Review: THE LEGEND OF HERCULES, All Bow Down To King Scott Adkins

Scott Adkins out-fights, out-glowers, and out-growls everyone else with whom he shares a scene in Renny Harlin's The Legend of Hercules. That poses a challenge, because Scott Adkins is not playing Hercules, the half-breed son of Zeus. Instead, the mild-mannered Kellan Lutz smiles bashfully, squints manfully, and yells as loud as he can while he battles in slow-motion against all manner of men and computer-generated pixels. From a visual standpoint, Lutz fits the role of the Greek mythological hero at the age of 20. He is a splendid physical specimen, which is a good thing, since his chest remains bared during most of the movie. Alcides, as he is called by everyone, meekly accepts his subordinate place in the kingdom ruled by King Amphitryon (Scott Adkins), recognizing that his sneering, insecure, possibly cowardly older brother Iphicles (Liam Garrigan) is heir to the throne. He doesn't even raise an objection when Iphicles claims credit for killing the fearsome Nemean Lion. But he's none too happy at the prospect of his beloved Hebe (Gaia Weiss), princess of Crete, being given in marriage to Iphicles in order to secure an alliance between the two kingdoms, especially when King Amphitryon orders him to military service in Egypt. After fighting a battle in the desert and surviving gladiatorial servitude, Alcides learns of his true nature and his real name; his mother, Queen Alcmene (Roxanne McKee, in a strong performance), kept the truth from him in order to protect him. Eventually he rises up to become a mighty warrior in behalf of his people against the evil King Amphitryon, a despot who is defined by his angry glare. The storyline, as crafted by Harlin and several other writers, is charged with establishing a framework for the action sequences, which are mounted so as to showcase Lutz's dreamy musculature as he flies through the air in Zack Snyder-style stop-and-go motion, stabbing opponents with the greatest of ease. The fight scenes are filmed so as to ensure a PG-13 rating in the U.S., which means bloodshed is not evident after sharp objects are inserted into soft flesh; warriors crumple to the ground and there is no lingering on the violence. That's not a major stumbling block, because Harlin and his editor Vincent Tabaillon keep the action snappy; the emphasis is not on the dead bodies but on the growing legend of Hercules as an invincible fighter. Unfortunately, that brings things back around to Kellan Lutz's limitations as an actor. Even though this is an origin story for Hercules, the young man still needs to hold the promise of something more, and be able to communicate a sense of that potential, that this is a creature who is about to burst forth with a series of amazing accomplishments. legend-of-hercules-07-350.jpgSurrounded by a tornado of action and flocks of extras and a very game supporting cast and all the whiz-bang that Harlin can throw at the screen, Lutz comes across as a hero only be default, a good-looking guy who is in over his head. Frankly, he doesn't come across as the sharpest tool in the shed, and even his supposedly passionate love scenes with the lovely Gaia Weiss look a bit too sibling-esque to convey any heat. By taking a serious tone and aiming the material at a broad, family-friendly audience, Harlin and company evidently sought to create a classic, heroic tale. Instead, I kept wishing that the movie would magically transform into The Legend of Evil King Amphitryon and How He Easily Dispatched Young Hercules and Ruled Forever and Ever. Alas, 'twas not to be. The film opens wide across the U.S. on Friday, January 10, and in Canada on Friday, February 7.

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Interview with Scott Adkins, Part 1

