Holding black belt ranks in multiple martial arts including three styles of Karate (Shotokan, Goju-Ryu, & Kyokushin), Wushu, Kobudo, Taekwondo, and Tang Soo Do, Michael Jai White's broad background is comparable to other diversified contemporaries like Donnie Yen and Scott Adkins. His first major role was in 1997's Spawn portraying the eponymous character (the first African American actor to play as a big budget major superhero) and later moved on to star in the martial arts comedy Black Dynamite as well as cult martial arts films Undisputed 2: Last Man Standing and Blood and Bone while making cameos in bigger films like The Dark Knight as a mob boss. With a seemingly impossible balance of size and speed, Michael Jai White's unique physicality gives him a style of martial artistry unlike any other cinematic fighter out there. So here are my favorite Michael Jai White fight scenes.
#12. Universal Soldier: The Return (1999)
As primarily a B-movie actor, Michael Jai White would eventually find himself in the sci-fi genre one such example being the Robocop ripoff Android Cop. But long before that direct-to-video movie was his antagonistic turn as another cybernetic supersoldier in Universal Soldier: The Return. The first and only film directed by Mic Rodgers, stunt coordinator of Lethal Weapon 4 and Braveheart, Universal Soldier: The Return is the 4th film in the Universal Soldier series bringing back Jean-Claude Van Damme whose absence in the previous 2 installments was so sorely felt that this movie decided to act as though those 2 films never existed at all. A new generation of universal soldiers, deceased soldiers that have been revived and biologically enhanced, are lead by a rogue AI played by Michael Jai White who must've watched too many Terminator films as his objective is to take revenge on the human race for trying to shut him down because of a military budget deficit.
Towards the end of the film, Michael Jai White kidnaps Van Damme's daughter in exchange for the shutdown code. Although no longer a unisol due to being reverted back to an ordinary human, Van Damme is still Van Damme in terms of his martial arts skills. However his opponent is far above even Van Damme's level. The unisol AI has chosen what is deemed the perfect specimen as his body which happens to be a ridiculously ripped Michael Jai White (apparently different from the random unisol MJW played in the original Universal Soldier film). To build that massive musculature, White bulked up to near body builder proportions but not to the point of losing his flexibility much like his on-screen opponent, the "Muscles from Brussels" JCVD himself. The result is a physically imposing but technically flawless fighter which we first witness in one scene where Michael Jai White executes a beautiful side kick to the head of a hospital security guard. That is only a taste of the breakout physical performance by White as we soon realize that while Van Damme may be the star, Michael Jai White steals the spotlight showcasing his superhuman martial prowess with a combination of quick hand techniques and lightning fast legs including one particularly flashy flying kick that makes Van Damme's signature spinning hook kick look tame by comparison. Despite that, we are reminded that this is a Van Damme film so he has to get some stylish moves of his own but for some reason they come in the form of a wire-aided backflip kick and off-the-wall round kick. Frequent camera cuts make it difficult to fully appreciate either of the two movie martial artists' abilities but Michael Jai White's special style of cinematic combat is noticeable enough to understand how it he would distinguish himself over time from other martial actors before him. This final scene is arguably more a Van Damme style fight in terms of the high-speed camera cuts and emphasis on individual moves so the method of shooting the action isn't all that strange.
Director Mic Rodgers entrusted the design of the fight sequence to stunt coordinator Michael Runyard who would soon after work in the same role in Fight Club. How 2 stunt coordinators in complete creative control of the fight scenes could cause such overediting is a little odd (aside from maybe employing the Van Damme approach) and may have been a small factor in its financial failure as well as why no other theatrically released JCVD films would even come out until 2008. The movie's lack of narrative originality is also fairly obvious especially highlighted by its climax. Michael Jai White is frozen by liquid nitrogen into a cardboard-cutout-like fighting pose and roundhouse kicked into pieces T-1000 style. Van Damme was probably thinking "hasta la vista baby" in his head during that scene. Regardless of its lack of novel ideas, it's admittedly a cheesily fun 90s' sci-fi action flick. Unfortunately this was still ultimately sort of a low point for JCVD until 2 superior sequels were made about a decade later in 2009's Universal Soldier: Regeneration and the Scott Adkins led follow-up Universal Soldier: Day of Reckoning. But where Van Damme temporarily fell from grace, Michael Jai White slowly rose to low-budget fame as Universal Soldier: The Return was almost a passing of the torch from Van Damme to White. And though MJW may not have reached as iconic of a cinematic action status as Van Damme, this movie would be one of the first major rungs up a ladder of cult martial arts hits to come.
