Fight star wants to knock out films' image of Asians

When Cung Le first turned to acting, he knew where to find the intensity he needed to mix it with the more established action stars on set. "I only had to reach inside," the Vietnamese-American says. "I feel driven by the opportunities that are coming my way and I want to show the world there is so much more to Asian actors, and to Asian people, than they have been seeing in movies and on television."

Le, 42, was already a martial arts star in the United States when he started picking up small parts as a sideline to his career in the ring, appearing in small-budget films at first, just testing the waters and, as he puts it, seeing how many filmmakers liked his skill set.

"I had come to a stage in my fighting career where I was looking around to see where else it could lead me," Le says. "I had the confidence in myself and in what I could do to know that eventually someone would see me."

Le landed supporting roles in action film Pandorum (2009), alongside Dennis Quaid, and in Channing Tatum vehicle Fighting (2009). While both films were flops, some people had tuned in.

"One day I just got a call from [producer] Bill Kong [Chi-keung] who said he had heard about me and had seen what I could do," Le says. "He brought me out to China and gave me a good part in True Legend [belatedly released in 2010]. So I met [martial arts choreographer and director] Yuen Woo-ping, who was directing it, and I worked hard. There was good word of mouth about what I did, so that got people out here interested."

While Le was on the set of True Legend - director Yuen's historical martial arts epic starring Zhou Xun and Jay Chou Jie-lun - word of his work reached action star Donnie Yen Ji-dan, then building his team for what would become the critically acclaimed box office smash Bodyguards and Assassins (2009).