Brandon Lee

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Lore & Background

Brandon Lee's early life was defined by the massive legacy of his father, Bruce Lee, who died suddenly in 1973. By age five, Brandon could kick through an inch board according to his grandmother Grace Ho. He moved between Hong Kong and the United States during his childhood but returned to California after his father's death. At nine years old, he began training with Dan Inosanto, one of his father's students, later adding instructors Richard Bustillo and Jeff Imada to his regimen. However, these early years were marked by identity struggles; Imada noted that large photos of Bruce Lee in the dojos troubled Brandon, leading him to temporarily abandon martial arts for soccer during his teens. He was also a rebellious student, asked to leave the Chadwick School four months before graduation in 1983 for misbehavior, eventually receiving his GED from Miraleste High School that same year. He later moved to New York City to study at the Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute after attending Emerson College in Boston, where he majored in theater and performed with the Eric Morris American New Theatre.

In Their Own Story

In April 1991, Brandon was a top contender for Universal Pictures' biopic Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story but turned down the role. He found it awkward to play his father and too strange to approach their parents' romance. Producer Raffaella De Laurentiis also felt he did not look Chinese enough, stating she would have refused the project if they had to make him appear more Asian. The role eventually went to Jason Scott Lee (no relation), who recalled Brandon advising him: "He said I wouldn't survive in this part if I treated his father like a god... He was a man who had a temper, a lot of anger, who found mediocrity offensive." Brandon's Hollywood breakthrough came with Showdown in Little Tokyo (1991), a buddy cop film co-starring Dolph Lundgren. Although it received negative reviews and grossed only $2,275,557 domestically, it later became a cult classic. He followed this with Rapid Fire (1992) for 20th Century Fox, where he played Jake Lo, a student witnessing a murder. For this role, Brandon connected deeply with the plot point of losing his father; stunt coordinator Jeff Imada saw him bring his own father's books to set to prepare emotionally. Brandon and Imada are credited with the fight choreography, which incorporated elements of Jeet Kune Do.

Reader's Guide

Brandon Lee began his professional career in 1985 as a script reader before landing his first credited role in Kung Fu: The Movie (1986). On this set, he reconnected with instructor Jeff Imada. Brandon initially hesitated to accept the part because the martial arts genre reminded him too much of his father's work, but accepted it after being convinced, noting a sense of justice since the original TV pilot had been conceived for Bruce Lee. That same year, he starred in Legacy of Rage (1986), his first leading film role and the only one he made in Hong Kong. Directed by Ronny Yu, with whom Brandon reportedly did not get along, the Cantonese-language film earned him a nomination for Best New Performer at the Hong Kong Film Awards and was a commercial success in Japan. In 1987, he appeared in Kung Fu: The Next Generation, an unsold pilot that aired on CBS Summer Playhouse but failed to be picked up as a series. He also played a yakuza son in Ohara (1988), a role Imada advised against due to the character's nature, though Brandon took it to expand his range. In 1990, Laser Mission was released; filmed in Namibia and distributed by Turner Home Entertainment, it was a financial success on home video despite being panned by critics. During this period, Marvel CEO Margaret Loesch and writer Stan Lee (no relation) met with Brandon, believing he was ideal for a Shang-Chi adaptation.

Did You Know?

• By the age of five, Brandon Lee could kick through an inch board.
• Brandon was never offered the role of his father in Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story, contrary to some reports.
• He secured the lead role in Showdown in Little Tokyo in 1990, with filming beginning in early 1991.
• Brandon and Jeff Imada are credited for the fight choreography in Rapid Fire (1992).
• In 1983, Brandon was asked to leave the Chadwick School four months before graduation due to misbehavior.