#11. Mortal Kombat: Legacy (2011-2013)
Mortal Kombat: Legacy is an anthology series produced by Machinima on YouTube (R.I.P.) based on the reimagined short film franchise reboot Mortal Kombat: Rebirth which was considered a relatively successful live-action revival before 2021's 2nd reboot. Lasting 2 seasons, there is only 1 episode in which Michael Jai White and the late Darren Shahalvi would get a substantial action scene. And that particular episode is more of an origin story for the 2 characters; Darren Shahalvi's Kano receives his robotic eye after a beautifully bloody fatality-esque punch while MJW's Jax is said to have severely injured his arms when protecting Sonya from an explosion.
During the fight, Michael Jai White's Jax has yet to have acquired his iconic robot arms of course, a possibility that could have happened in the 2021 film had White's role not been given to Mehcad Brooks. Even without his famous robo-arms, MJW and Shahlavi deliver a competently choreographed fight sequence. Because Jax's fighting style is based on his immensely powerful mechanical upper body, Michael Jai White's kicking skills are less emphasized in favor of his Boxing and hand blocks/strikes rooted in traditional martial arts. White is strangely slower than usual with his movements which may or may not be because of the heavy tactical gear he's wearing. Darren Shahlavi, recognized by most kung fu cinephiles as the boxing champ from Ip Man 2, actually has a martial arts background almost as versatile as MJW's including Kickboxing, Muay Thai, Judo, and Shotokan Karate. Though much of it is dumbed down to fit the street brawler approach of his character Kano. With that said Kano's character-specific knife fighting is only briefly shown. The overall fight scene is fairly simplistic and possibly meant to only introduce the characters saving their trademark traits for a future episode. Although it is filmed more comprehensibly than the final fight from Universal Soldier: The Return despite the latter having more stylish martial arts on display. Credit for the action goes to fight choreographer Larnell Stovall of Undisputed 3 and frequent collaborator of MJW as you will see in upcoming entries on this list. His characteristic use of sudden slow-mo is also recognizable here as it will be later on in higher rankings for the list. Along with stunt coordinator/fight coordinator Ernie Jackson of X-Men 2, Mortal Kombat: Legacy gives a gritty introduction to the 2 semi-mechanical MK fighters and an entertainingly made fight scene that puts it above another cop vs. criminal 1-on-1 between Michael Jai White and Darren Shahlavi in Tactical Force.
#10. Accident Man (2018)
Helmed by stunt coordinator-turned-director Jesse V. Johnson, this comic book based film was produced by and stars Scott Adkins as the "accident man", a hired killer whose assassinations are made to look like accidents. Upon learning of the death of his ex-girlfriend and unborn child at the hands of his own boss and two rival assassins, Scott Adkins goes on a hitman hunt leading up to a choreographed clash of contract killers. The two martial mercenaries who are responsible for Adkins' grudge are played by Ray Park, the Wushu expert behind Darth Maul, as well as you already know who, Michael Jai White. An entire movie centered around accident-like assassination would've been a very original concept but because you got Scott Adkins in the lead role, you gotta have some hand-to-hand hitman action. And hand-to-hand hitmen is precisely what we get as the self-aware super-talkative Scott Adkins put his martial arts where his mouth is laying down an assault of absolute aerial artistry on the more traditional martial methods of the gi-wearing Michael Jai White and Ray Park. Out of the 4 fights between Scott Adkins and Michael Jai White (coming up in future entires), this is really the only one that Adkins fairly wins owing to his gradual eclipsing of Michael Jai White in the world of martial arts action cinema. Since Scott is the star here, Michael Jai White is not given the full range of his fists and feet as is also the case with Ray Park. An additional reason being how White and Ray Park portray trigger-happy heavy machine gun lovers, a specialty they only show in an office shootout later in the film.
