Donnie Yen hopes sister’s movie career takes off in Hong Kong
HONG KONG: Ip Man 3 star Donnie Yen is working on developing his sister’s movie career in Hong Kong.
His sister is Boston-based martial arts actress Chris Yen, 41 .
On plans to catapult Chris to stardom, Donnie said: “There are not many female action stars in Hong Kong, and there are even fewer with a background in martial arts. I specially persuaded Chris to come back to Hong Kong and sign with my company. I will look for suitable movie roles for her. Of course, I will not show any favouritism just because she’s my sister. She is also free to look for her own opportunities based on her abilities.”
Chris, on the other hand, said that she would definitely support the plans that Donnie has for her.
Chris last collaborated with Donnie in Hong Kong in 2004, appearing in the movie, Black Rose Academy. Subsequently, she returned to the United States to develop a career behind the scenes.
On reports alleging that tickets sales were rigged to propel Ip man 3 to blockbuster status, Donnie replied that as an actor, he should just focus on his roles. Added Donnie: “Every movie will have different distribution and promotion strategies. As an actor, I should just focus on acting well.”
Ip Man 3’s sales figures had stunned Beijing regulators.
Bankrolled in part by a flamboyant Shanghai mogul, the action flick supposedly took in US$72.3 million (RM296 million) in its first three days in cinemas, even though early March is typically a slow moviegoing period. By comparison, Disney’s Zootopia earned about one-third as much.
Donnie also spoke about his experience filming the upcoming action blockbuster film, xXx: The Return of Xander Cage. He noted the importance of training hard for a good physique, as all the other male leads such as Vin Diesel and Tony Jaa in the movie are muscle-bound.
On his physique, Donnie laughed and said: “I’m okay. My shirt feels pretty tight. My wife has actually always wanted me to have a bit of a belly, as she feels that it’s befitting of a man. I’ve always told her that it’s not okay to have a belly in my line of work.”