After making a name for himself with films like Rush Hour and Rumble in the Bronx, Jackie Chan starred in the 2002 sci-fi action comedy The Tuxedo. Featuring Chan alongside Jennifer Love Hewitt, the movie follows a taxi driver, Jimmy, who gets a special tuxedo that is actually a high-tech suit and has the ability to manipulate the body of its wearer. While the actor was praised for his acting and action skills, the movie’s “special effects and bad writing” were highly criticized.
It wasn’t the biggest hit for the actor at the time. However, it doesn’t seem that he regretted his decision, as it allowed him to meet one of his favorite filmmakers in Hollywood, Steven Spielberg.
Jackie Chan’s First Meeting With Steven Spielberg
The 2002 film did not do wonders at the box office or among critics, an Jackie Chan was also skeptical about the use of special effects in the movie. However, despite his intuition, he accepted the role after he learned that the film could land him an opportunity to meet the Oscar-winning director Steven Spielberg.
As a co-founder of Dreamworks, Spielberg is known to be closely associated with the projects associated with him. The Tuxedo is also a Dreamworks movie. During an interview with Tribute, the Police Story star recalled his first meeting with the filmmaker.
Stating that he is a big fan of Steven Spielberg and George Lucan, Chan said, “I just think two of them are geniuses.” He shared that he was super excited to meet him, while the Indiana Jones director was like a regular person.
“When I met Spielberg, I was so excited, but he was just like a normal person,” he recalled. The Karate Kid actor shared that he was happy when Spielberg held out his hand and asked him for an autograph for his son, who loved the action star.
Jackie Chan Was Intrigued to Know About Steven Spielberg’s Movies
Jackie Chan has been quite open about his admiration for Steven Spielberg and George Lucas. And being a fan, he was also curious about how the director brought his vision onto the screen. During his interview, he recalled that he was very happy to meet Spielberg and was over the moon when he asked for his autograph.
However, he did not know what to say after he asked for his autograph. “I was so happy, but I didn’t know what to say. So I turned around and asked him, ‘How can you make dinosaurs and people walk together on screen? It’s amazing,'” he shared.
The Jaws director told him that he “[presses] a lot of buttons” and went on to ask him how he is able to pull off the action sequences jumping from roof to roof. “I told him that I just roll and jump. Camera rolls, director says action, I jump, and then it’s cut. That’s all!” Chan recalled.
The Tuxedo is available on Prime Video.
Source: Tribute
