Donnie Yen

Donnie Yen Chi-tan (Chinese: 甄子丹) is a Hong Kong actor, filmmaker, martial artist, and action director. Born on July 27, 1963, in Guangdong, Yen developed an interest in martial arts at a young age. He auditioned for action choreographer Yuen Woo-ping in Hong Kong, landing his first starring role in the 1984 Hong Kong martial arts action film Drunken Tai Chi. He's known for portraying Wing Chun grandmaster Ip Man in the Ip Man film series, and also co-producing the spin-off Master Z: Ip Man Legacy (2018). Yen made his American debut in Highlander: Endgame (2000), and continued to be active in Hong Kong cinema in the 2000s, appearing in highly acclaimed films, including Hero (2002), opposite Jackie Chan in Shanghai Knights (2003), and in popular American films Rogue One (2016), XXX: Return of Xander Cage (2017), Mulan (2020), and John Wick: Chapter 4 (2023). Yen has been credited by many for contributing to the popularisation of Wing Chun in China. In 2019, he was inducted into the Martial Arts History Museum Hall of Fame.

In television, he starred as Chen Zhen in the television series Fist of Fury (1995), and later reprised the role in the 2010 film Legend of the Fist: The Return of Chen Zhen. Yen exemplifies remarkable aptitude in a variety of combat and martial arts disciplines, including tai chi, Boxing, Kickboxing, Jeet Kune Do, and Mixed martial arts, among many others. Today, he stands out as one of the premiere action choreographers in the world.