Who is the next Bruce Lee?

There may already be someone to take his place but no one knows it yet.

I have been a Bruce Lee fan for most of my life. When I was nine years old, I crafted my own nunchucks out of a broomstick and chain. I would practise for hours every day and pretend to be him. He was and always will be my hero. My heart broke when he died in 1973, but his spirit and what he stood for still feel alive for me and millions of fans to this day. For Asian men, there is no other cultural icon living or dead who embodies Asian male masculinity like Bruce Lee. We have longed for another Asian male to take his place. Sadly, none so far seem to have all that it takes to fill this existential void.

But there may be someone else who can take his place.

To be fair, mainstream media in the west has not given Asian actors a fair shot at this Asian Male Hero title until only recently with movies like Shiang-Chi — only the first major motion picture ever to star an Asian superhero. I think Simu Liu did an amazing job in this role as Shiang-Chi. He has good acting chops, an excellent athletic ability to do his own stunts, and he has been an outspoken champion of Asian rights and identity. So does he deserve to take the place of Bruce Lee as our new hero? Maybe someday. It feels much too early to tell.

If we’re only looking at martial arts exceptionalism, shouldn’t Jackie Chan, Jet Li or Donnie Yen be good enough to fill the void left by Bruce Lee? Donnie Yen studied Wushu (a.k.a. “kung fu”) and his films have grossed US$2.7B worldwide. Jet Li was a master of many styles of Wushu and competed nationally in China before he started his film career. His movies have grossed about US$2.5B worldwide. Jackie Chan has clearly demonstrated his athletic abilities in over 200 productions amassing US$5.5B worldwide. His name is probably as recognizable as Bruce Lee’s when we think of a martial arts actor hero. He has also been a great global philanthropist by donating over US$40M to charity. But as exceptionally talented and accomplished as these three men have been, they do not quite measure up to Bruce Lee, do they?

What exactly does it take to be Bruce Lee in 2022?

Bruce Lee completed only four feature films and did one season of a TV show in his short career. He was also a teacher of a new fighting style called Jeet Kune Do and a writer of his own philosophies. He definitely walked the talk and then some. He was the spiritual and physical embodiment of his philosophies. We will never know what else he would have accomplished had he lived beyond his young age of 32. But there is no doubt that his legacy continues. Perhaps because we were robbed of him so early, he has become legendary. We revere those exceptional and unique artists who died far too young. That sad list is very, very long. Billie Holiday, James Dean, Janis Joplin, John Lennon — you get the idea.

Had Bruce lived longer, he would definitely star in more martial arts movies. Maybe not all of them would be big hits like Enter the Dragon, but we would certainly see more of him. He might produce and star in his own feature films and television shows. I think he would break into mainstream productions and not be known only as a martial arts performer. He would open the doors for other Asian actors to be cast in Hollywood productions. Had he been with us in 2020 as a 79-year-old man who probably looked more like 59 years old, I’d like to think that he would have spoken out loudly against anti-Asian hate. He would not put up with the hate that was running rampant amid non-Asians who were looking for someone to blame for COVID-19. But we will never know for sure.

There is another famous Asian actor that I believe embodies all of the qualities that make Bruce Lee great.

This actor has been in over 60 film productions since 1984. She has been nominated and won numerous acting awards internationally. Her films have grossed over US$3.8B worldwide. Her roles have global reach and she has done her own martial arts stunts like Bruce Lee. I am talking about the exceptionally talented Michelle Yeoh.

I can think of no other Asian actor living today who has the reach and status of Michelle Yeoh. She won the Miss Malaysia beauty pageant in 1983 which helped launch her film career with The Owl and Miss Bumbo 1984. But it was not until she starred in Yes, Madam in 1985 which started her reign as Queen of Martial Arts movies in Asia well into the 1990s. Unlike Bruce Lee, she did not train in martial arts. She studied to be a dancer early in her career which gave her the athletic prowess and grace to do her own martial arts stunts in her movies. I don’t believe that this disqualifies her to be as important as Bruce Lee. Martial arts actors do not actually fight in their movies. They only make it look as if they do. Michelle Yeoh has clearly proven that she is a master of martial arts in her movies even though she can’t do a one-inch punch like Bruce Lee. She also has many, many other accomplishments.

