Is Jackie Chan really retiring?
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Congratulations on the film, first of all.
The downhill sequence at the beginning was amazing.
I was wondering if you could talk a bit about how you devised and executed that.
As soon as I saw it, I went, Ah!
That would be good for my movie.
But I kept it a secret.
So I flew to Paris and met that guy, and trained for one month.
Then, when I started shooting, I brought him up to help me choreograph it.
But we did things hed never done before, like going under cars.
He was [makes reluctant face], but I said, Yes.
We need to do something [special].
I think I did the right thing.
It looks incredibly dangerous.
Was it as dangerous as it looks on screen?
Because when we started, for me, it was very hard to stop.
Youre just, Whoosh!
The funny thing is, whenever you turn to the side, you start sliding.
You hear this sound [makes a staccatto ka-ka-ka-kaaargh noise].
So this is why we made sure there was no cars.
Theyre all, honk, honk, honk!
They want to know what happened.
Why have we blocked the whole mountain?
Then suddenly, when they pass by, they see Jackie Chan filming, they say, Aaah!
I say, No, no.
But we just want to take a photo!
[Laughs]
I took to hiding.
I try not to let people know Im filming, otherwise nothing happens.
Youve said that this is going to be your last big action film, with your own major stunts.
Is that still true?
[Sighs] Uhh, yeah.
Because I can tell Im not young anymore.
Because I got hurt in [Chinese Zodiac] a painting fell down and almost crushed my back.
Then of course, I pretend nothings wrong.
I just sit to one side.
When should I stop?
I think now is a good time to stop.
That this should be my last action movie.
Because I still love action.
I keep testing myself.
I believe that for the next five years I can still keep going, I can still move.
Im just counting to see how far I can go.
I just finished a movie [Dragon Blade] in the desert with John Cusack and Adrien Brody.
We dont need big stunts, its just [indicates punching] Pow, pow, pow!
The next movie, we start at the end of this month… Im non-stop.
[Its called]Skiptrace[with Seann William-Scott].
I chase one of the thieves.
The CIA are looking for him, the Hong Kong police, the Chinese police, the Russian mafia.
I have to chase him from Russia, Macau, Hong Kong, Siberia.
We cant take the train, plane, car.
We can only walk.
So the whole thing is lots and lots of action.
Then I haveKarate Kid II.Now were talking aboutRush Hour 4, Shanghai Dawn…
So youre not slowing down, then!
Well, I want to slow down, but the projects keep coming.
And there are some projects I really like, like somebody mentionedChina Man, andCivilian.
Sooner or later youll hear the news.
Those are two scripts that I really liked.
Theyre for me they really wrote something for me.
Theyre different fromRush Hour.
Because they already asked me to be in two and three, but I refused.
Well, I didnt refuse, but I said, Sly, cant we just do you and me?
Not just a bunch of people and me only coming out for five minutes.
Because then the audience is, Oh!
And then Im gone.
So if Im inExpendables 4,I want it to be me and him then it might be interesting.
Otherwise you just come out for five minutes.
Its just a cameo.
I thinkZodiac II…[pauses for dramatic effect] will be my last big action movie!
I just dont know when.
Whens a good time?
Whens a good moment?
Some day I should, but if Stallone can still do action, then I think I still can.
Hes slightly older than Arnold Schwarzenegger, isnt he?
Arnolds 67, and I think Slys 68.
[Genuinely surprised] So hes older than [Arnold]?
Hes gonna be 68?
You have years left in you.
[Laughs]
No, my kind of actions different.
My kind of actions different than Schwarzenegger or Stallone.
Stallones more punching and gun fighting.
My kind of actions more physical.
Your screen personas quite different, too.
Youre the everyman, the underdog everyone roots for.
[Another punch]
Looking back on your earlier films, what are your memories of makingPolice Story?
That was the first film I saw you in, and I still remember being blown away by it.
I was stunned by the stunts in that.
You should look back at my older movies.
Oh I did after that.Drunken Master, The Young Master…
Ah, right.
When directors copied Bruce Lee, none of the films were a success.
I realised, I have to be Jackie Chan.
I cant be Bruce Lee there is only one Bruce Lee.
I watched Bruce Lee and what he did.
He became a superhero, I became the opposite.
He kicked high, I kicked low.
He punched like this, I punched that way.
He was serious, so I did more comedy.
One movie audiences turned up to see my movie, because it was different.
But because I made that film, within nine months, one year, someone made something similar.
I was just, [exasperated sigh].
So I thought, okay.
The next time, I never mentioned what I was doing next.
I madePolice Story,and they werent expecting it.
Not likeDrunken Master,orSnake In The Eagle Shadow,where they could copy it right away.
Police Storywas really my big breakthrough, where even Hollywood was shocked.
What kind of person would do this?
Is he still alive?
I really risked my life to make that movie.
And scenes from it were copied quite a lot afterwards.
Yeah, Sly copied me.Bad Boys.Even Mel Gibson.
I copied Buster Keaton, Harold Lloyd.
I dont think its really copying…
Its inspiration.
Inspiration, thats it!
Jackie Chan, its been a genuine pleasure.
Chinese Zodiacis out on Blu-ray and DVD now, from Universal Pictures (UK).
