker turned dancer. Although Statham had the familial background to go immediately into entertainment, he excelled first on the high dive. He was a member of the 1988 British Olympic Team in Seoul, Korea, and remained on the National Diving Squad for ten years. In the late '90s, a talent agent specializing in athletes landed Statham a gig in an ad campaign for the European clothing retailer French Connection. This led to an appearance in a Levi's Jeans commercial and a fledgling modeling career. Meanwhile, Statham had also earned local fame as a street corner con man, selling stolen jewelry and counterfeit perfume out of a briefcase. Thus, when French Connection's owner became one of the biggest investors in Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels, he naturally introduced the diver/model/hustler to knave-hunting Ritchie.Intrigued by Statham's past and impressed by his modeling work, Ritchie invited him to audition for a part in the film. The director challenged Statham to impersonate an illegal street vendor and convince him to purchase a piece of imitation gold jewelry. Statham was evidently so persuasive that Ritchie bought four sets. When the director attempted to return his worthless acquisition -- pretending that the gold had turned to stainless steel -- Statham was so graciously inflexible that Ritchie hired him.This unorthodox audition resulted in Statham's big screen debut as Bacon, one of Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels' four primary characters engaged in a risky get-rich-quick scheme to repay a massive gambling debt. Bacon supplies a streetwise discipline and restraint that the other characters lack and a sense of humility crucial to Ritchie's film. In the director's follow-up crime comedy, Snatch, Ritchie rehired Statham to play Turkish, a smalltime hood vainly trying to break into the world of underground boxing. As this amateur but respectable hoodlum, Statham is attractive, urbane, immaculate, and smart enough to be bewildered by even his own laughable criminal ineptitude. The role began as a small supporting part in Snatch's star-filled ensemble cast but expanded throughout shooting. By the time of the film's theatrical release, Statham received top billing as its narrator and chief anti-hero.The Guy Ritchie oeuvre that supplied his breakthrough performances is not Statham's only acting arena. In 2000, he made his American film debut as a British drug dealer in Robert Adetuyi's Turn It Up starring Pras Michel. By 2001, he had finished shooting John Carpenter's sci-fi thriller Ghosts of Mars and joined Delroy Lindo in the cast of the Jet Li vehicle The One. A chance to reteam with former Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrel co-star Vinnie Jones proved too fun an opportunity to resist, and Stratham would round out a particularly busy 2001 with his role in the prison-bound sports remake Mean Machine. Just as audiences were finally standing up to take notice of the amiable tough-guy, Stratham stepped into his own as the action lead of the explosive 2002 adrenaline ride The Transporter. A sizable hit that would earn Statham increasingly prominent roles in such high profile pics as The Italian Job, and Cellular, The Transporter established Stratham as a bankable international action star and was eventually followed by a 2005 sequel that miraculously managed the improbable feat of upping the ante of the previous installment's over-the-top cartoon violence. A starring role in Ritchie's 2005 crime thriller Revolver found Stratham re-teaming with the director who launched his career with decidedly mixed results, and the following year it was off to race the clock and rescue the girl as a reformed assassin looking to make good in the hyper-intense action entry Crank. The positively outrageous Crank: High Voltage upped the ante (and the ampage) in every possible way in 2009, but not before Statham got behind the wheel for Resident Evil director Paul W.A. Anderson for the 2008 remake Death Race, discovered just how far a foolproof heist could go awry in The Bank Job, and once again put the pedal to the metal in The Transporter 3. All of this left little doubt that Statham had quickly become one of the most bankable action stars of his generation, and in 2010 he teamed with none other than Sylvester Stallone for the all-star action flick The Expendables. The action just kept coming in The Mechanic, Blitz, Killer Elite (which paired him with screen legend Robert DeNiro), Safe, and the super-sized The Expendables 2 in 2012. Statham next joined another franchise, making a cameo appearance in Fast & Furious 6. He also reprised his role in The Expendables 3. In 2015, Statham appeared in Furious 7 and flexed his comedy chops in Spy, opposite Melissa McCarthy, earning favorable reviews and opening him to another genre.