All in all, this isn't necessarily the fastest and most frenetic fight from any of the 3 screen fighters as they seem to move at a slower pace than their past films maybe to convey a more graceful rhythm. A lower tempo that Tim Man, one of Scott Adkins' most common choreographic collaborators, tends to alternate to and from across his films. Though the slightly shaky handheld camera effect gives a more dynamic and contemporary feel to offset the more almost retro but pleasantly campy comic-y impact sounds of fists on flesh. The result is a semi-darkly comedic 2-on-1 fight sequence between 3 hand-to-hand hitmen that is solely ranked much lower on this list as it isn't as impressive of an exhibition of Michael Jai White's martial artistry as it is Scott Adkins' but was enough of a hitman hit to spawn a relatively superior sequel.
#9. Falcon Rising (2014)
Michael Jai White is an ex-US Marine suffering from PTSD who travels to Brazil to investigate the brutal assault of his sister resulting in his uncovering of a human trafficking network controlled by the local Brazilian gangs and the Yakuza. You already know MJW's gotta have a fight sequence devotedly entirely to taking these guys out alone and that comes right towards the final moments of the film in an almost neo-noir-like warehouse bathed in blue lighting.
White engages in some stealthy cover-based and close-quarters gunplay with pre-John Wick gun grappling techniques as well as modifying the flying sidekick punch combo into a more awesome flying sidekick gunshot combo. This is followed up with a final face-off against 2 corrupt detectives played by Jimmy Navarro and Capoeira mestre Lateef Crowder as well as a Yakuza boss portrayed by Masashi Odate, a samurai descendant and master of the Japanese weapon-oriented martial art Katori Shinto-Ryu. The fight begins in a trading of trapping and striking with a knife against Lateef's capoeira kicks until MJW confronts all 3 at once with Jimmy Navarro arming himself with a chain and MJW showing off another variation of the sidekick punch combo substituting the punch with a leg toss. The 3-on-1 ends with only the Yakuza swordsman left standing in an elegant dance of katana vs. pipes-turned-makeshift tonfas duel. Like I mentioned earlier, Larnell Stovall takes the reigns as fight choreographer once again. And though this film wasn't quite the action hit that it wanted to be preventing the intended launch of an entire film franchise called Codename: Falcon, Stovall and everyone else involved were able to execute a choreographically varied and entertaining finale mixing hand-to-hand combat with weapon work moving the action from firearms to fists, guns to grappling.
#8. The Boondocks (2005-14)
Movie martial artists aren't recognized for their voice acting skills which is why it's all the more intriguing for Michael Jai White to be associated with such talent. You might not have known that he voiced Doomsday in both Justice League and Justice League Unlimited as well as Jon Stewart/Green Lantern in the video game Justice League Heroes. His superhero cartoon credits have also made their way into Static Shock as Oseno, Tattooed Man in Batman: The Brave and the Bold, and Bronze Tiger in Batman: Soul of the Dragon (a character he also played in several episodes of in the live action Arrow series). It's no surprise that his comic book associations would lead him to portraying the titular character in the live action Spawn film and a quick cameo as a mob boss in The Dark Knight. But for this entry in the list I'm staying within the realm of animated productions by highlighting his performance in The Boondocks, an adult-oriented animated series originally airing on the Adult Swim block on Cartoon Network revolving around the Freeman family moving into a mostly Caucasian suburban neighborhood. Loosely based on an online comic strip, The Boondocks is a smart satirical social critique of American society and particularly Black Americans.
Michael Jai White only voiced Bushido Brown for 1 of 3 episodes he appeared in also voicing a cop featured in that single episode but that one and only part he played made enough of an impression to land him on this list. Bushido Brown usually works as a bodyguard for more affluent employers such as Oprah Winfrey but in this episode is hired by the Freeman family to protect them from the Stinkmeaner gang who seek vengeance on the Freemans for the death of their eponymous leader Colonel H. Stinkmeaner. The design and personality of Bushido Brown was obviously influenced by various black martial artists like Jim Kelly from Enter the Dragon, Ron Van Clief's "Black Belt Jones" character, and even Kareem Abdul Jabar from Game of Death with Enter the Dragon references going so far as to recreate Bruce Lee's face-stomping facial expression from the film. This entire fight scene is a tribute to martial arts cinema as the new de facto leader of the Stinkmeaner gang wields the mythical flying guillotine, a classic Kung Fu weapon first popularized by a certain 1976 Shaw Bros. film, the studio itself having its iconic opening sequence borrowed by The Boondocks in an earlier episode. All of these martial arts movie homages are blended into one fluidly animated 3-on-1 melee (the 2nd one on the list) as the Karate Grandmaster single-handedly fends off the entire Stinkmeaner gang.
