With more than 100 films under his belt, it’s no surprise that actor and martial artist Jackie Chan doesn’t love everything he’s appeared in. Chan has been a star across the globe, appearing in Hollywood productions as well as films produced in his native China. (He’s also a pop star there!) But, as much as he’s enjoyed and appreciated his career, there are a few films he regrets making.
Jackie Chan is best known for appearing in some of Chan's comedies among his least-favorite films is equally plausible.
As a result, there’s definitely a mix of genres when it comes to films that Jackie Chan regrets. Whether his opinions are formed by plot, production, or just a general distaste, there’s a handful of films that fans won’t find Chan praising any time soon. Here are five of his films that Jackie Chan doesn't actually like.
Rush Hour
One of Jackie Chan’s most popular silver screen offerings is the buddy cop movie Rush Hour with co-star Chris Tucker. In the 1998 film, directed by the since-disgraced Brett Ratner, Chan plays a Chinese police inspector who travels to America to help a former boss find his kidnapped daughter. Rather than take his help, the FBI es him off on the Los Angeles Police Department, which pairs him up with Chris Tucker's detective character. Neither officer is pleased, but they overcome their differences to save the little girl.
After finishing Rush Hour, Chan was less than thrilled. While he was initially pleased with not needing to speak perfect English for the role—he was self-conscious about his grasp of the language—he later felt that it was still too noticeable. This also contributed to his inability to understand the humor of the film. With Chris Tucker's infamously speedy line delivery, as well as differing cultural backgrounds, Chan struggled to find where the funny was. The fact that it took off was a huge surprise for him.
In later years, Chan has softened a bit on the films. He acknowledges that his American fans are incredibly fond of them, and he made two sequels. (There was also a Rush Hour TV show, though he wasn't in it.) Still, Chan mostly considers the movies to be low on his list of his forays into Hollywood.
City Hunter
In 1993, Chan starred in City Hunter, an action-comedy produced in Hong Kong. Based on a manga of the same name, the plot follows private detective Ryo Saeba (Chan) and his partner as they try to find a Japanese CEO’s runaway daughter. The film features fights on a cruise liner, hallucinations based on the popular Street Fighter arcade game, and Chan’s Saeba being hit with a comically giant hammer.
Culturally, City Hunter is the other side of Rush Hour’s coin. Unlike other Jackie Chan comedies, its humor doesn’t translate well to American audiences, appearing over the top. Its Street Fighter scene also turns some viewers off, seeming outlandish. Other negatives include the fact that Chan’s character is a blatant womanizer, and there are a plethora of homophobic and transphobic jokes in the film. Soon after its release, Chan disowned the movie and proceeded to bouth the director, Wong Jing. Given its less-than-stellar reception in America, it’s easy to see why Chan isn’t very fond of the film.
The Protector
A t Hong Kong-American film, 1985’s The Protector is a straightforward action film that served as Jackie Chan’s second foray into Hollywood. Chan stars as a police officer who spends the film going head to head with drug smugglers who operate in New York and Hong Kong. In the process, he rescues a gangster’s daughter and reveals that the Hong Kong Police’s chief superintendent was working with the bad guys all along.
What lands this martial arts-filled movie on the actor’s list of least favorites is the fact that he and director James Glickenhaus couldn’t agree on its direction. Moreover, Jackie Chan was unhappy with Glickenhaus’s vision when it came to the fight scenes. Chan disapproved of the film so much that he ended up making his own cut, where he removed bits that he didn’t like and filmed new scenes. Ultimately, with The Protector, it was the desire to make it better that led to Chan’s distaste for the movie.
All in the Family
This 1975 Hong Kong comedy tells a familiar tale of the complications that arise when a family gets together after a crisis. After the Hu family patriarch dies, the remaining fight and scheme to get their hands on his possessions. While the family interacts with other characters throughout the film, it’s mostly about their greed.
All in the Family is an interesting Jackie Chan vehicle. Though marketed as the star, Chan doesn’t appear for most of the film nor are there any of his famous action scenes. Instead, Chan filmed a rare sex scene—something he deeply regrets. While his denouncement of the film as pornography is a bit of a stretch, he claimed that he only agreed to be involved in the project as a way to make ends meet.
Armour of God
Another Hong Kong production, 1986’s Armour of God is an action-adventure film in the Asian Hawk franchise that Chan actually wrote and directed. In this Indiana Jones-esque picture, he plays a musician-turned-treasure hunter. When his old bandmate shows up, saying that his girlfriend was taken hostage by a cult, Chan’s character must rely on his skills to save her and stop the cult.
Chan has never spoken out against the film, which was the highest grossing movie in Hong Kong. However, the accident-prone actor nearly lost his life during production. As he filmed a stunt that involved jumping into a tree, he took a 16-foot fall that put a permanent hole in his skull. So, while he takes no issue with the film itself, the making of it is far from his favorite memories of his acting career.
Throughout his career, Jackie Chan has been an action star who plays various law enforcement agents or general heroes who have to save the girl. In recent years, he’s expressed his desire to move away from these kinds of films in favor of playing more dramatic roles to avoid being typecast. Considering the similarities between the roles he hasn’t enjoyed, fans can only hope that he gets his wish.