Happy New Year 2014! With Ninja II: Shadow of a Tear just having been released yesterday we realised our Ninja-searching efforts were coming to a close, and our covert task in the jungle dojo complete, well…almost! We felt there was something missing, so mustering all our Ninja-fu we continued to explore going out on a limb and sticking our necks out of our proverbial Ninja-turtle shells and finally who did we happen to cross paths with and find fresh from his own mission of stealth but the main Ninja star himself. We’re especially pleased to bring you the first in a two-part exclusive interview with martial arts action superstar Scott Adkins! He’s worked with some of the very best action movie heavyweights of the world from Jackie Chan, Jean-Claude Van Damme, and Hugh Jackman, to the prodigious Michael Jai White and starred in Expendables 2. Scott Adkins on set of Ninja II Scott Adkins on set of Ninja II We get to find out a little more about how he started out and gravitated toward fulfilling his dreams of being an actor adept in martial arts action. Passionate, driven, yet down to earth and extraordinarily dedicated, Scott is a modern-day warrior and it’s not hard to understand why he’s in growing demand as one of the best in the world. Whether you prefer him playing the notorious Boyka “The Most Complete Fighter in the World”, a Koga Ninja or any other of his diverse characters, what better way to jumpstart the New Year than by a talk with the man himself, please welcome…Scott Adkins! Hi Scott good to be speaking with you and, first things first, Happy New Year!Hi Raj, Happy New Year to you too! We’re keen to discuss and share your views on the just released Ninja II as well as other things which I’m sure is going to get interesting, so let’s get started on some of the basics: When were you born and where are you from originally? I was born on 17 June 1976 in Birmingham. What is your height and weight? I’m 5ft 11in (1.80m) tall and weigh 12.9st -13.5st (82-86kg) How did you first get started in the martial arts, can we get a bit of background? Sure. I started when I was ten years old, I did judo because my dad and brother practiced it. Eventually, they stopped and I continued and I never stopped. After that I got into taekwondo for many years as I’ve always been very flexible with my legs. Since I was a fan of martial arts films from the start and I was interested in doing the flashy kicks, I had a natural affinity for taekwondo with that high kicking style. A tender moment with his wife in Ninja II A tender moment with his wife in Ninja II Bruce Lee was also a main influence for you, can you tell us about that? Yes, I remember that Enter the Dragon would be on late at night, so I would stay up late or set the video to record Enter The Dragon. I hadn’t seen all his other movies until a while after but in Enter The Dragon he’s so vicious, so mean and so lithe with muscles everywhere. I was very impressed with him! Later I got more into Bruce Lee and would go to these Bruce Lee conventions when I was around fifteen years old and of course, watched his back catalogue of movies. Back in those days I remember trying to get any and all uncut footage of Bruce Lee, which was hard to get, but you could get them at the conventions. Which other teachers inspired or instructed you? My main instructor was Ron Sergiew from the TAGB (Taekwondo Association of Great Britain). He’s a great kicker, I learned a lot from him and also did kickboxing under Anthony Jones for quite a while. Now I train with Vaughan Lee the UFC fighter at the UTC (Ultimate Training Centre) in Birmingham. I’ve picked up a lot from him. Which other styles have you practiced? Aside from judo, taekwondo and kickboxing (which I’ve also taught via the PKA -Professional Kickboxing Association) , I’ve also done some capoeira, krav maga, Jeet Kune Do (JKD), and wu shu kung-fu to learn the weapons and their style of kicks. In fact, I’m interested in doing seminars around the UK if I’ve got the time in 2014. You play Yuri Boyka in Undisputed II: Last Man Standing and Undisputed III: Redemption, and are well known for your incredible range of manoeuvres, when did you get into gymnastics and acrobatics? I didn’t get into gymnastics until I was eighteen, however I could already do back somersaults and some flips, I could pick up those moves fairly quickly. At one point I was toying with the idea of being a stuntman, so I was doing the gymnastics qualification but I decided not to continue with that because I always had it in my mind to be an actor in the movies like Van Damme and Jackie Chan. At times there were some doubts from people around me advising me to be realistic and so on, but once I made my choice, I never looked back!Let’s talk about the first Ninja before going into Ninja II. Director Isaac Florentine and yourself expressed discontent about the first Ninja, what was it that you wanted to significantly improve this time around? In the first one, we found that the story was weak and the character (Casey Bowman) a little bland, a bit of a wet blanket basically. The ‘flash-factor’ that wows the audience that featured in, for example, Undisputed II, was definitely missing in the first Ninja, so basically we wanted to improve everything. For those who may not know, can you tell us briefly about your character Casey Bowman and his modus operandi here? Casey is now the lead instructor of the dojo and is settled down and happily married with Namiko the love of his life, with a baby on the way. Everything’s going well but sadly his wife gets killed, Casey then goes on an unrelentingly rough revenge rampage to make everyone involved in his wife’s murder pay. What can fans expect fom the movie? Well, it’s an old school martial arts film with tons of action and around thirteen fights! What was it like working director with Isaac on this one? Well, we’ve come a long way since he discovered me and persuaded the studio for me to play Boyka in Undisputed II years ago We understand