When it comes to Hollywood’s leading man in the field of pulling off incredible stunts on their own, Jackie Chan alongside Tom Cruise is one of their kind. In the Rush Hour star’s case, considering that he had to wait a while before making it big in Hollywood and cementing himself as a global icon, the actor was extremely determined to deliver his best with every coming opportunity.
However, the extreme determination of the Ride On star, who was extremely serious about giving his best in every scene, resulted in the Marvel star Don Cheadle almost losing his jaw while filming a cameo.
Jackie Chan gave Don Cheadle a hard time on Rush Hour 2
Back in the early 2000s, Don Cheadle agreed to film a brief cameo in the sequel to the highly successful Rush Hour, which comprised Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker at its forefront. The part for which the actor agreed to star in the sequel involved hand-to-hand combat against the Hong Kong legend. However, rehearsing for the sequence became extremely stressful for Cheadle as Jackie Chan was extremely determined to craft the perfect action sequence with the Iron Man 2 star. Don Cheadle recalled,
“We went to Jackie’s place, and Jackie speaks very little English, and he’s like, ‘Okay, let’s go. We fight fast.’ And he started going so hard. I was like, ‘Yo, this is a movie, bro.’ I’m glad I didn’t get my jaw broken.”
Despite the exhausting training period that Cheadle had to go through to match Chan’s level, the end product didn’t disappoint, as the brief cameo from Cheadle became memorable for fans.
It was Don Cheadle’s idea to fight Jackie Chan
Reflecting on his fond memories from Rush Hour 2, Don Cheadle explained it was his own idea to fight against the Honk Kong legend. After being offered to film a brief cameo by director Brett Ratner, who shared a great bond with Cheadle, thanks to their time together in The Family Man, the Marvel star didn’t hesitate to say yes. However, the actor did list a few conditions that involved fighting Jackie Chan, which were approved by the director. Cheadle recalled,
“I told [Ratner], ‘I’ll be in the movie if I can speak Chinese and fight Jackie Chan,’ and he said, ‘You want to get your ass kicked by Jackie Chan?”
Although the Avengers star didn’t have any interest in beating Chan in the fight sequence for Rush Hour 2, the actor did demand that he wasn’t going to end up on the losing side. This eventually resulted in the action scene ending in a draw and the scene still remains entertaining to this day.
Rush Hour 2 is available to stream on Netflix.
Source: Entertainment Weekly
