Wang Yu – the Taiwan years

Jimmy Wang Yu has suffered neglect in the past few decades due to attention given to other martial arts stars such as Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan. This article seeks to remedy this by concentrating on the Taiwan films that Wang Yu made after breaking his contract with Shaw Brothers in 1970 after his pioneering actor-director performance in Longhu Dou/The Chinese Boxer (Wang Yu 1970). These involve not just the continuation of his role as director but also appearances in a number of Taiwanese cinematic genres not exclusively confined to martial arts as well as his failed international breakthrough Australian co-production The Man From Hong Kong. The article concludes with his return to the screen after seventeen years in Wu Xia and Let's Go! where he portrays a much older character.