each other so can get straight down to the work we both enjoy. I can give my all to the movie, while he knows I will be there often going beyond the call of duty for the sake of the film as the directing is left in his capable hands. Can you tell us a bit about the fight choreography in the film and the stunt team behind it? Tim Man along with Brahim Achabbakhe did a great job on the fight choreography. They were really organised, and had it planned out in the gym before arriving on set. They’ve got their own set up too, so that helps. Still, it was brutal doing three fight scenes a week, we had limited time and budget, so it was really very ambitious getting that much action into the film. You really do need to be well prepared, so well done to those guys. Scott Adkins with Jean-Claude Van Dammage! (Assassination Games) Scott Adkins with Jean-Claude Van Dammage! (Assassination Games) Which is your favourite fight scene? The end fight with Kane Kosugi’s character (Nakabara). I have to say he’s so amazing to work with, so humble and such a nice guy. His talents should be made more and better use of because, as a martial artist and screen fighter, in my view, he’s as good as the likes of Jackie Chan or Jet Li. I’d like to partner up with him again sometime and do something perhaps like Assassination Games like I did with Jean-Claude Van Damme. We heard you injured your back, (but It looks like you’re perfectly fine throughout the movie) what happened? Well, after a move where I drop kicked one of the Burmese officers, my back tightened up as there was only a thin mat to land on so my back felt odd. By the time we came to the bar scene my leg was numb, but still we managed to pull through and finish it. Were there any other challenges on the set? Wearing the ninja suit was a challenge, and by the time I was fighting the evil Goro near the end of the film, we had flames on the set too, it was really hot, the place was like a sauna! Onto other movies now Scott, you played the Weapon XI/Deadpool in X-Men Origins: Wolverine with Hugh Jackman what was that like? Yes, even though I did stunts there, I was actually on an actor’s contract. I have to say, and everyone will tell you this, Hugh is a really nice guy, he’s genuinely interested in everyone around him including the crew. His background in theatre means he can easily remember choreography sequences and his physique is better than most action actors out there. He’s the type that would be up at 4.30am everyday training in the gym, before being on the set all day. Scott in Ninja Scott in Ninja Surely Scott, you’ve been asked this a lot but we’re dying to ask: How is Undisputed IV shaping up? We’re just waiting to get the green light! Who would you ideally like to draft in for the fights, who comes to your mind as possible candidates? Well, I was thinking about Nathan Jones (the WWE wrestler) someone who could play a mean role, Darren Shahlavi (who played The Twister in Ip Man 2) would be great too as would Kane Kosugi too, but it really depends on the script. It’s not going be Tony Jaa, or Jason Statham, this time round, sorry guys!Any chance George “The Iceman” Chambers might return? Probably not, as it would change the dynamic of the story. Hercules: Was that beard real? (Laughs) For the Young King yes, that’s real but for the old King no, that’s added-on beard. Don’t let the abundance of testosterone scare you! Scott pumped and rearing to go! Scott pumped and rearing to go! You did El Gringo with Christian Slater, would you like to do more comedy action movies? Yes I would, actually, I enjoyed making it, was a lot of fun! We only had three and a half weeks to shoot that, again quite an intense schedule. It might have lacked a great climax maybe, but I’m happy with the result overall. You’re starring in Wolf War with Hong Kong director Wu Jing, can you tell us more? It’s a military movie, and I play the bad guy, someone who’s pretty disparaging of Chinese competence in modern warfare (I hope the Chinese will forgive me!). I get to fight Wu Jing head to head too and he’s someone I sincerely respect as both a martial artist and a person. The action co-ordinator is Nicky Li who is the stunt team leader from the Jackie Chan Stunt Team. Now your views if we may on some well known martial arts actors and their work. Benny “The Jet” Urquidez? I’m a fan of his work, my favourite movie of his is Wheels on Meals with him and Jackie in their prime going hard at it! Bruce Lee? My favourite movie of his is Enter The Dragon, the character is scary and I like the scene where he fights O’Hara (Bob Wall). Jackie Chan? Worked with him on Accidental Spy and The Medallion. Jackie’s up there with Bruce Lee, it’s amazing to sit down and watch him do thirty-six takes, very hard-working, a living legend. I was very star struck being around him as I was just doing some stunts back then. Taking on the Burmese single-handedly Taking on the Burmese single-handedly Jet Li? My favourite of his is Fist of Legend, in my view, one of the best ever made with Yuen Woo-ping handling all the without-wire fights, great retelling of Fist of Fury. Jean-Claude Van Damme? One of my favourites, and I know you’re probably smiling Raj, but for me, it’s…Double Impact! Double the Van Damage, he was so charismatic here! I also watched Bloodsport tons of times, and Kickboxer. Donnie Yen? My favourite is Flash Point, he mixed in MMA and raised the bar. Tony Jaa? My favourite of his is Ong Bak, it was a real eye opener! Mark Dacascos? I like Drive, and also Only The Strong. I’ve conversed with him before, Mark’s a really nice guy. Gary Daniels? I’d say my favourite of his is Bloodmoon. Michael Jai White? Out of his movies, I would say Blood and Bone is my favourite. Read on for part two where Scott talks about his movies, training and much more! In case you missed them, read our earlier interviews with Ninja II star Kane Kosugi, action choreographer Tim Man, action actor/martial artist Jawed El Berni and director Isaac Florentine.

