AsianConnections
Jim Ferguson interviews
Jet
Li -
Star of Romeo Must Die
Jim
Ferguson: Jet, thank you so much for talking to AsianConnections!
This is the second time we've met. We did this interview for
"Lethal Weapon 4," and in that movie you played a bad guy.
Jet
Li talks about his transition from villain to romantic lead
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Jet
Li: Yes. (Laughter)
Jim
Ferguson: And in this movie, "Romeo Must Die," you're a good
guy again. Do you prefer that?
Jet
Li: Yes, because I made 25 movies in Hong Kong, I always
play the good guy, so first time my producer Joel Silver he say,
"play the bad guy." I say, "bye, guy." (Laughter)
I've never done that before!
So in the beginning
I had a little bit worry about it, but on the second time, he promised,
he said, "Jet, I promise you, after you play the bad guy, I'll give
you the good guy again." Yes, ah, what's the movie? (Laughter)
He said, it's called "Romeo Must Die." That sound like a romantic
movie, not an action movie. I say, okay! So, I played
the villain, now I play the good guy again.
Jim
Ferguson: I'm glad you did too. Is this kind of a breakthrough
in the sense that, you as an Asian actor?Russell [Wong] thought
it was very important, that you are the romantic lead?
Jet Li: I always think I have some background,
because I was in martial arts, but I'm also [an] actor, I try to
play the character well. I think martial arts can help the character,
but the first important is the story, and then your character, romantic
lead.
Jim
Ferguson: You are the romantic lead!
Jet
Li: (Laughter) Thank you.
Jim Ferguson: Speaking of romance, are you
and your wife adjusting to life in Los Angeles?
Jet
Li: Yes, yes. I just moved two years, since "Lethal
Weapon 4," you know, when I finish. I think, we have the opportunity
to work in Hollywood, so we moved from Hong Kong to Los Angeles.
Jet Li talks
about different types of wushu
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Jim Ferguson: That's wonderful. Could you give me
some just short answers on some of my favorite scenes? One,
the football scene.
Jet
Li: Yeah, I tried to decide all the action scenes differently,
so football scene, put the martial arts with American football,
we play together, with new fresh action sequence. That's my idea.
Jim
Ferguson: In the beginning of the film, the rope fight in
prison.
Jet
Li: Oh, nice, the hardest. (laughter) Because we
saw a lot of movie fight, fight with the bad guy, but, my character
will decide upside down. Decide is so easy, but when you really
work on that scene, it is so hard, to over over a day, upside down
there! I worked five days on that scene. So everyday, the
head, I get a headache. (Laughter) You cannot concentrate to do
something.
Jim Ferguson: Lastly, the last fight with Russell
Wong, with the sun glasses. (Laughter)
Jet
Li: If you know, my character, he doesn't want to kill
everybody, he just fight, stop them. You know, romantic. He
use Aaliyah to fight with another bad girl. But until ending, a
serious fight with Russell Wong, is hand to hand..is very cool stuff.
Jim
Ferguson: It's excellent stuff. And this movie doesn't stop
from the beginning to the end. I really enjoyed it.
And just for our audience could you please say hi to AsianConnections?
"Hi to
AsianConnections, from Jet Li!" 
Thanks!
Jet!
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End of Interview --
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