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John Woo (I)

Director | Producer | Writer

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Born in southern China, John Woo grew up in Hong Kong, where he began his film career as an assistant director in 1969, working for Shaw Brothers Studios. He directed his first feature in 1973 and ... read full biography

Known for A Better Tomorrow (1986), Red Cliff (2008), Hard Boiled (1992), Face/Off (1997)

Details

Sep 22, 1946 (age 72) | 5' 4½" (1.64m)

External links

27 links

Images (42)

Still of John Woo, Christian Slater and John Travolta in Broken Arrow

Still of John Woo and Peter Levy in Broken Arrow

Still of John Woo, Nicolas Cage and John Travolta in Face/Off

On Podium, Cannes Grand Jury Includes Salma Hayek And Others Handing Out The Palme D'Or ~ Cannes Most Prestigious Prize For The Film: L'Enfants, Kaya F. Redford (Picture Right)

Katia Lund, Marco Tilesi, John Woo, Chiara Tilesi, Stefano Veneruso and Andrea Piedimonte in Cannes.

STARmeter

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News articles

1,928

Awards

19 wins & 17 nominations

Contacts

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Filmography

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162 titles

Projects in Development (5 titles)	Budget	Status
Day of the Beast Director, Producer Director, Producer See fewer		Development Unknown
Flying Tigers Director, Producer Director, Producer See fewer		Development Unknown
Ninja Gold Executive Producer, Producer Executive Producer, Producer See fewer		Development Unknown
Stranglehold Producer Producer See fewer		Development Unknown
The Killer Director, Producer Director, Producer See fewer	$30MM	Pre-Prod

Films in Production (1 title)	Budget	Status
Eight & a Half Director Director See fewer		Filming