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Action Superstar Scott Adkins Talk For Ninja 2 And More!

When it comes to high octane action cinema, Scott Adkins is the most dynamic and exciting performer working in industry today. His latest film is another example of how this dynamic performer can light up the screen. In &#8216;Ninja 2: Shadow of a Tear,&#8217; Adkins reprises his role as Casey Bowman, a martial artist whose life of domestic bliss has been shattered by a savage act of violence and must fight to avenge as well as survive. His target: a sinister drug lord flooding the streets with deadly meth cooked at his remote jungle factory. Kane Kosugi (Fight the Fight, Ninja Masters), Vithaya Pansringarm (Only God Forgives, The Burma Conspiracy), Mika Hijii (Ninja, Alien vs. Ninja, I’m Coming to Get You) and Tim Man (Bangkok Adrenaline, Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li) also star. Jason Price of Icon Vs. Icon recently sat down with Scott Adkins to discuss his longevity in the industry, the challenges of bringing an action film to the screen, what the future may hold for him on-screen and much more!Last time we spoke, you were doing press for &#8216;Universal Soldier 4&#8242; at which point you had sustained some injuries which kept you out of the action game for a bit. What can you tell us about the physical challenges injuries you took and the road back?Six weeks before &#8216;Universal Soldier,&#8217; I tore the ACL in my left knee. It is a terrible injury to have, especially if you are a footballer or martial artist. All through &#8216;Universal Soldier,&#8217; &#8216;El Gringo&#8217; and &#8216;Expendables 2&#8242; I was injured. I also picked up another injury in my back. It was a slipped disk that was pushing on the nerve which led to my losing feeling in my left arm. Basically, when I had the operation on my knee, I was able to rehab my neck as well but I couldn&#8217;t do any action films for a good six months. I gave myself eight months because I knew how important it was if I was going to come back the same guy I was before the ACL injury. I needed to rehab it properly and have the best surgeonWhat expectations or goals did you have when taking on this project and returning to the character We just wanted to make the lead character, Casey, more interesting for the audience. I think with the first film, he was a little bit bland and not very proactive. The character in the script was a kid out of his depth just trying to survive. We were a little disappointed with how the character was perceived in the first film, so we wanted to shake things up at the very beginning. A typical staple of the ninja movie is revenge, so we figured right from the get-go; we would have something happen to Casey’s wife. She turns up dead and for the rest of the movie Casey is on a revenge mission, hell bent on making the people who killed his wife pay. That was enough to drive the character forward and make him more interesting.</p> <p><span style="color: #993300;"><strong>This film is another example of what a great team director Isaac Florentine and yourself make. Having worked with him extensively, what do you feel he brings to the table as a director and how do you feel he has evolved along the way?</strong></span></p> <p>Isaac is fantastic with the way he moves the camera. He is a very glossy filmmaker given the budgets you have to work with; which aren&#8217;t very big. We don&#8217;t have a huge shooting schedule either. With him and Ross Clarkson, who is the director of photography who we always work with, he can make a film look glossy and impressive. Isaac is a dear friend of mine. He is pretty much the guy who discovered me back in the day when I did &#8216;Special Forces&#8217; in 2003. I am an actor who does a lot of martial arts films, so if I am going to do a martial arts film, I want to do it with Isaac Florentine. He is the best in the business. There is nobody better in the western world at making a martial arts film. We are the perfect team really! We have worked together so many times now we have a short-hand together. We know each other and there is no bullshit. We can just say what we think and get on with it! We are both there to make the best film we can.Working with Kane was absolutely fantastic! You couldn&#8217;t ask for a more humble guy, which is even more impressive when you see how good looking he is! He is in fantastic shape. He is one of the best martial artists I have worked with in my life and I have worked with a lot. He is a very good actor who has everything going for him and he is still so humble. He is a real gentlemen and a joy to work with. It is amazing to me that he is not a bigger star

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Florentine & Adkins show their 'Range'

You can't keep a good partnership down. Ninja's Adkins and Florentine are joining forces once more for 'Close Range'... Scott Adkins and Isaac Florentine team up againThe star and director behind two of the most high-impact action martial arts movie franchises, Ninja and Undisputed, will be joining forces once again for a new project entitled: Close Range. We’ve long championed the careers of both men and its been a pleasure to see the two of them craft their careers as in our opinion some of the best Western martial arts action films ever produced: from Special Forces through Undisputed 2 & 3, Ninja and their most recent release Ninja Shadow of a Tear. Their latest project will be produced by Bleiberg Entertainment’s Compound B. The plot revolves around a man desperately trying to save his family from a drug cartel and corrupt authorities. After rescuing his kidnapped niece from the powerful cartel, Colton MacReady (Adkins) begins a relentless fight to save his family who are now being targetted. The cartel has descended upon his secluded ranch with a thirst for revenge - in tow is a corrupt local sheriff and his crew of deputies, ensuring that help won’t be coming any time soon. What ensues is a non-stop assault on the ranch, a blow-by-blow survival marathon for Colton to protect his loved ones and save his life. There's no word if the third member of their regular team,'the man with the deadly lens' Ross Clarkson will be joining them on their latest adventure, or who will be handling the films fight choreography. Adkins and Florentine have worked with everyone from JJ Perry, Larnell Stovall and most recently Tim Mann and Brahim Acchabakhe, all of whom have helped bring their vision of martial arts movie artistry to the screen with great effect. Close Range was written by Chad Law (who wrote Van Damme's Six Bullets) and Shane Dax Taylor (Bloodworth).