In 1997, she had her first international role in a James Bond film Tomorrow Never Dies. She held her own in fights as the character Wai Lin opposite Pierce Brosnan. She was not just another beautiful Bond girl. Her international fame grew after both the commercial and critical success of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. She starred opposite another Asian superstar Chow Yan Fat and she definitely kicked ass like a master of Wushu. Her performance earned her a BAFTA nomination for Best Actress in a Leading Role in 2000. Like many other Asian actors who tried to carry their success from starring in Asian films to Hollywood, she continued to work both in Asian and Hollywood productions.

It was not until 2016 that she landed her role as Captain Philippa Georgiou of the starship USS Shenzhou. She was a Starfleet captain in one of the longest-running sci-fi franchises ever! Did social media explode because an Asian actor was cast in such a coveted role? They certainly made a big deal when Simu Liu starred as Shiang-Chi, didn’t they? Could there be sexism here? It would appear so, but Michelle Yeoh just soldiers on in one great performance after another.

Crazy Rich Asians was an important film in 2018 for Asian actors. It proved that an Asian American movie with an all Asian cast could win big at the box office. Michelle Yeoh played a supporting role as family matriarch Eleanor Young in this breakthrough feature film. This film paved the way for future roles for its other stars like Constance Wu, Henry Golding, and Awkwafina. This film opened the door for many other Asian actors. This is what Bruce Lee wanted to do when he pitched his idea which became the Kung Fu TV series. He wanted to show Asians as authentic and full human beings, unlike the racist caricatures that were prevalent in his time. Although Crazy Rich Asians was a fictional story based on a book by Kevin Kwan, its portrayal of Asians in a positive way and its box office success was indeed groundbreaking.

Michelle Yeoh continues to land leading or supporting roles in major A-list productions including James Cameron’s Avatar feature film series as Dr Karina Mogue. We all look forward to seeing Cameron’s long-awaited sequel to his 2009 mega-hit hopefully before the Polar ice caps melt completely! She will also star in a new Netflix series that will be a prequel to the wildly popular Witcher series. In the Witcher: Blood Origin, Michelle will play a mystical elf named Scian who is probably pretty good with a sword. The range of characters that she has played is remarkable.

Bruce Lee was indeed one of kind. He was many things to many people. An action hero, a handsome movie star, an exceptionally gifted martial arts master, a trailblazer, an athlete, a philosopher, a director, a writer, an inventor, a husband, and a father. When I look at what Bruce Lee wanted to represent to the world — to be a strong, authentic Asian who can cross social barriers. Hasn’t Michelle Yeoh already done that?

She has portrayed characters in film and TV that show Asians as strong, authentic human beings even when those characters are less than human. She was an aged goat in Kung Fu Panda 2 and will be an elf too. She has also been a UN Spokesperson and the face of L’Oréal. We remember Bruce Lee as a charismatic hero who was not going to be cancelled or be put down by anyone. Asian males can relate to that need for empowerment. But if we can put aside our male egos for a moment, I believe that Michelle Yeoh is every bit as strong and real in her acting career as well as in her real-life persona as a successful Asian woman. Bruce Lee was never about being the toughest or strongest in the room even though in most cases he was that by default. I believe it was about being true to oneself and striving to be the best that you can be. Be water he said so you can flow around obstacles but you can be powerful when you need to be. In her choice of roles whether in action movies or dramas, she has always portrayed herself as a strong leader. Her conduct both on and off the screen has been inspiring to many people especially Asians who want to achieve success in their own lives. I think Michelle Yeoh has what it takes to be our next Bruce Lee.

Thank you for reading my article. Obviously, I’m a big fan of Michelle Yeoh. But if you want to know why Bruce Lee and his legacy are important to me, please read this article.