Released Film and Video (91 titles)	Budget	Opening Weekend	Gross (US & Canada)	Gross (Worldwide)
Manhunt (2017) Director, Writer Director, Writer See fewer	$30MM			$18MM
Nuts! (2016) (Short) - Executive Producer Executive Producer See fewer
The Crossing 2 (2015) Director Director See fewer				$8.1MM
The Crossing (2014) Director Director See fewer				$33MM
Breaking the Waves (2014) Chief Producer Chief Producer See fewer
Nosferatu vs. Father Pipecock & Sister Funk (2014) Special Thanks Special Thanks See fewer	$2MM
The Prisoners Dilemma (2012) (Short) - Special Thanks Special Thanks See fewer	UAH 35
Warriors of the Rainbow: Seediq Bale I (2011) Producer Producer See fewer	$23MM	$57K	$136K	$4.7MM
Warriors of the Rainbow: Seediq Bale II (2011) Producer Producer See fewer	TWD 700MM			$214K
Beginning of the Great Revival (2011) Lin Sen Lin Sen See fewer		$66K	$151K	$113MM
Calibre 9 (2011) Dedicatee Dedicatee See fewer	€45K
The Suppressor (2011) Special Thanks Special Thanks See fewer
A Better Tomorrow (2010) Executive Producer, Writer (original screenplay) Executive Producer, Writer (original screenplay) See fewer	$8.7MM
Reign of Assassins (2010) Co-Director, Producer Co-Director, Producer See fewer	$12MM			$13MM
Crank Up (2010) (Short) - Dedicatee Dedicatee See fewer
Vixen Highway 2006: It Came from Uranus! (2010) Special Thanks Special Thanks See fewer	CAD 35K
The Founding of a Republic (2009) Liu Wenhui (scenes deleted), Special Thanks Liu Wenhui (scenes deleted), Special Thanks See fewer				$1MM
Red Cliff II (2009) Director, Presenter, Producer, Writer (screenplay) Director, Presenter, Producer, Writer (screenplay) See fewer	$80MM			$120MM
My Fair Gentleman (2009) Camera Operator, Supervising Producer Camera Operator, Supervising Producer See fewer				$230
Little Red Riding Hood (2009) (Video) - Special Thanks Special Thanks See fewer
Red Cliff (2008) Director, Presenter, Chief Producer, Producer, Writer (screenplay) Director, Presenter, Chief Producer, Producer, Writer (screenplay) See fewer	CNY 554MM	$13K	$627K	$128MM
Ten Dead Men (2008) Inspiration, Thanks And Love To The Works Of Inspiration, Thanks And Love To The Works Of See fewer	£100K
Heroic Bloodshed (2008) (Short) - In Tribute To In Tribute To See fewer	€3K
Team-Up: John Woo and Shinji Aramaki (2008) (Video) - Actor Actor See fewer
Wings of Defeat (2007) Special Thanks Special Thanks See fewer
Appleseed Ex Machina (2007) Producer Producer See fewer				$662
Blood Brothers (2007) Producer Producer See fewer	HKD 47MM			$4.2MM
All the Invisible Children (2005) Director (segments: Song Song and Little Cat) Director (segments: Song Song and Little Cat) See fewer				$157K
The Glass Beads (2005) (Short) - Producer Producer See fewer
Paycheck (2003) Director, Producer Director, Producer See fewer	$60MM	$13MM	$54MM	$96MM
Bulletproof Monk (2003) Producer Producer See fewer	$52MM	$8.7MM	$23MM	$38MM
Street of Pain (2003) (Short) - Special Thanks Special Thanks See fewer
Hostage (2002) (Short) - Director Director See fewer
Windtalkers (2002) Director, Producer Director, Producer See fewer	$115MM	$15MM	$41MM	$78MM
Chow Yun-Fat Goes Hollywood (2001) (Video) - Special Thanks Special Thanks See fewer
Mission: Impossible II (2000) Director Director See fewer	$125MM	$58MM	$215MM	$546MM
Psycho (1998) Special Thanks Special Thanks See fewer	$60MM	$10MM	$21MM	$37MM
The Big Hit (1998) Executive Producer Executive Producer See fewer	$13MM	$11MM	$27MM	$27MM
The Replacement Killers (1998) Advisor (uncredited), Technical Consultant (uncredited), Executive Producer Advisor (uncredited), Technical Consultant (uncredited), Executive Producer See fewer	$30MM	$8MM	$19MM	$19MM
Task Force (1997) Police Chief Police Chief See fewer
Face/Off (1997) Director Director See fewer	$80MM	$23MM	$112MM	$246MM
Somebody Up There Likes Me (1996) Executive Producer, Producer Executive Producer, Producer See fewer
Broken Arrow (1996) Director Director See fewer	$50MM	$16MM	$71MM	$150MM
Nanjing 1937 (1995) Producer Producer See fewer
Peace Hotel (1995) Producer Producer See fewer
Hard Target (1993) Director Director See fewer	$18MM	$10MM	$33MM	$74MM