The animation is more meticulously made in all episodes from season 2 onwards due to the involvement of Korean studio Moi Animation, the animators of another Michael Jai White adult cartoon with a afro-wearing black martial artist Black Dynamite as well as Castlevania, the 3rd season of Avatar, and many others including a long list of Marvel/DC shows and films. The animation director of this episode, Sung Dae Kang, has also directorially delved into other animated projects like The Witcher: Nightmare of the Wolf, Batman vs. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and Avatar: The Legend of Korra. The action style of The Boondocks is unshockingly influenced by various anime like Samurai Champloo and Cowboy Bebop both of which the series' creator Aaron McGruder is an avid fan of. For a sitcom cartoon, the fight sequences are so choreographically complex that you would be forgiven if you'd forgotten that the focus is on the comedy. It's because of this beautiful balance of humor and hand-to-hand combat that The Boondocks is exemplary of the best of western action animation. There's no telling how well the cancelled 2020/2022 reboot would have updated the martial arts comedy synthesis of the original but at least we can always remember that its first iteration is one of the finest works of action animation outside of anime. And you'll probably see it on a list of top fight scenes from western animated series one day in the not-so-distant future...
#7. Welcome to Sudden Death (2020)
(only a trailer because I couldn't find any online clips for the fight scene discussed below)
The next film we're looking at takes the Die Hard-in-a-sports-stadium formula of Jean Claude Van Damme's 1995 film Sudden Death and gives it a more comedic coating while also handing the lead action star role to Michael Jai White sort of continuing the torch-passing that began in Universal Soldier: The Return which I mentioned at the very beginning of this list. During an NBL game (fictional version of the NBA apparently), a former counter-terror soldier and his rogue unit hold hostage a billionaire and the daughter of Michael Jai White's character who happens to have once been a member of the US Special Forces. Several fight scenes are scattered throughout the film among them one between White and his own real life wife Gillian. However the most thrilling of them all is the locker room beatdown in yet another 1-against-3.
The team of 3 being composed of the always overlooked Marrese Crump as well as stuntmen/stunt coordinators BJ Verot and Sean Skene. After taking out the first 2 false security guards and the humorous intermission that follows, the old school hip hop soundtrack stops and Michael Jai White goes toe to toe with Marrese Crump. As the only American successor to the late Thai action master Panna Rittikrai, mentor of Tony Jaa, Crump gets a chance to display his diverse martial arts skillset using Muay Thai stances, Boxing jabs, Capoeira kicks, and Filipino-based trapping and striking combinations against Michael Jai White's tricky Taekwondo legs. The 1-on-1 starts in stand-up until ending on the ground, a fight which was the hand-to-hand handiwork of White's choreographic companion
Larnell Stovall. Unfortunately some alleged studio interference led to some shorter shots than was desired because of them having been edited by an individual hired by Universal Studios rather than Irit Raz who was first pick as editor by Michael Jai White as the two along with Larnell Stovall had previously worked together in Undisputed 2. Combined with its higher undercranking than previous fight sequences on the list, the quicker cuts do however create a more fast-paced feel. And it was honestly about time that Marrese Crump and Michael Jai White finally threw hands in a film fight. Their fighting styles are rather distinct from one another yet rhythmically flow so well that it's a wonder how they haven't collaborated much earlier.
#6. Skin Trade (2014)
Speaking of martial arts movie fantasy fights, one explanation as to why one between Michael Jai White and Tony Jaa never happened in Triple Threat might be because it was already done a few years prior in Skin Trade. Marrese Crump isn't the only student of Panna Rittikrai that MJW has crossed fists with having had the pleasure of fighting Tony Jaa, Rittikrai's top disciple, about half a decade before Welcome to Sudden Death. Michael Jai White is an FBI agent secretly working for a Serbian crime lord played by Ron Perlman who is being tracked down by a Thai detective played by Tony Jaa in his first English-language film and an American detective played by Dolph Lundgren.