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Scott Adkins Fans Interview

First off Thank you to Scott for doing this interview. Ok so with The Shepherd being officially released what are your thoughts on how it turned out, with all the delays behind the scenes? It’s a big disappointment to me. Isaac, JJ and I all had high hopes that we could help deliver a return to form from Van Damme. We are all fans of his work and it’s no secret that he was one of my idols, he had a huge impact on why I’m in this business and why I want to do what I do. I know that Jean Claude had been concentrating on his acting in recent films and it definitely shows but I was under the impression that this was going to be an Isaac Florentine film and considering that Undisputed 2 was his last film you would have thought that JC was going to want to go all out in the fights, it was a perfect opportunity for him to combine his unquestionable talents with the rest of us and make an action movie we could all be proud of. The script read like an exciting action ride so that is what we wanted to make it. First of all, we are working in the low budget end of film making. The reason why Isaac can deliver such exciting cinema on small budgets is that he likes to use fight scenes. When you have gun fights and explosions and car chases it all eats into the budget and what sounds great in a script is very difficult to execute without time and money and we definitely didn’t have time and money on this one. It’s much easier with this type of film to concentrate on the fights but I think there were too many cooks in the kitchen and different people had different ideas of what kind of film we were actually making. Originally Isaac wanted me to play Meyers but there was a lot of opposition from various corners so I opted to take the role of Karp as long as they beefed up the part and gave him all the fights. The original script was much different and had a scene where Karp is forced to take on two of his own men; it was to be a very exciting fight scene, two against one. By the time I got to Bulgaria the whole scene was cut. Also the action scene I have outside the barn was reduced to about two hours of filming time and there was lots of opposition for us to do that properly. The action at the start of the film was done at around 5 in the morning so that wasn’t ideal either. Ultimately I don’t think Isaac got to make the movie he wanted to make and I certainly didn’t because my character didn’t really have much else to do bar fighting and that wasn’t what I signed up for. So are you happy with the end fight between you and Jean Claude? That is the biggest disappointment, it had been choreographed ahead of time by JJ, it was huge. I was very excited and it had the makings of being one of the best fights of JC’s career, it would have lasted around 7 minutes. We wanted my character to be flashy and cocky with his legs in this one, a Tae Kwon Do guy. This is why I’m clocking JC with so many kicks at the beginning of the fight. Van Damme was going to figure me out and systematically take my legs away from me and end up breaking my back. It became clear that Jean Claude didn’t like the style of fighting we had created and he ended up finishing the fight only a third of the way in and having him take me out rather quickly. There’s not a lot I can do about it but if I’m known for anything it’s exciting fight scenes, and I’m not used to doing a third of a fight and then throwing the towel in. Basically the fight is too short because Van Damme decided not to do it. I know he doesn’t like to do much fighting these days but he really had an opportunity to do something great with this fight. He’s one of my biggest inspirations and I respect him in many ways but I truly believe that if he’d listened to us and let us do our thing we would’ve had a much better movie. I don’t know why a martial arts star will do a film with Isaac Florentine and not want to do martial arts. The script was written as a fun action ride and we should have backed it up with decent fights but we were never given the chance. Is it true that Isaac did not get to edit the movie? Isaac did not get to finish editing the movie; he was removed from the project. I don’t know what the real reason is for this I I’m not sure Isaac does either. I believe that Isaac’s version would have been the best but ultimately there were too many problems with the film whilst we were shooting it so we’ll never know. I look forward to getting the chance to work with Isaac and JJ in the future so you can see what we’re really capable of. So everything that was filmed for the fight is up there on the screen? Yes. It was just very short, that is why there is a lot of post production slow motion used, because the fight was just too short anyway. There is an odd edit where I kick JC and you see him already on his back and I think this is because you could tell that it wasn’t JC flying through the air onto his back. It’s a shame because I finished off the move with a dragon kip back onto my feet. It looked cool. Ultimately I think it’s a great shame that JC didn’t trust us enough to let us do our thing, I think we’ve proved that we know what we’re doing and we could have made something spectacular. You worked on one of the biggest films of 2007 The Bourne Ultimatum. What was the experience like working on such a high profile movie? It was strange to be honest. I auditioned for the part on a Thursday, was told I had the job on Saturday and was flying off to Madrid on the Sunday. I didn’t know what the role was or what it really entailed and I found myself filming the first shot without having even met Paul Greengrass yet. It was a great experience though and I’m happy to be a part of such a successful franchise, even if it is only small. I can’t say enough about Matt Damon, he was extremely down to earth and a consummate professional. "STAG NIGHT" What type of role do you have in this film? i do know that your character is soley based on acting. Stag Night is a horror film and I play one of four guys that get trapped underground in a disused 1950’s subway. Turns out we’re not the only ones down there. It’s a straight acting role which shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone because I started off working in British TV. You recently worked on The Tournament and got to film with Kelly Hu in a fight scene, how did this go and was you worried about doing an intense fight scene with a woman? Well I’m not sexist or anything but it is much harder working with a woman because it makes you hold back in case you do hit them. If I’m fighting Mike Jai then I can go all out but with a pretty little thing like Kelly it does freak you out a bit. She was great though and I think The Tournament movie is going to do very well. It looks great and has a great cast and you can expect to see it at your local cinema late 2008. Actually Kim Chiang, Kelly’s stunt double is the best stunt woman I have ever worked with. She’s fantastic. With “Undisputed II” and “The Tournament”, people have commented on how you can transform yourself greatly into a character. Do you find this a challenge? Also does a lot of preparation go into doing these types of characters? There was a lot of reservation about me being able to pull off the character in Undisputed 2 at first and now I get lots of people wanting me to recreate that part. They really wanted Boyka for The Tournament but I decided I wanted to play the guy in The Tournament more like a grizzly bear type. I wanted to make him Irish but the director was too scared to give me that opportunity so I ended up having to make him a Russian as well. I’m in danger of getting type cast as a bearded Russian but the upside is at least I can walk the streets and not get recognized. Moving back now to Undisputed 2 which now has a cult following with martial arts fans, were you surprised with the response this film received? I was very happy with the way New Line promoted it in the States, there was actually talk of trying to get the UFC to back it but they didn’t think it spread the right kind of message for Mixed Martial Arts which I agree with, as the UFC has had its battles with the sport being thought of as too violent. I could be wrong but I think we were the first movie to really showcase mixed martial arts and I think part of that is why it was received so well. Also it’s definitely a throwback to the old 80’s early 90’s films like Bloodsport which I think people miss. At the end of the day I think a lot of the success is because people want to see actors who can be completely believable in these kinds of roles and that’s because we are real martial artists and are not just pretending to be. You worked with Michael Jai White in Undisputed 2 who is also an awesome martial artist, what was it like to work with Michael? It was fantastic and I would love to do it again. He’s a real martial artist, no doubt, but he completely understands the difference with film fighting. It’s worth mentioning again that we didn’t have the luxury of time on this movie and it’s because we worked well together that we were able to pull it off. Also did he get frustrated with not being able to kick in this film? He did yes but he stuck to his character which is great. I was getting to do all the flashy stuff and there were times in between takes where he’d be throwing a few kicks to get it out of his system I think. You’ll get to see him let loose in his next movie Blood & Bone. Isaac Florentine, JJ Perry and yourself have now built up a great reputation in whatever you guys do people expect it to be great. What do you think it is that has made you guys a force to be reckoned with when making films together to get this reputation from fans? It’s definitely Undisputed that has created that expectation and I’m looking forward to getting the opportunity to do it again. Do you have new films possibly in the pipeline for this year? Will any involve you being the main character? We were all set to start shooting a film in August with Isaac at the helm, JJ choreographing and me starring but the plug was pulled at the last minute. It basically comes down to me not being a big enough star to single handily front a movie. It’s a bit of a catch 22 trying to become a star when you’re not given the opportunity but there you go. Have you seen any martial arts/action films recently that have really impressed you? Flashpoint. And I’ll be looking forward to seeing the new Pracha Pinkeew film Chocolate. I liked Rambo a lot too. With you using a lot of martial arts in most of your films, which martial art have you found to be most demanding? And have you been practising any new ones? I can’t say I stick to one martial art, it’s the art of screen fighting. I come from a Kick Boxing and Tae Kwon-Do background so a lot of that is in my style but like any martial artist these days you mix it up. Do feel yourself and Tony Jaa have set a standard of not using wires in your fight scenes and put pressure on up and coming martial art stars who may need the use of wires in films? If you think you’re a martial arts star and you do need wires then it’s time for a change of profession. Undisputed III was pushed back, so Isaac could focus on a new film called "NINJA". Will you have any involvement with this? As far as I know the lead character will be Japanese, so no. Can you tell us anything about Undisputed III? The story centres on Boyka as the good guy. The villain of Undisputed became the good guy in the second one so it makes sense that the villain of the second be the hero of the third. What I like about the series is that every character in it is basically a bad guy; it’s just a case of who’s the lesser evil. I’m not going to give anything away but we’re basically going to put Boyka in a situation where everyone else is even more messed up in the head than he is. We’re going to take it up a notch on this one and put him in a no holds barred fight tournament to the death. You can expect twice the amount of action in the third. Finally do you have anything you want to say to your fans? Thanks for enjoying my work and supporting what I do. I really hope that I can get the chance to show you what I can really do in a leading role and I’d like to thank you Nik, for your support and for making a great fan site, I’m trying my best to live up to the hype!! Scott thank you for taking time to answer these questions and your fanz are behind you 100% in whatever your apart of in the future.

