Hollywood Mourns the Loss of a Legendary Action Performer and Stunt Pioneer

Hollywood has lost one of the people who helped make action movies look unforgettable.

James Lew, a respected martial artist, actor, stunt performer, stunt coordinator, and fight choreographer whose career stretched across more than five decades, died on August 23, 2026, in Los Angeles. He was 73. His wife, Jordanna Potter, confirmed his death, while a public cause of death has not been disclosed.

For many moviegoers, James Lew may not have been the name printed in the largest letters on a movie poster. Yet his influence could be felt in countless action sequences. He worked behind the scenes to create fights, movement, falls, and martial-arts sequences, while also appearing in front of the camera in memorable roles.

His career was remarkable not simply because of its length, but because of its variety. Lew moved between martial arts, acting, stunt performance, choreography, coordination, directing, and writing. His work connected several generations of Hollywood action filmmaking, from the martial-arts productions of the 1970s and 1980s to modern blockbusters and television series.

His death has therefore resonated far beyond one particular film community. For fans of martial arts and action cinema, the loss represents the passing of an important figure whose work helped define what audiences came to expect from physical action on screen.

A Career Built on Martial Arts

James Lew was born on September 6, 1952, in California and was raised in South Central Los Angeles. He began studying martial arts as a teenager, eventually developing expertise in disciplines that would become the foundation of his professional life.

Rather than treating martial arts simply as a hobby, Lew turned his training into a lifelong career.

His early path into entertainment came through the television series Kung Fu. From there, he continued developing opportunities in martial-arts cinema and eventually traveled to Taiwan, where he appeared in the 1979 film The Young Dragon.

Those early experiences helped establish a pattern that would continue throughout his career. Lew was not limited to one role. He could perform a fight, help design it, coordinate the action, or appear as an actor.

That versatility became one of his greatest professional strengths.

From Martial-Arts Performer to Hollywood Stunt Professional

The world of stunt work is often invisible to audiences.

When viewers watch a character leap through a window, engage in a complicated fight, fall from a dangerous height, or execute an elaborate martial-arts maneuver, the attention usually goes to the actor and the character.

Behind that moment, however, there can be an enormous team of specialists.

Stunt performers and coordinators must understand timing, camera placement, choreography, physical movement, safety procedures, and the needs of the story. A convincing fight scene is not simply a collection of punches and kicks. Every movement must work for the camera while also being carefully planned.

James Lew became one of the professionals who mastered that difficult combination.

His career eventually included an extraordinary range of productions. His stunt and acting credits stretched across films and television programs, with IMDb listing more than 150 stunt credits and more than 180 acting credits.

That volume alone demonstrates how consistently he worked in the entertainment industry.

Big Trouble in Little China and a Defining Collaboration

One of the most recognizable projects associated with James Lew was John Carpenter's cult classic Big Trouble in Little China.

Released in 1986, the film combined comedy, fantasy, martial arts, and action in a way that made it unlike many conventional Hollywood productions of the era.

Lew was handpicked by Carpenter to serve as a martial-arts choreographer for the production.

His involvement reflected an important shift in Hollywood action filmmaking. Martial arts were becoming increasingly influential in American movies, and specialists with authentic training were helping filmmakers create sequences that felt more energetic and sophisticated.

Lew's work was part of that evolution.

His career would later connect him to several other major productions, including They Live and Escape from L.A., giving him a particularly notable association with John Carpenter's filmography.

A Familiar Face Behind the Action

Although Lew became highly respected for his work behind the scenes, he was also an actor.

He appeared in films including Hot Shots! Part Deux, the Rush Hour movies, Lethal Weapon 4, Timecop, Action Jackson, and other action productions.

One of his memorable appearances came in Hot Shots! Part Deux, where he participated in a comedic martial-arts sequence opposite Charlie Sheen.

The scene worked because Lew could combine genuine martial-arts ability with the timing required for comedy.

That combination was another characteristic of his career. He was not limited to serious action.

He understood that physical performance could be dramatic, spectacular, intimidating, or funny depending on the story.