The Twin Dragons (1992) Priest (as John Wu) Priest (as John Wu) See fewer	$10MM	$2.8MM	$8.4MM	$8.4MM
Hard Boiled (1992) Mr. Woo (uncredited), Director, Editor, Writer (story) Mr. Woo (uncredited), Director, Editor, Writer (story) See fewer	$4.5MM
Once a Thief (1991) Stanley Wu (uncredited), Director, Writer (screenplay), Writer (story) Stanley Wu (uncredited), Director, Writer (screenplay), Writer (story) See fewer
The Banquet (1991) Man on Stairs Man on Stairs See fewer
Bullet in the Head (1990) Policeman, Director, Editor, Producer, Writer Policeman, Director, Editor, Producer, Writer See fewer	$3.5MM
Yong chuang tian xia (1990) Kwong Kwong See fewer
The Killer (1989) Director, Writer Director, Writer See fewer
A Better Tomorrow III: Love and Death in Saigon (1989) Producer Producer See fewer
Just Heroes (1989) Director Director See fewer
Jin ye xing guang can lan (1988) Father Fan Father Fan See fewer
I Love Maria (1988) Actor Actor See fewer
A Better Tomorrow II (1987) Director, Writer Director, Writer See fewer
Heng cai san qian wan (1987) Ling's Husband Ling's Husband See fewer
A Better Tomorrow (1986) Inspector Wu, Director, Producer, Writer Inspector Wu, Director, Producer, Writer See fewer				$5MM
Ying hung jing juen (1986) Action Unit Photography Action Unit Photography See fewer
Heroes Shed No Tears (1986) Director, Producer, Writer Director, Producer, Writer See fewer
Zhua gui te gong dui (1985) Producer Producer See fewer
Gu lian hua (1985) Actor, Producer Actor, Producer See fewer
Run Tiger, Run (1985) Director, Producer Director, Producer See fewer
Xiao jiang (1985) Director, Writer (screenplay) Director, Writer (screenplay) See fewer
Ba cai Lin Ya Zhen (1982) John Wu, Director, Writer (screenplay) John Wu, Director, Writer (screenplay) See fewer
Mo deng tian shi (1982) Director, Editor, Writer Director, Editor, Writer See fewer
Hua ji shi dai (1981) Director, Writer Director, Writer See fewer
Qian zuo guai (1980) Actor, Director, Writer (screenplay), Writer (story) Actor, Director, Writer (screenplay), Writer (story) See fewer
Last Hurrah for Chivalry (1979) Director (as John Y.S. Woo), Writer (as John Y.S. Woo) Director (as John Y.S. Woo), Writer (as John Y.S. Woo) See fewer
Itchy Fingers (1979) Actor Actor See fewer
Ha luo, ye gui ren (1978) Director, Writer Director, Writer See fewer
Da sha xing yu xiao mei tou (1978) Miss Chen's father, Director, Writer Miss Chen's father, Director, Writer See fewer
Fa qian han (1977) Director, Writer Director, Writer See fewer
The Private Eyes (1976) Planner (as John Y.S. Woo) Planner (as John Y.S. Woo) See fewer
Shao Lin men (1976) Scholar Cheng, Director (as Wu Yu Sheng), Writer Scholar Cheng, Director (as Wu Yu Sheng), Writer See fewer
Princess Chang Ping (1976) Director (as Yusen Wu), Writer (as Yusen Wu) Director (as Yusen Wu), Writer (as Yusen Wu) See fewer
Nu zi tai quan qun ying hui (1975) Director (as Wu Yu-shen), Writer Director (as Wu Yu-shen), Writer See fewer
The Young Dragons (1974) Actor, Director, Writer Actor, Director, Writer See fewer
Dynasty of Blood (1973) Assistant Director (as Wu Yu Shen) Assistant Director (as Wu Yu Shen) See fewer
Dragons of Death (1973) Assistant Director (as Wu Yu Shen) Assistant Director (as Wu Yu Shen) See fewer
Man zhou ren (1973) Actor, Assistant Director (as Yu-Shen Wu) Actor, Assistant Director (as Yu-Shen Wu) See fewer
The Water Margin (1972) Assistant Director (as Yu Sheng Wu) Assistant Director (as Yu Sheng Wu) See fewer
Hellfighters of the East (1972) Assistant Director (as Wu Yu Shen) Assistant Director (as Wu Yu Shen) See fewer
Young People (1972) Assistant Director Assistant Director See fewer
Please Sir, We're Sorry! (1972) Assistant Director (as Yu-shen Wu) Assistant Director (as Yu-shen Wu) See fewer
Boxer from Shantung (1972) Assistant Director (as Yu Shen Wu) Assistant Director (as Yu Shen Wu) See fewer
Hen xin di ren (1970) Script Supervisor (as Yu-Shen Wu) Script Supervisor (as Yu-Shen Wu) See fewer
Accidentaly (1968) (Short) - Young Man, Director Young Man, Director See fewer
Sijie (1968) (Short) - Young Artist, Co-Director, Writer (as Ng Yu Chen) Young Artist, Co-Director, Writer (as Ng Yu Chen) See fewer