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Exclusive Scott Adkins interview

First off Thank you to Scott for doing this interview.

Ok so with The Shepherd being officially released what are your thoughts on how it turned out, with all the delays behind the scenes?

It’s a big disappointment to me. Isaac, JJ and I all had high hopes that we could help deliver a return to form from Van Damme. We are all fans of his work and it’s no secret that he was one of my idols, he had a huge impact on why I’m in this business and why I want to do what I do. I know that Jean Claude had been concentrating on his acting in recent films and it definitely shows but I was under the impression that this was going to be an Isaac Florentine film and considering that Undisputed 2 was his last film you would have thought that JC was going to want to go all out in the fights, it was a perfect opportunity for him to combine his unquestionable talents with the rest of us and make an action movie we could all be proud of. The script read like an exciting action ride so that is what we wanted to make it. First of all, we are working in the low budget end of film making. The reason why Isaac can deliver such exciting cinema on small budgets is that he likes to use fight scenes. When you have gun fights and explosions and car chases it all eats into the budget and what sounds great in a script is very difficult to execute without time and money and we definitely didn’t have time and money on this one. It’s much easier with this type of film to concentrate on the fights but I think there were too many cooks in the kitchen and different people had different ideas of what kind of film we were actually making. Originally Isaac wanted me to play Meyers but there was a lot of opposition from various corners so I opted to take the role of Karp as long as they beefed up the part and gave him all the fights. The original script was much different and had a scene where Karp is forced to take on two of his own men; it was to be a very exciting fight scene, two against one. By the time I got to Bulgaria the whole scene was cut. Also the action scene I have outside the barn was reduced to about two hours of filming time and there was lots of opposition for us to do that properly. The action at the start of the film was done at around 5 in the morning so that wasn’t ideal either. Ultimately I don’t think Isaac got to make the movie he wanted to make and I certainly didn’t because my character didn’t really have much else to do bar fighting and that wasn’t what I signed up for.
So are you happy with the end fight between you and Jean Claude?