During a shootout with the Eastern European human traffickers, Jai and Jaa grapple away their guns and face each other fist-to-fist. Tony Jaa's Muay Thai mastery, acrobatic arsenal, and parkour evasions are a unique match for the speedy hand strikes and titanic Taekwondo legs of Michael Jai White all of which converge mid-way in a mutual mid-air knee strike. In fact, Jaa's trademark Taekwondo trick kicks are so impressive that they make White's own Taekwondo look tame by comparison. Whether this is because of Michael Jai White's form-fitting attire or because MJW was obligated to play a slightly slower version of his normally inhumanly fast martial arts persona to make a more even looking screen fight with the smaller and likely more agile Tony Jaa is not entirely clear. What is clear is that time was certainly not on their side when crafting this fight sequence. Specifically 10 minutes for the choreography, a few days of rehearsal, and a total of 3 takes to finish shooting. The old adage of pressure creating diamonds might apply here however as this Thai-kwondo vs. Jai-kwondo match was left in the choreographic hands of Dian Hristov, part of the Bulgarian Alpha Stunt Team, stunt double for Dolph Lundgren in The Expendables, and stunt coordinator of American action hits The Hitman's Bodyguard, 300: Rise of an Empire, and Olympus Has Fallen. The final product may not exactly be diamond-level but it does showcase the special attributes of each of the 2 martial arts movie colleagues moving the fight across the industrial set piece especially showing off Tony Jaa's expert mobility. Jaa and Michael Jai White must've enjoyed their film fighting collaboration so much that Jaa made a bizarre wolf-howling cameo in White's Never Back Down: No Surrender some years later, a movie that is sure to make this list a few entries from here....
#5. Metal Hurlant Chronicles (2012, 2014)
This live action anthology series is adapted from the adult fantasy comic Heavy Metal
with each episode an independent narrative only connected by their stories being set on worlds that witness the passing by of the eponymous "Metal Hurlant" asteroid, the remnant of a living planet driven to maddening despair by its own destruction. The fight scene in question is from the very 1st episode of the 1st season where medieval-like warriors participate in a robot-judged tournament that will determine who is worthy enough to rule as king. 6 years after their memorable MMA bout in Undisputed 2, the choreographic chemistry between Scott Adkins and Michael Jai White remains as excellent as ever. Scott uses a European-like sword while Michael Jai White is armed with a non-European possibly Middle-Eastern saber or cutlass of some sort. The two are primarily trained in Eastern martial arts so that may be the source of their sword styles which makes more sense for their extraterrestrial cultural context. Michael Jai White is of course no stranger to the ways of the sword having only presented his blade skills in unfortunately brief sequences from the weird wire-fu of Exit Wounds with Steven Seagal, to a campy Kill Bill Vol. 2 deleted scene, and a somewhat anti-climactic sword "duel" in Blood and Bone. Metal Hurlant Chronicles is really the only memorable sword fight White can claim to have been a part of. And while Scott Adkins appears to be the main protagonist, Michael Jai White is made to be the more skilled combatant calmly counter-attacking with heavy hits from his hilt and eventually disarming Adkins.
Michael Jai White then abandons his own blade to level the playing field taking the duel to open-handed combat transitioning into a traditional Karate stance and utilizing his quick hand strikes against Scott Adkins. This could've been a battle of two distinct Taekwondo styles but Scott Adkins is confined to a basic kickboxing form while Michael Jai White is allowed to execute his usual fast-footed kicking combos. It's a Western European/Middle-Eastern influenced setting but also a fictional sci-fi fantasy alien realm so Adkins' more "realistic" conventional punches and kicks need not have been toned down for any degree of historical accuracy. Nonetheless, we get an adequately entertaining blade-on-blade battle
created by, you guessed it, Larnell Stovall. Wide steady takes from generally similar camera angles and Stovall's signature slow-mo shots fully frames the action allowing the fight scene to breathe and letting us easily appreciate every move.