See all released film and video

Released Television (11 titles)	Episodes
The Industry (2015) (TV Series) - Special Thanks (1 episode, 2015) Special Thanks (1 episode, 2015) See fewer Hard Drive (Oct 24, 2015) Season 1, Episode 6 - Special Thanks Special Thanks See fewer	1
Hollywood's Best Film Directors (2014) (TV Series) - Actor (1 episode, 2014) Actor (1 episode, 2014) See fewer John Woo (Jan 1, 2014) Season 7, Episode 2 - Actor Actor See fewer	1
7 Brothers (2011– ) (TV Series) - Executive Producer Executive Producer See fewer
The Robinsons: Lost in Space (2004) (TV Short) - Director, Executive Producer Director, Executive Producer See fewer
Red Skies (2002) (TV Movie) - Executive Producer Executive Producer See fewer
Blackjack (1998) (TV Movie) - Director, Executive Producer Director, Executive Producer See fewer
Once a Thief (1996–1998) (TV Series) - Executive Producer Executive Producer See fewer
Once a Thief: Family Business (1998) (TV Movie) - Executive Producer, Writer (based on the film by) Executive Producer, Writer (based on the film by) See fewer
Once a Thief: Brother Against Brother (1997) (TV Movie) - Executive Producer, Writer (based on the film by) Executive Producer, Writer (based on the film by) See fewer
Once a Thief (1996) (TV Movie) - Director, Executive Producer Director, Executive Producer See fewer
American Cinema (1995– ) (TV Series) - Title Designer Title Designer See fewer