This flexibility helped him remain relevant across changing eras of Hollywood filmmaking.

Working With Major Stars

Throughout his career, Lew crossed paths with many major names in film and television.

His credits and professional associations included performers such as Jackie Chan, Jet Li, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Steven Seagal, Mel Gibson, Brad Pitt, Tom Cruise, Dwayne Johnson, Kurt Russell, Chuck Norris, and others.

Being part of productions featuring such major stars placed Lew in some of the most demanding action environments in the industry.

But his importance was not simply about the famous people he worked alongside.

His contribution was often the physical language of the movie itself.

Action performers help determine how characters move, how fights unfold, how dangerous a scene feels, and how an audience experiences the physical stakes of a story.

A great action sequence can make a character appear stronger, faster, more vulnerable, or more determined.

Professionals such as Lew helped create those impressions.

The Emmy-Winning Stunt Coordinator

One of the major highlights of Lew's later career came through television.

He served as a stunt coordinator on the Netflix series Luke Cage, and his work earned him a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Stunt Coordination.

The recognition was significant because it acknowledged an aspect of filmmaking that audiences often take for granted.

Stunt coordination requires much more than athletic ability. Coordinators must work with directors, actors, stunt performers, camera crews, special-effects teams, and other departments.

They have to turn a director's vision into physical action while considering practical limitations and safety.

An award for that work represents recognition of the creativity and technical expertise required to make action believable.

For Lew, the Emmy was another milestone in a career that had already crossed multiple generations of entertainment.

The Invisible Craft Behind Action Movies

The death of James Lew also provides an opportunity to think about how action filmmaking has changed.

Modern audiences have become accustomed to spectacular sequences involving elaborate choreography, wire work, vehicles, visual effects, practical effects, and highly trained performers.

But the foundation remains the same: people who understand movement and know how to make physical action work for the camera.

Stunt professionals frequently perform dangerous tasks that actors may not be able or willing to perform themselves.

Even when digital effects are involved, physical performers remain an important part of filmmaking.

The realism of an action scene often depends on the tiny details: the way someone lands, the timing of a reaction, the angle of a punch, the speed of a movement, or the way two performers sell the impact of a fight.

James Lew spent decades working within that craft.

His career therefore represents much more than a list of movie credits.

It represents an era in which martial-arts expertise became increasingly important to mainstream American action cinema.

A Five-Decade Legacy

According to industry databases and biographical sources, Lew's career began in the 1970s and continued for more than five decades.

That kind of longevity is rare.

Hollywood changes constantly. Genres rise and disappear. Technology transforms production. Audiences change. New stars arrive while older generations leave the spotlight.

Lew adapted through all of it.

He worked in traditional martial-arts movies, major Hollywood productions, television, comedy, superhero entertainment, and modern action projects.

His credits included work connected to films such as Inception and Avengers: Endgame, showing how his career extended into the blockbuster era.

This ability to remain active across dramatically different periods of filmmaking is one of the strongest indicators of his professional legacy.

More Than a Stuntman

Calling James Lew simply a stuntman would not fully describe his career.

He was an actor.

He was a martial artist.

He was a stunt performer.

He was a stunt coordinator.

He was a fight choreographer.

He also worked as a director and writer.

His 2006 project 18 Fingers of Death! was particularly personal because he wrote, directed, and starred in the film. The movie used comedy to explore the world of low-budget martial-arts filmmaking and the struggles of an aging action performer searching for his next opportunity.

The project demonstrated that Lew understood the entertainment industry from multiple perspectives.

He knew what it meant to perform.

He knew what it meant to coordinate.

And he knew what it meant to create.

That broad understanding gave his career an unusual depth.

Remembering the Person Behind the Action

Following his death, Lew's wife shared an emotional tribute remembering him with affection and personal imagery. She described imagining him walking on the beach with their dog, sparring with Bruce Lee, and embracing his father again.

The message offered a glimpse beyond the professional résumé.

For audiences, James Lew may be remembered through fight scenes and movie credits. For his family and friends, however, he was a husband, colleague, friend, teacher, and loved one.