#4. Triple Threat (2019)
The long-awaited film uniting an all-star cast of some of this generation's greatest cinematic martial artists finally arrived in 2019. An action ensemble that Michael Jai White went as far as to compare to the Five Deadly Venoms. Allegedly finished with filming all the way back in 2017, director Jesse V. Johnson would recruit Michael Jai White again for Accident Man before Triple Threat's official launch. Michael Jai White (coincidentally named "Deveraux" which was the name of JCVD's character's name in the Universal Soldier series) leads a team of mercenaries to extract a sadistic hired soldier played by Scott Adkins massacring an Indonesian village in the process including the wife of a local played by Iko Uwais. The "triple threat" advertised by the title is made up of Iko Uwais who teams up with enemy-turned-allies Tony Jaa and Tiger Chen who had regrettably helped raid Uwais' home. Every character takes turns going fist-to-fist and foot-to-foot with almost every other character in fighting game fashion with a what you could kind of call the "tournament finals" taking place in an abandoned building.
One of these finals being between Michael Jai White and Iko Uwais. The Taekwondo Titan vs. the Silat Sovereign. Both men bearing vendettas against the other; Iko Uwais for his wife and Michael Jai White for the death of his vaguely romantic partner played by a criminally underutilized Jeeja Yanin who was blown to bits by Iko Uwais. White's lethal and much longer legs as well as the weight of his wide swings beats down the smaller and shorter-limbed Uwais. The fight isn't entirely in MJW's favor however as his Karate-based hand techniques find their match in Iko Uwais' own creating a mutual exchange of criss-crossing arms. Uwais' signature speedy Silat strikes target the legs of his towering opponent but he is ultimately unable to knock down his Jai-gigantic™ foe until he's saved by a last minute distraction from Tiger Chen. Michael Jai White stated he had to get used to Iko Uwais' shorter stature by aiming lower with his kicks while being envious of the surprising height of Iko Uwais' own kicks. At only about 2 minutes in length, this fight sequence deserved more time considering the martial arts star power available for it but probably due to the usual short shooting schedules of a lower-budget American action movie. Contemporary choreographic master Tim Man and assistant fight choreographer Eric Cullet nonetheless manage to make an intriguing showdown of mix-and-match martial mastery which I was lucky enough to have been the audience of during its 1-day limited-upon-limited US theatrical release. Michael Jai White has had the fortune of crossing paths with a few Asian action superstars and Iko Uwais can now be counted among them besides Tony Jaa and Michelle Yeoh in Silver Hawk.
#3. Never Back Down: No Surrender (2016)
Aside from the Undisputed franchise, Blood and Bone, and other one-off roles like in The Philly Kid and MMA-related fight scenes like with UFC Hall of Famer Randy Couture in The Hard Way, Michael Jai White's more prominent place in the mixed martial arts movie world is really in the Never Back Down series. Following a similar tradition to Undisputed, characters introduced in prior films become the story centerline for the subsequent films. In this 3rd installment, Michael Jai White reprises his role as director and actor starring as the retired MMA champ from Never Back Down 2: The Beatdown carrying a bald bearded look modeled after legendary street fighter and short-lived MMA fighter Kimbo Slice who also cameo-'d in Blood and Bone (more on that later). After his MMA buddy played by UFC/Bellator heavyweight Josh Barnett suffers a knee injury, Michael Jai White is chosen for a Thai championship as the opponent of a mixed martial arts monster played by Nathan Jones. Australian strongman, power lifting champ, former WWE wrestler, and go-to big guy for martial arts action movies including Tony Jaa's Tom-Yum-Goong and Jet Li's Fearless as well as one of the few muscled men that can dwarf even MJW.