See all released television

Self (49 titles)
Ken San (2016) Himself Himself See fewer
Kurosawa's Way (2011) Himself Himself See fewer
At the Movies (2010) (TV Series) - Himself (1 episode, 2010) Himself (1 episode, 2010) See fewer Venice Film Festival 2010 (Sep 15, 2010) Season 7, Episode 32 - Himself Himself See fewer
A Moment in Time (2010) Himself Himself See fewer
Charlie Rose (2009) (TV Series) - Himself - Guest (1 episode, 2009) Himself - Guest (1 episode, 2009) See fewer Episode dated 27 November 2009 (Nov 27, 2009) Himself - Guest Himself - Guest See fewer
Secret's Out (2009) (TV Series) - Himself - Guest (1 episode, 2009) Himself - Guest (1 episode, 2009) See fewer Red Cliff (Nov 27, 2009) Season 4, Episode 9 - Himself - Guest Himself - Guest See fewer
The Rotten Tomatoes Show (2009) (TV Series) - Himself - Director (1 episode, 2009) Himself - Director (1 episode, 2009) See fewer 2012/The Messenger/Fantastic Mr. Fox (Nov 19, 2009) Season 1, Episode 36 - Himself - Director Himself - Director See fewer
How Bruce Lee Changed the World (2009) (TV Movie) - Himself Himself See fewer
Shi jie dian ying zhi lv (2009) (TV Series) - Himself (1 episode, 2009) Himself (1 episode, 2009) See fewer Zhong guo dian ying huo jiang zhi lv zong shu: Wen ding tian xia (Feb 15, 2009) Season 8, Episode 14 - Himself Himself See fewer
Bokura no jidai (2008) (TV Series) - Himself (1 episode, 2008) Himself (1 episode, 2008) See fewer John Woo, Takeshi Kaneshiro and Tony Leung (Nov 2, 2008) Himself Himself See fewer
John Woo: A Life in Pictures (2007) (Video) - Himself Himself See fewer
The Light and the Dark: The Making of 'Face/Off' (2007) (Video) - Himself Himself See fewer
Mission: Remarkable - 40 Years of Creating the Impossible (2006) (Video) - Himself Himself See fewer
Festival international de Cannes (2005) (TV Series) - Himself (1 episode, 2005) Himself (1 episode, 2005) See fewer Cérémonie d'ouverture du 58ème Festival international du film de Cannes (May 11, 2005) Himself Himself See fewer
Le grand journal de Canal+ (2005) (TV Series) - Himself (1 episode, 2005) Himself (1 episode, 2005) See fewer Episode dated 11 May 2005 (May 11, 2005) Himself Himself See fewer
Chang Cheh & le sabreur manchot (2005) (Video) - Himself Himself See fewer
Paycheck: Designing the Future (2004) (Video) - Himself Himself See fewer
Retrofitting 'Paycheck' (2004) (Video) - Himself Himself See fewer
Tempting Fate: The Stunts of 'Paycheck' (2004) (Video) - Himself Himself See fewer
From Hong Kong to Hollywood: The Making of John Woo (2004) (TV Movie) - Himself Himself See fewer
L'art de la guerre (2004) (Video) - Himself Himself See fewer
Remembering the Future: Paycheck & the Worlds of Philip K. Dick (2004) (TV Movie) - Himself Himself See fewer
Chop Socky: Cinema Hong Kong (2003) (TV Movie) - Himself Himself See fewer
Tinseltown TV (2003) (TV Series) - Himself (1 episode, 2003) Himself (1 episode, 2003) See fewer Episode dated 13 December 2003 (Dec 13, 2003) Himself Himself See fewer
The Code Talkers: A Secret Code of Honor (2003) (Video) - Himself Himself See fewer
Windtalkers: Fly-On-the-Set Scene Diaries (2003) (Video) - Himself Himself See fewer
Biography (2003) (TV Series) - Himself (1 episode, 2003) Himself (1 episode, 2003) See fewer John Travolta (Jan 2003) Himself Himself See fewer
Cinema Hong Kong: Wu Xia (2003) (TV Movie) - Himself Himself See fewer
The Art of Action: Martial Arts in Motion Picture (2002) (TV Movie) - Himself - Interviewee Himself - Interviewee See fewer
Hollywood Salutes Nicolas Cage: An American Cinematheque Tribute (2002) (TV Special) - Himself Himself See fewer
John Woo: Bullet in the Plate (2002) Himself Himself See fewer
+ de cinéma (2001) (TV Series) - Himself (1 episode, 2001) Himself (1 episode, 2001) See fewer Episode dated 16 November 2001 (Nov 16, 2001) Himself Himself See fewer
2001 ABC World Stunt Awards (2001) (TV Special) - Himself Himself See fewer
Behind the Mission: The Making of 'M:I-2' (2000) (Video) - Himself Himself See fewer
M:I-2 Impossible Shots (2000) (Video) - Himself Himself See fewer
M:I-2 Mission Incredible (2000) (Video) - Himself Himself See fewer
2000 MTV Movie Awards (2000) (TV Special) - Himself Himself See fewer
The RDA (2000) (TV Series) - Himself (1 episode, 2000) Himself (1 episode, 2000) See fewer Episode #1.2 (Jul 4, 2000) Season 1, Episode 2 - Himself Himself See fewer
Mission: Improbable (2000) (TV Short) - Himself Himself See fewer
Kurosawa: The Last Emperor (1999) (TV Movie) - Himself Himself See fewer
Making of 'Blackjack' (1998) (Video) - Himself Himself See fewer
Jackie Chan: My Story (1998) (Video) - Himself Himself See fewer
Century of Cinema (1998) (TV Series) - Self (1 episode, 1998) Self (1 episode, 1998) See fewer Yang ± Yin: Gender in Chinese Cinema (Jun 5, 1998) Season 1, Episode 16 - Self Self See fewer
1998 MTV Movie Awards (1998) (TV Special) - Himself Himself See fewer
The 50th Annual Directors Guild of America Awards (1998) (TV Special) - Himself Himself See fewer
Nulle part ailleurs (1997) (TV Series) - Himself (1 episode, 1997) Himself (1 episode, 1997) See fewer Episode dated 8 September 1997 (Sep 8, 1997) Himself Himself See fewer
1996 MTV Movie Awards (1996) (TV Special) - Himself Himself See fewer
HBO First Look (1996) (TV Series) - Himself (1 episode, 1996) Himself (1 episode, 1996) See fewer Broken Arrow (Feb 1996) Season 3, Episode 1 - Himself Himself See fewer
Cinema of Vengeance (1994) Himself (uncredited) Himself (uncredited) See fewer

See all self

Archive Footage (3 titles)
Rémy Julienne: 50 ans de cascades (2013) (TV Movie) - Himself (archive footage) Himself (archive footage) See fewer
American Masters (2009) (TV Series) - Himself (1 episode, 2009) Himself (1 episode, 2009) See fewer Hollywood Chinese (May 26, 2009) Season 23, Episode 3 - Himself (archive footage) Himself (archive footage) See fewer
Jackie Chan: Fast, Funny and Furious (2002) (Video) - Himself (archive footage) Himself (archive footage) See fewer

Other (2 titles)
Stranglehold (2007) (Video Game) - Mr. Woo (voice), Director, Producer Mr. Woo (voice), Director, Producer See fewer
Diablo (1996) (Video Game) - Thanks Thanks See fewer

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STARmeter

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Name	STARmeter
Martin Scorsese Producer	310
Yun-Fat Chow Actor	5,227
Nicolas Cage Actor	136
Tom Cruise Actor	73
Tony Chiu-Wai Leung Actor	11,693
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John Woo (I)

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