That distinction is important whenever a familiar entertainment figure dies.

A public career can consist of hundreds of credits, but a person's life is made up of relationships that cannot be measured by databases.

His passing therefore represents both a professional loss and a deeply personal one for those closest to him.

An Important Chapter in Action Cinema

James Lew's career also reflects the growing influence of Asian martial arts on American entertainment.

Over several decades, martial-arts techniques became increasingly common in Hollywood productions.

The evolution can be seen in everything from traditional kung-fu movies to modern superhero films.

Performers with specialized knowledge helped bridge the gap between authentic martial-arts movement and the demands of American filmmaking.

Lew was part of that transition.

He brought technical skill, physical discipline, and an understanding of screen performance to productions that reached audiences around the world.

His career helped demonstrate that martial-arts performers could contribute not only as fighters but also as choreographers, coordinators, actors, and creative professionals.

Why His Work Will Continue to Matter

The most lasting legacy of a stunt performer is often found in the scenes audiences continue to watch.

A movie may be decades old, but an unforgettable fight can still feel exciting.

A well-executed stunt can remain impressive long after the technology used to film it becomes outdated.

That is because physical performance has a special quality.

Audiences recognize movement instinctively.

They understand danger.

They understand speed.

They understand the difference between a movement that feels authentic and one that looks artificial.

James Lew spent his career working with those elements.

His contributions will continue to exist every time viewers return to the movies and television shows he helped create.

That may be one of the most meaningful forms of longevity an action performer can have.

Hollywood's Changing Recognition of Stunt Professionals

Lew's death comes at a time when Hollywood is increasingly recognizing the importance of stunt professionals.

In 2025, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced that it would introduce a competitive Oscar category for achievement in stunt design, with the first award planned for the 100th Academy Awards in 2028, honoring films released in 2027.

The decision followed decades of advocacy from members of the stunt community.

For years, stunt performers and coordinators argued that their work deserved greater recognition because action sequences are among the most technically demanding parts of filmmaking.

The Academy's decision represents a major change.

It also places careers like Lew's into a broader historical context.

For decades, performers such as him contributed to cinema without receiving the same level of public recognition afforded to actors, directors, and other departments.

Today, audiences are increasingly interested in understanding who creates the spectacular moments they see on screen.

A Legacy That Goes Beyond One Movie

It would be easy to remember James Lew through one famous production.

But doing so would miss the larger story.

His career was not built around a single movie.

It was built through thousands of individual moments across decades of work.

Some viewers may remember him from Big Trouble in Little China.

Others may remember Hot Shots! Part Deux.

Some may recognize his work from Rush Hour, Lethal Weapon 4, Inception, Avengers: Endgame, or Luke Cage.

Others may discover him for the first time after learning about his death.

All of those connections form part of the same legacy.

Farewell to an Action Legend

James Lew died at 73, leaving behind a career that stretched from the martial-arts television boom of the 1970s to the modern era of massive Hollywood productions.

His story is a reminder that movies are created by far more people than the stars whose names appear above the title.

Behind every memorable action sequence are professionals who train, rehearse, coordinate, calculate, and perform.

Some become famous.

Many remain relatively unknown to the general public.

James Lew managed to become both a behind-the-scenes craftsman and a recognizable performer, but even his extensive résumé only tells part of the story.

His greatest contribution may have been the expertise he brought to an industry that depends on people willing to make the impossible look effortless.

He helped bring martial-arts movement and action choreography to countless productions. He worked alongside generations of performers. He earned an Emmy for his contribution to stunt coordination. And he remained active in the entertainment world for more than half a century.

Now, as Hollywood and fans remember him, his work offers a lasting reminder of the artistry behind action cinema.

James Lew may be gone, but the movements he helped create, the films he contributed to, and the influence he had on stunt and martial-arts filmmaking will remain.

For an action performer, perhaps there is no more fitting legacy than that.

The screen goes dark, the credits roll, and the audience moves on to the next story.

But the work remains.

And for James Lew, that work will continue to speak for him for generations to come.