Learning of the match's promoter having botched Michael Jai White's friend and previous contender's chances by covertly switching out his steroids with fake substitutes, White vows to screw over the promoter by psyching up Nathan Jones enough (with one hell of an insult) into engaging in a premature out-of-ring unsanctioned fight that would cost the promoter buckets of cash and countering his lawsuit against White by threatening to turn in footage of the false steroid stunt. Michael Jai White appears to have the upper hand at first, relying on his light-footed boxing, body breaking back kicks, crippling leg kicks to Jones' tree trunk sized lower extremities, and some good ol' ground grappling. But a painful groin punch and body slam causes Michael Jai White to reformulate his strategy and demonstrate the traditional martial arts he has been proudly representing throughout the film. Taekwondo isn't actually White's main martial art as I might've been making it out to be. He is also a master of 3 styles of Karate; Shotokan, Goju-Ryu, and most of all, Kyokushin Karate, which White has mentioned many times as his primary art. Once the gloves come off, MJW sheds his facade as a modern martial artist and unleashes an array of old-school Karate techniques, in particular the Nakadaka Ken, an extended middle finger punch bruising the enormous ribs of Nathan Jones, and finally the Kaiten Geri aka the rolling wheel kick to bring down the beast from down under. And guess who the fight choreographer was? That's right, Larnell Stovall, who was given an action template to work from through the pre-vis of Vlad Rimburg and Emmanuel Manzanares, 2 of the greatest YouTube indie martial arts action short film-makers out there who eventually transitioned into the mainstream market in everything from Hollywood to Bollywood. It's because of this choreographic crew that Michael Jai White was able to remind the global martial arts community of the importance of the old ways in the face of modernized and mixed methods of combat that have otherwise become so commonplace.
#2. Undisputed 2: Last Man Standing (2006)
Directed by one of the top martial arts action directors of our time, Isaac Florentine, Undisputed 2 has become a seminal entry into MMA cinema expanding the previous film's focus on boxing out into the then increasingly more popular mixed martial arts arena. This is
the film that truly kickstarted the martial arts movie mainstay that is the Undisputed series as well as making a career breakthrough for Michael Jai White and perhaps an even bigger breakout performance for Scott Adkins. Ving Rhames hands over the role of washed up world heavyweight boxing champion George "Iceman" Chambers to Michael Jai White who goes from antagonist of the first film to protagonist, a role reversal that would happen again in Undisputed 3. Framed for cocaine possession and sent to a maximum security prison in Russia, Chambers must claim his freedom by defeating the most complete fighter in the world and king of prison fighters, Yuri Boyka, played by an up-and-coming and during then almost unrecognizable Scott Adkins whose part almost went to Dolph Lundgren. Because of the 2-part narrative constructed by 2 particular fight sequences, I'll have to cheat as I've done many times in past articles and combine 2 fight scenes into 1 ranking.
Unless you're someone like Nathan Jones from the previous spot on the list or Bob Sapp in Blood and Bone, not many film fighters out there can match the musculature of Michael Jai White forcing Scott Adkins to put on pounds upon pounds of muscle to believably portray a ripped ruthless Russian that could last a prison punch-out from MJW. The result is a match-up of maximum mixed martial machismo. Their first match begins with White staying true to his character's punching prowess putting out the pompous Boyka who fails to beat the beastly boxer "at his own game" whittling him down with fast flurries of fists before pounding him down onto the floor of the ring with a beautifully brutal boxing barrage all set to a symphonic series of sharp whiplash sound effects and sleek stylish slow-mo. Michael Jai White's portrayal of boxing behemoth Mike Tyson in the 1995 biopic Tyson certainly gave White the fist fighting finesse needed for Undisputed 2, a skill set which would later land him the role of Muhammad Ali in the television series The Legend of Bruce Lee. Boyka, realizing he has underestimated his adversary, uses his more complete martial arts background kicking Chambers' lower body into oblivion and executing the Guyver Kick, the one classic kick that would become Scott Adkins' signature technique and would even be alternatively called the "Boyka Kick" in honor of the fictional martial artist that would catapult the move into cult status.
Unfortunately the fight is cut short when Chambers is drugged by a sedative-spiked water bottle infuriating Boyka who discovers that his martial duel was sabotaged by his dishonorable lackies. To prepare for their rematch, Chambers is trained by a wheel-chair bound former Russian commando and now fellow inmate to complement Chambers' boxing skills with a more complete combat form. As part of his character, MJW's fighting style is less rooted in traditional martial arts as we've witnessed in previous entries on the list and more in a boxer-turned-MMA fighter foundation utilizing low kicks, grappling-striking combos, throws, a knee variation of his flying triple kick, and of course Chambers' background in boxing to out-punch Boyka's fierce flashy takedowns and acrobatic leg work culminating in a climactic and fateful leg snap that earns Chambers and his quadriplegic trainer their long dreamed of life outside their frozen hellish jail cells. The choreographic mastermind behind this mixed martial mastery is J.J. Perry, Hollywood stunt coordinator supreme and director of last year's vampire slaying actioner Day Shift. Without Perry and his action team, Undisputed 2 would not be the cult classic that it is and fully actualize Michael Jai White's potential as a complete fighter in his own right and a leading man of many martial arts action movies to come.
