Jean-Claude Van Damme

Jean-Claude Camille François Van Varenberg (, ; born 18 October 1960), known professionally as Jean-Claude Van Damme (, ), is a Belgian martial artist and actor. Born and raised in Brussels, his father enrolled him in a Shotokan karate school at the age of ten, which led Van Damme to hold the rank of 2nd-dan black belt in karate, and compete in several karate and kickboxing competitions. As a teenager, he won the middleweight championship of the European Professional Karate Association in 1979 and the Mr. Belgium bodybuilding title in 1978. With the desire of becoming an actor in Hollywood, he moved to the United States in 1982, where he worked on several films, until he got his break as the lead in the martial arts film ''Bloodsport'' (1988).

He became a popular action film star and followed up with commercially successful films such as ''Cyborg'', ''Kickboxer'' (both 1989), ''Lionheart'', ''Death Warrant'' (both 1990), ''Double Impact'' (1991), ''Universal Soldier'' (1992), ''Nowhere to Run'', ''Hard Target'' (both 1993), ''Timecop'', ''Street Fighter'' (both 1994), ''Sudden Death'' (1995), ''The Quest'', which marked his directorial debut, and ''Maximum Risk'' (both 1996). He achieved sex symbol status in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Between 1993 and 1998, three Hong Kong filmmakers collaborated with Van Damme for their debuts in Western cinema: John Woo, Tsui Hark, and Ringo Lam. After a decline in popularity in the late 1990s and early 2000s, he returned to prominence with the critically acclaimed crime drama ''JCVD'' (2008). His big return to the action genre was in ''The Expendables 2'' (2012), in which he starred as the villain, opposite Sylvester Stallone's character.

From thereon, he continued starring in action films and doing extensive voice work, appearing in the well-received ''Enemies Closer'' (2013), ''The Bouncer'', ''Kickboxer: Retaliation'' (both 2018), ''Minions: The Rise of Gru'' (2022), and ''Darkness of Man'' (2024). In television, he starred in the Ridley Scott-produced ''Jean-Claude Van Johnson'' (2016-2017). Regarded as an icon of action and martial arts cinema, his films have grossed over $1 billion worldwide, making him one of the most successful action stars of all time. Outside his film career, Van Damme has publicly supported various conservationist causes and animal rights organisations. Provided by Wikipedia