In the film industry, we tend to pick up where others have left off, and Id like to think the influences I picked up from Bruce Lee, Jackie Chan, Sylvester Stallone and Jean-Claude Van Damme are visible in my work.

The genre of '80s action movies, I think, changed really when The Matrix came out and Keanu Reeves was able to perform kung fu. Then you had Matt Damon in the Bourne films, doing a great job. So it's different now, they can train actors to do their own fights convincingly on screen, so those guys aren't needed anymore. But I think everything goes around in circles; people still do want to see the guys that can do stuff for real, that's why The Expendables is so popular. I think it will come back again.

I turned to my mom and said, Im going to be a martial arts movie star. She didnt believe me, and neither did my dad. They both thought I would grow out of it. That it was a phase. I decided then I was going to do it or die trying.

I think every red-blooded male enjoys brandishing a firearm.

I prefer to play the villain or the antihero.

You've got to be a certain type of person to be a professional fighter. I prefer to do it for pretend.

Whenever you're looking at new ways to get in shape, first you have to decide what you want. Do you want a more muscular look, or do you want to slim down and appear more toned and ripped? I adapt my training and diet with each role I do, depending on the image I want to convey.