Jackie Chanis unequivocally thebest actor who does their own stunts. Ever since his first leading role in 1978’sDrunken Master,Jackie Chan has been performing his own stunts for more than 50 years, and there seems to be no stopping him. The man is a machine. With his extensive history of doing his own stunts, Chan has faced many injuries during his time in the movie industry. Chan has suffered from numerous broken bones, many concussions, burns, and was even in a coma for seven days. He more than deserved his honorary Oscar at the 2016 Academy Awards ceremony. So with his countless injuries, here are themartial artist’smost serious and deadliest injuries on set.
10Broken Ankle - Rumble in the Bronx (1995)
To anyone, a broken ankle would be enough to take weeks off work. But not for Jackie Chan. It’s just another day at the office. While performing a stunt where the actor was required to jump onto a moving boat, Chan lost his footing and broke his ankle. However, that didn’t stop him from doing the stunt again. The crew made Chan a protective boot that looked like his footwear, as to not irritate his broken ankle even more. If you go back and watchRumble in the Bronx,you may actually see the momentwhere his foot bends the wrong way.
9Glass Window - Police Story 2 (1988)
As many stunt performers can attest, jumping through windows is an everyday occurrence. However, there are few cases where a stunt performer jumping through a window goes wrong, and in true Jackie Chan fashion, he is one of the few examples. One ofPolice Story 2’s most impressive stunts sees Chan jump from a moving bus through panes of glass.
Of course, these panes of glass are fake, allowing for an easier but more believable break, with no sharp shards of glass to land on. However, not all of them were fake, and Chan accidentally misjudged the jump, and sent himself flying through a real pane of glass.
8Hot Coals - Drunken Master II (1994)
Remember the last time you slightly burned yourself? It hurt, right? Well, imagine having to fall onto a bed of hot coals, with nothing but your bare arms to catch your fall. That’s true pain. During an incredible fight inDrunken Master II,Chan gets knocked back onto a hot bed of burning coals, where he severely burned his hands. Just one of the many burns Chan suffered throughout his extensive acting career.
7Crushed Legs - Crime Story (1993)
Jackie Chan, as evident from this list, has faced some horrific injuries over his years in the movie industry. However, this injury inCrime Storyis perhaps one of his most painful. Like something out ofMortal Kombat, during a stunt that involved some car stunts, Chan, at one point, ended up getting his legs crushed when the actor got wedged between two cars.
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6Broken Sternum - Armor of God II: Operation Condor (1991)
Another painful injury from Chan’s filmography comes from a pretty dangerous stunt in the sequel to the brilliantArmor of God. During the movie’s final act, Chan swung from a high chain in an underground Nazi stronghold, where he inadvertently fell so hard to the ground that he broke his sternum. Thisinjury disrupted the movie’s production, and the crew had to wait for Chan to fully recover before continuing filming.
5Helicopter Crash - Police Story 3 (1992)
This helicopter crash inPolice Story3looked like sheer agony for Jackie. The stunt is incredibly impressive, but also brutal. Acclaimed filmmaker Quentin Tarantino praised this scene as being the “greatest stunt ever filmed in any movie ever.” Chan hangs from a metal pole during this exhilarating stunt; however, he fails to move out of the way of a helicopter that comes hurtling towards him, and when the helicopter crashed into Chan, the martial artist tore his shoulder muscle and broke his cheekbone.
4Eye Injury - Drunken Master (1978)
While filmingDrunken Master, Jackie Chan nearly went blind when shooting an epic martial arts fight scene. This stunt isn’t as bombastic as a helicopter crash, or falling from a long metal chain, however, it’s one of the most dangerous stunts he’s ever performed. Chan sustained an injury on his eyebrow that nearly resulted in him going blind.
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3Clock Tower Fall - Project A (1983)
One ofChan’s most infamous stuntsdrew a lot of inspiration from classic stunt performers Buster Keaton and Harold Lloyd’s iconic clock tower hang. In the scene, Chan hangs from a clock tower before letting go and falling 60 feet, where he lands awkwardly on his neck, injuring his neck, as well as breaking his nose and fingers.
2Pole Slide - Police Story (1985)
One of the most iconic stunts and injuries in movie history, is Chan’sinfamous pole slideinPolice Story. During the scene, Chan builds up the courage to slide down a pole, through waves of hanging lights, before smashing through a pane of glass at the bottom. This scene should have gone seamlessly, however, Chan sustained numerous burns, electrical shocks, and a broken vertebra.
1Tree Tumble - Armor of God (1986)
No actor has sustained a greater injury than this. At least not the lead star of the movie. During a scene that saw Chan at the top of a large tree, looking for a way down, Chan took a rather nasty tumble, hitting numerous branches on his way down. After his painful tumble, Chan landed very harshly on his head, causing the actor to fracture his skull.
