et Li began training in Wushu, a form of martial arts, when he was just eight years old. Because of his special talent, he was enrolled at a martial arts boarding school where he trained for eight hours per day. At 11, he became China's youngest National Champion, competing against men in their twenties. Many more titles would follow over the next few years, and Li was asked to tour the world to give demonstrations. His first tour took him to the U.S. in 1974, where President Nixon jokingly asked the 11-year-old to stay in the States to become his personal bodyguard. (Li refused outright).

  Just a few years later, the opportunity arose for Li to show off his moves in a film called Shaolin Temple. At only 18 years of age, he suddenly found himself not only a martial arts champion, but a movie star. Over the years, Jet Li would go on to make almost 30 films in China and Hong Kong before breaking onto the American scene in 1998. His first English-speaking role was as a villain in Lethal Weapon 4,
starring Mel Gibson and Danny Glover.

  Li went on to star in other Hollywood movies such as Romeo Must Die and Kiss of the Dragon, this time playing a hero, like in his earlier films.
actors
Jet Li
DMX
Mark Dacascos
Anthony Anderson
Kelly Hu
Gabrielle Union

director
Andrzej Bartkowiak

 locations
 Los Angeles

 outtake
Jet Li's real name
is Li Lian Jie, but
when his first film was released, his name was too
long for theater marquees so it
was shortened
to Jie Li, which in
time became Jet Li.

  In Cradle 2 the Grave, he plays a Taiwanese Intelligence officer who has to help a professional thief (DMX) get back his kidnapped daughter. The kidnappers demand that DMX steal a set of priceless black diamonds in exchange for her life. Their race against the clock to find the precious stones ultimately unravels a plot to distribute a deadly new weapon of war.

  "The most important thing, I always say, is the story," Li told comingsoon.net from the set. "The human body has been used already - two arms, two legs, the head. What's new? The story, the situations, the locations make it different.

  Even the same punch with a different fighter might feel different. In a different
costume, in a different story, in a sci-fi movie or a drama. That will make you think the movement is different. The challenge is myself. I always say nobody challenges you. You always challenge yourself."

  Singer/actor DMX told MTV.com he too took a different approach to filming Cradle 2 The Grave.

  "I realized the more you put into it, the more you get out of it. If I can look good half-ass trying, imagine what it would look like if I put my all into it." In this movie, his all includes some very serious fight scenes.

  Also starring in the film is Gabrielle Union, who is hotter than hot right now, with roles in last year's Welcome to Collinwood and Abandon. However, working in a martial arts film was a totally new experience for her. She says, "There's a lot of action in the movie. And Jet Li, he is insane. His hand and foot speed - it's ridiculous how fast he is, you have to watch him do a move several times before you can really see what he's doing. He's a martial arts genius."

- Alexandra Heilbron