That is the biggest disappointment, it had been choreographed ahead of time by JJ, it was huge. I was very excited and it had the makings of being one of the best fights of JC’s career, it would have lasted around 7 minutes. We wanted my character to be flashy and cocky with his legs in this one, a Tae Kwon Do guy. This is why I’m clocking JC with so many kicks at the beginning of the fight. Van Damme was going to figure me out and systematically take my legs away from me and end up breaking my back. It became clear that Jean Claude didn’t like the style of fighting we had created and he ended up finishing the fight only a third of the way in and having him take me out rather quickly. There’s not a lot I can do about it but if I’m known for anything it’s exciting fight scenes, and I’m not used to doing a third of a fight and then throwing the towel in. Basically the fight is too short because Van Damme decided not to do it. I know he doesn’t like to do much fighting these days but he really had an opportunity to do something great with this fight. He’s one of my biggest inspirations and I respect him in many ways but I truly believe that if he’d listened to us and let us do our thing we would’ve had a much better movie. I don’t know why a martial arts star will do a film with Isaac Florentine and not want to do martial arts. The script was written as a fun action ride and we should have backed it up with decent fights but we were never given the chance.
Is it true that Isaac did not get to edit the movie?

Isaac did not get to finish editing the movie; he was removed from the project. I don’t know what the real reason is for this I I’m not sure Isaac does either. I believe that Isaac’s version would have been the best but ultimately there were too many problems with the film whilst we were shooting it so we’ll never know. I look forward to getting the chance to work with Isaac and JJ in the future so you can see what we’re really capable of.
So everything that was filmed for the fight is up there on the screen?

Yes. It was just very short, that is why there is a lot of post production slow motion used, because the fight was just too short anyway. There is an odd edit where I kick JC and you see him already on his back and I think this is because you could tell that it wasn’t JC flying through the air onto his back. It’s a shame because I finished off the move with a dragon kip back onto my feet. It looked cool. Ultimately I think it’s a great shame that JC didn’t trust us enough to let us do our thing, I think we’ve proved that we know what we’re doing and we could have made something spectacular.
You worked on one of the biggest films of 2007 The Bourne Ultimatum. What was the experience like working on such a high profile movie?

It was strange to be honest. I auditioned for the part on a Thursday, was told I had the job on Saturday and was flying off to Madrid on the Sunday. I didn’t know what the role was or what it really entailed and I found myself filming the first shot without having even met Paul Greengrass yet. It was a great experience though and I’m happy to be a part of such a successful franchise, even if it is only small. I can’t say enough about Matt Damon, he was extremely down to earth and a consummate professional.
"STAG NIGHT" What type of role do you have in this film? i do know that your character is soley based on acting.

Stag Night is a horror film and I play one of four guys that get trapped underground in a disused 1950’s subway. Turns out we’re not the only ones down there. It’s a straight acting role which shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone because I started off working in British TV.
You recently worked on The Tournament and got to film with Kelly Hu in a fight scene, how did this go and was you worried about doing an intense fight scene with a woman?

Well I’m not sexist or anything but it is much harder working with a woman because it makes you hold back in case you do hit them. If I’m fighting Mike Jai then I can go all out but with a pretty little thing like Kelly it does freak you out a bit. She was great though and I think The Tournament movie is going to do very well. It looks great and has a great cast and you can expect to see it at your local cinema late 2008. Actually Kim Chiang, Kelly’s stunt double is the best stunt woman I have ever worked with. She’s fantastic.
With “Undisputed II” and “The Tournament”, people have commented on how you can transform yourself greatly into a character. Do you find this a challenge? Also does a lot of preparation go into doing these types of characters?

There was a lot of reservation about me being able to pull off the character in Undisputed 2 at first and now I get lots of people wanting me to recreate that part. They really wanted Boyka for The Tournament but I decided I wanted to play the guy in The Tournament more like a grizzly bear type. I wanted to make him Irish but the director was too scared to give me that opportunity so I ended up having to make him a Russian as well. I’m in danger of getting type cast as a bearded Russian but the upside is at least I can walk the streets and not get recognized.
Moving back now to Undisputed 2 which now has a cult following with martial arts fans, were you surprised with the response this film received?