Trivia: A well-respected character actor who specializes in playing tough guys with a heart, Luis Guzman has appeared in a dizzying array of film and television productions since he began his professional acting career in the early 1980s.Born August 28, 1956, Guzman graduated from City College and worked for some years as a youth counselor at the Henry Street Settlement House. During his time as a social worker, he began performing in street theatre and independent films. Guzman got his first big break in the early '80s with a role on the popular TV series Miami Vice. He went on to work sporadically in film and television throughout the rest of the decade, appearing in such films as Sidney Lumet's Family Business and Ridley Scott's Black Rain (both 1989).Guzman's work schedule grew increasingly crowded as the 1990s progressed; kicking off the decade with an appearance in another Lumet piece, Q & A (1990), the actor began popping up in films ranging from romantic comedy (Anthony Minghella's Mr. Wonderful, 1993) to crime drama (Brian De Palma's Carlito's Way, 1993) to gay and lesbian historical docudrama (Nigel Finch's Stonewall, 1995). Thanks to directors Steven Soderbergh and Paul Thomas Anderson, Guzman became more readily recognizable in the late 1990s. For Soderbergh, he had substantial roles in Out of Sight (1998), which cast him as a prisoner whose planned escape is ruined by George Clooney; and The Limey (1999), in which he played Terence Stamp's gruff but good-hearted partner in revenge. For Anderson, Guzman appeared in both Boogie Nights (1997) and Magnolia (1999), playing a wannabe porn star in the former and a game show contestant in the latter. 2002 proved Guzman's busiest year to date as the increasingly visible actor appeared in no less than five films, including a prominant role in the caper comedy Welcome to Collinwood and a re-teaming with director Anderson with Punch-Drunk Love. On television, Guzman became a regular presence thanks to a recurring role on the HBO prison drama Oz, as well as appearances on such shows as Law and Order, NYPD Blue, and Walker, Texas Ranger.

Trivia: Chances are that by the time you saw model-turned-actress Devon Aoki step behind the wheel in 2 Fast 2 Furious you were already asking yourself, "where have I seen that face before?" With an impressive modeling background that has included campaigns for such world-famous designers as Chanel and Versace -- not to mention appearances on the covers of Vogue, Harper's Bazaar, and Interview -- the answer to that question could be one of many. A seemingly ubiquitous presence in the world of modeling in the millennial changeover, Aoki has since gone on to craft an impressive career onscreen as well thanks to roles in such high-profile Hollywood features as the aforementioned Fast and the Furious sequel, the high-school secret agent comedy D.E.B.S., and director Robert Rodriguez's Sin City. Devon Aoki was born in New York City to Benihana restaurant founder Rocky Aoki and Anglo-Bavarian jewelry designer Pamela Hilburger; the Aoki family subsequently settled briefly on the West Coast before returning back East when young Devon was 13 years old. It was shortly after their return to New York that Aoki was spotted by a photographer while attending a Rancid concert, and following a move to London shortly thereafter, Aoki's modeling career skyrocketed. A hot property on both the magazine scene and the runway circuit, Aoki soon began considering other means by which to expand her career. Already comfortable in front of the camera and a big fan of the movies, Aoki convinced filmmakers to give her a shot at the big screen, and despite the fact that she didn't have a driver's license and had never driven a car, the striking young model was soon cast in director John Singleton's 2 Fast 2 Furious. A role as a brainy schoolgirl who joins an elite national-defense group in D.E.B.S. was quick to follow in 2004, and the following year Aoki used the very sword that Uma Thurman wielded in the Kill Bill saga to air out Oscar-winner Benicio Del Toro in the brutally violent and visually vibrant comic book film Sin City.

Trivia: Born in a German refugee camp, actor Saul Rubinek was raised in Canada, where he began his career. After several years of activity with the Toronto Free Theater, the versatile Rubinek headed for New York, where he worked in repertory and on Broadway. Rubinek's performance as the best friend of religious cult member Nick Mancuso in the little-seen Ticket to Heaven (1981) was a critical coup for the actor. A reliable presence in such meaty supporting roles as the Ned Buntline-ish dime novelist in The Unforgiven (1994), and Hollywood producer Lee Donowitz in True Romance, Rubinek would spend the coming decades working steadily in films like I Love Trouble and Nixon, as well as on TV shows like A Nero Wolfe Mystery, Frasier, Blind Justice, and Warehouse 13.

Trivia: Actor and occasional producer Sung Kang launched his career in the early 2000s. Though he continually tackled bit parts or supporting roles that called for standard Asian types, such as guest spots on NYPD Blue and in features such as Antwone Fisher (2002) and Forbidden Warrior (2004), Kang made his most enduring mark by co-producing and starring in a series of critically praised independent films with predominantly Asian-American casts and crews. The first of these projects arose when Kang signed to associate produce and tackle a plum role as one of the leads in writer/director Justin Lin's drama Better Luck Tomorrow (2002), about a group of troubled Asian-American adolescents who drift ever so casually into low-level crime. He followed it up by producing and starring in a sophomore project, the action-infused crime saga Undoing (2006), as a somewhat naïve young man who embarks on a crusade of vengeance against the thugs who rubbed out his best friend. Additional supporting roles ensued, in features such as The Fast and The Furious: Tokyo Drift (2006), Live Free or Die Hard (2007), and War (2007).

