At 60 – Jackie Chan on Work and Retirement
Jackie Chan: ‘I hate violence’
When you say that you are meeting Jackie Chan, everyone grins. Friends, family, colleagues… nobody has a bad word to say. It’s a bit of a surprise when you consider that he found fame by falling over and beating people up. Then again, Chan is one of the most famous men on the planet, and really he has got there by making us smile. He doesn’t come to mind as quickly as a Clooney or a Cruise, but he is probably more recognisable than either. After Obama, the Pope, and a handful of footballers, it is hard to think of anyone who would have been seen by a bigger audience. During the nearly 50 years he has been working, hundreds of millions – perhaps billions – have been charmed by a Chan movie. He is the eternal cheeky underdog, with lightning fists and an open face that seems forever on the cusp of either tears or laughter.
As he walks through the hotel where we are due to talk, there is a warm murmur of recognition from children and adults alike. In person he is ageless, slim with thick dark hair. “I can’t go out any more,” he says. “I used to love coming to London. I’d go to antiques shops and markets, walk around, go to the theatre. Now I just stay in the hotel. I eat in the hotel, sleep in the hotel, do interviews in the hotel. Then I leave. If I go out people follow me, surround me, shout, take pictures.
Jackie Chan on Work and Retirement
Is anywhere safe? Apparently not the South Pacific, where Chan filmed his most recent film, Chinese Zodiac, in Vanuatu.
“The country only has a population of 25,000, mostly natives without shoes. But when I drove through, the whole village was on the street, shouting: ‘Jackie! Jackie!’ The only people they’d heard of were Sylvester Stallone and Jackie Chan.” He refers to himself often in the third person.
“Sometimes I miss being more private. I used to wander around with my sunglasses on and people wouldn’t know it was me. But one day I woke up and the whole world knew Jackie Chan, from tiny children to old people. That was around 27 years ago. Since then it has been the same everywhere I go. So many people want a piece of Jackie Chan.”
Jackie Chan When you say that you are meeting Jackie Chan , everyone grins. Friends, family, colleagues… nobody has a bad word to say. It’s a bit of a surprise when you consider that he found fame by falling over and beating people up. Then again, Chan is one […]
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