I was very happy with the way New Line promoted it in the States, there was actually talk of trying to get the UFC to back it but they didn’t think it spread the right kind of message for Mixed Martial Arts which I agree with, as the UFC has had its battles with the sport being thought of as too violent. I could be wrong but I think we were the first movie to really showcase mixed martial arts and I think part of that is why it was received so well. Also it’s definitely a throwback to the old 80’s early 90’s films like Bloodsport which I think people miss. At the end of the day I think a lot of the success is because people want to see actors who can be completely believable in these kinds of roles and that’s because we are real martial artists and are not just pretending to be.
You worked with Michael Jai White in Undisputed 2 who is also an awesome martial artist, what was it like to work with Michael?

It was fantastic and I would love to do it again. He’s a real martial artist, no doubt, but he completely understands the difference with film fighting. It’s worth mentioning again that we didn’t have the luxury of time on this movie and it’s because we worked well together that we were able to pull it off.
Also did he get frustrated with not being able to kick in this film?

He did yes but he stuck to his character which is great. I was getting to do all the flashy stuff and there were times in between takes where he’d be throwing a few kicks to get it out of his system I think. You’ll get to see him let loose in his next movie Blood & Bone.
Isaac Florentine, JJ Perry and yourself have now built up a great reputation in whatever you guys do people expect it to be great. What do you think it is that has made you guys a force to be reckoned with when making films together to get this reputation from fans?

It’s definitely Undisputed that has created that expectation and I’m looking forward to getting the opportunity to do it again.
Do you have new films possibly in the pipeline for this year? Will any involve you being the main character?

We were all set to start shooting a film in August with Isaac at the helm, JJ choreographing and me starring but the plug was pulled at the last minute. It basically comes down to me not being a big enough star to single handily front a movie. It’s a bit of a catch 22 trying to become a star when you’re not given the opportunity but there you go.
Have you seen any martial arts/action films recently that have really impressed you?

Flashpoint. And I’ll be looking forward to seeing the new Pracha Pinkeew film Chocolate. I liked Rambo a lot too.
With you using a lot of martial arts in most of your films, which martial art have you found to be most demanding? And have you been practising any new ones?

I can’t say I stick to one martial art, it’s the art of screen fighting. I come from a Kick Boxing and Tae Kwon-Do background so a lot of that is in my style but like any martial artist these days you mix it up.
Do feel yourself and Tony Jaa have set a standard of not using wires in your fight scenes and put pressure on up and coming martial art stars who may need the use of wires in films?

If you think you’re a martial arts star and you do need wires then it’s time for a change of profession.
Undisputed III was pushed back, so Isaac could focus on a new film called "NINJA". Will you have any involvement with this?

As far as I know the lead character will be Japanese, so no.
Can you tell us anything about Undisputed III?

The story centres on Boyka as the good guy. The villain of Undisputed became the good guy in the second one so it makes sense that the villain of the second be the hero of the third. What I like about the series is that every character in it is basically a bad guy; it’s just a case of who’s the lesser evil. I’m not going to give anything away but we’re basically going to put Boyka in a situation where everyone else is even more messed up in the head than he is. We’re going to take it up a notch on this one and put him in a no holds barred fight tournament to the death. You can expect twice the amount of action in the third.
Finally do you have anything you want to say to your fans?

Thanks for enjoying my work and supporting what I do. I really hope that I can get the chance to show you what I can really do in a leading role and I’d like to thank you Nik, for your support and for making a great fan site, I’m trying my best to live up to the hype!!
Scott thank you for taking time to answer these questions and your fanz are behind you 100% in whatever your apart of in the future.

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Is Boyka back? Scott Adkins talks ‘Undisputed 4′

Scott Adkins, the mega-talented actor and martial artist from Undisputed III and Assassination Games, let out a few tidbits of information over Twitter: - When asked why Assassination Games was suspiciously low on action (as cityonfire.com detailed in our review), Scott said he and Jean Claude Van Damme tried to inject more fight scenes in the movie but there simply wasn’t enough time - A script for Undisputed 4 is completed; both director Isaac Florentine and Scott Adkins want to make it; but it’s difficult to find funding. Undisputed 3 was not a big hit, due in large part to people pirating the film - At this point, financial backers are more interested in funding a Ninja 2 than a Undisputed 4, despite the fact that Adkins’ Undisputed character Uri Boyka has developed a cult following among fans. “Go figure,” says Scott Updates: Boyka is back! Audiences at Fantastic Fest are currently being bowled over by the visceral fight scenes in Ninja 2: Shadow of the Tear, the latest collaboration between Scott Adkins and director Isaac Florentine. Ninja producer Frank Di Martin also took to the stage at Fantastic Fest to reveal that screenwriter David White is hard at work on the screenplay for Undisputed IV, which will likely be Scott Adkins’ next project. BREAKING NEWS: During an interview with Impact (via EP.com), Scott Adkins had this to say about Undisputed 4 while promoting Ninja 2: Shadow of the Tear: It’s great to do the festival circuit with films like this but I don’t think watching it at home will spoil your experience… the real problem is the piracy and I really would hope that people that enjoy these types of films. Let’s be honest, we don’t get that many anymore. I hope they support it by buying it on whatever platform when they get the chance because it is getting harder and harder to finance these films because they make no money. If you want Undisputed 4 then you’d better make sure you support Ninja 2 (here’s your chance to follow Adkins’ advice).

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