Trivia: Every actor or actress with a substantial degree of public recognition can attest to a big break; for Andrea Roth, that break arrived in the form of Rescue Me (2004), a smash-hit seriocomedy on the FX channel where the actress played Janet Gavin, the estranged ex-wife of brash, acid-mouthed firefighter Tommy (Denis Leary). It marked one of the first roles to secure the Canadian actress' national reputation, but -- in actuality -- only the tail end of a series of parts that stretched back to 1981. Roth debuted auspiciously, that year, with the role of Amy in the Australian sports drama The Club, directed by Bruce Beresford and scripted by David Williamson (Don's Party). Many projects followed over the next three decades, but more often than not, Roth appeared to be stuck in a rut and saddled with exploitative pap -- such as the made-for-television Canadian thriller Psychic, the 1998 big-screen feature Burn, and the 2002 gorefest Sasquatch. Rescue Me unquestionably lifted Roth's reputation by several notches and oriented her toward more respected material. In 2007, Roth also appeared in the Jet Li action vehicle War, about a federal agent unwittingly caught in a turf war between the yakuza and a violent triad. In the years to follow, Roth would find continued success on the small screen, starring on the series Ringer.

Trivia: Chinese-Canadian actor Terry Chen first achieved international recognition at the dawn of the millennium, when he appeared in two very different A-listers: Romeo Must Die, an avant-garde, martial-arts-saturated take on Romeo and Juliet (starring ill-fated pop diva Aaliyah and DMX); and Almost Famous, Cameron Crowe's nostalgic coming-of-ager about the early experience of a rock journalist-cum-roadie. Despite occasional dips into more conventional material -- a Dean Koontz telemovie, the glamorized spy film Ballistic (2002) -- Chen remained generally selective about Hollywood parts. He was memorable as a Merc Pilot in The Chronicles of Riddick, as Chin in the futuristic Will Smith sci-fi film I, Robot (2004), and as Tom Lone in War (2007), an action-filled tale about an FBI agent enmeshed in a battle between rival Asian gangs. Over the coming years, Chen would remain active on screen, appearing in movies like The A-Team and on series like Combat Hospital.

Trivia: Started off as a freelancer in Singapore and made her debut in the second season of Heartlanders. Moved to North America after MediaWorks merged with MediaCorp. Has received five Leo Award nominations and one Gemini Award nomination for her TV and film work in Canada and the United States. Voted "Number 1 Sexiest in the World" by FHM Asia in 2006. Voice-acted in one of Rockstar's most successful games, Sleeping Dogs in 2012. Canada's leading film and entertainment rag, Playback Magazine included her in "Top Ten People to Watch Out For" list. Chatelaine Magazine, Canada's best selling monthly, labeled Steph "The new face of Canadian film" in their cover story.

Trivia: Handsome and genial African-American player Mathew St. Patrick found fame among pay-cable aficionados in the early 2000s, with his portrayal of Keith, the gay lover-turned-husband of mortician David (Michael C. Hall) on the HBO original series Six Feet Under. Following the end of that series, St. Patrick took on a regular role as Detective Kenneth Marjorino on the short-lived mystery drama series Reunion on the Fox network. He achieved his next major dramatic coup by essaying the small part of Special Agent Wick in the crime-tinged actioner War (2007) -- a big-screen feature about an FBI agent (Jet Li) who sets out to gain revenge for the death of his family and ends up caught in a war between a triad and the yakuza.

Trivia: A one-time gymnast hopeful who only gained the courage to try acting after a pep talk from a friendly Chicago talent agent, My Name Is Earl star Nadine Velazquez nearly left her dreams behind in favor of a more "sensible" career in marketing. Thankfully for her many fans, Velazquez accepted a part-time position at a well-known Windy City talent agency in order to pay her tuition at Columbia College and a healthy commercial career was quick to follow. Though Velazquez eventually received her B.A. in marketing from Columbia, the silver screen was calling and it was finally time to test her luck in Los Angeles. Upon arriving in Hollywood, the up-and-coming actress soon landed parts in both film and television (Biker Boyz and The Bold and the Beautiful). While supporting roles on such shows as Entourage and Las Vegas would serve well to familiarize viewers with Velazquez, it was her recurring role as sexy hotel maid Catalina on My Name Is Earl that proved her true small-screen breakthrough. In 2007, Velazquez found herself in the middle of a sizeable escalation when she signed on to appear opposite Jet Li and Jason Statham in the explosive action thriller War.

Trivia: Appeared in commercials for Priceline, Blockbuster, Mercedes-Benz and Bombay Sapphire Gin. Provides voices for the video games Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas and Captain America: Super Soldier. Did a lot of research on World War II for his role in 2011's Captain America:The First Avenger, and participated in stunt and weapons training. In 2011, participated in the inaugural CAPE (Coalition of Asian Pacifics in Entertainment) Celebrity Poker Tournament. First full-time series role was the 2013 reboot of Ironside. Is such a big fan of Chicago's Aurelio's Pizza that he has them air-shipped to his home twice a year.

Trivia: Studied classical piano in his youth. Dreamed of being an Olympic hockey player as a kid. Studied engineering in college. Worked as a film editor before pursuing his acting career full-time.

Trivia: Has long been passionate about music and began playing piano at a young age. Has been a successful actress in French films and television since the 1990s, having appeared in L'Exil, Les amires de ma femme, Elles n'oublient jamais and Les grandes bouches. Rose to an international level of fame after starring in The Crimson Rivers in 2002. Released her debut album Momentum in 2011.