#1. Blood and Bone (2009)
Out of all the movies in Michael Jai White's fight filmography, Blood and Bone is the one that undoubtedly presents him at peak physical performance. A particular quadruple kick in one specific fight scene simply speaks for itself. Unlike the incomplete martial arts form shown in Undisputed 2, this movie does not hold back on letting MJW loose on the underground street fighting scene, a plot point he had dipped his toes in his younger years back in the 90s' with movies like Ballistic and Full Contact. Michael Jai White is the eponymous Isaiah Bone who, after being recently released from prison, becomes a casual yet nearly unbeatable street fighter out for some extra cash to get back on his feet. On his way to the top of the urban combat hierarchy he develops a close friendship with the residents of his apartment whose lives are soon threatened by the local crime lord who wishes for Bone to face off against the international underworld fighting champion played by Matt Mullins. A 4th degree black belt in Shorei-Ryu Karate and, along with Thai actor/martial artist and Power Rangers Lightspeed Rescue Blue Ranger Mike Chat, a co-founder of XMA, Extreme Martial Arts, a performative style that combines martial arts, gymnastics, and acrobatics.
As much as this #1 spot on the list is dedicated to Michael Jai White's mesmerizing martial artistry, it's worth taking time to appreciate Matt Mullins' even more underrated martial arts movie presence who was cast as Johnny Cage in the short film reboot Mortal Kombat: Rebirth alongside Michael Jai White and also made a name for himself behind the camera as fight choreographer of several Marvel shows like Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Defenders, and season 2 of Luke Cage. It takes 2 screen fighters of their calibre to craft such a grounded yet technically immaculate 1-on-1. Both fighters have such swagger and poise that they begin and end the fight with their hands down starting off by testing one another's reflexes with quick feints and fist/foot strikes before exploding into quick bursts of combos and counter combos taking the fight from stand-up clinch all the way to the ground. The cocky and spotless suit-wearing Matt Mullins appears to have the aerial advantage with his high-flying XMA-style kicks until Bone's superior reaction time and tricky Timbaland Taekwondo feet turn the tables finishing the fight with an elegantly executed acrobatic submission. But right before an undeniable victory, Bone taps out at the last second losing the crime lord piles of profit while also, moments earlier, having already given the cops evidence of the mob boss's murder and framing of Bone's friend and husband of one of Bone's apartment neighbors. The ensuing sword duel with the crime boss sets Bone and his residential friends free and imprisoning the crime boss to deal with the sadistic homosexual desires of an inmate played by notorious street fighter Kimbo Slice.
A short outdoor kata routine establishes Bone's character as a traditionally focused practitioner but the movie itself displays his more practical approach to the martial arts, one trait that does endure from his last role in Undisputed 2. A contemporary choreographic aesthetic that is more fitting for the character as Michael Jai White had not yet begun advocating for the older less modernized Karate style of his later movies. This also may be due to White having reunited with J.J. Perry from the MMA-heavy Undisputed 2 who took his seat as Blood and Bone's martial arts director bringing along co-fight coordinators Sam Hargrave (director of Extraction) and Taiwanese actor/stuntman Fernando Chien. The final product is a non-frenetic yet fast-paced finale that balances strategic moments of silence with the swift high-speed sound of sleeves sort of symbolizing the poor lower class fighting against the wealthy criminal elites that keep them in poverty. With cameos from Robert Wall, a close colleague of Bruce Lee who portrayed on-screen opponent O'Hara in Enter the Dragon, as well as Fumio Demura, Pat Morita's stunt double from the Karate Kid series, and even MMA femme fatale Gina Carano in her very first film, Blood and Bone is a modern martial arts classic. If it weren't for Blood and Bone, Michael Jai White would not be recognized as the film fighting phenom he is. A supreme synthesis of speed and strength that interestingly enough would be unexpectedly referenced in the Asian-Canadian sitcom Kim's Convenience which even more interestingly starred Simu Liu before his career-defining turn as Shang-Chi.
And there ends my article on Michael Jai White's top 12 fight scenes. Any agreements or disagreements? Ever imagined MJW's rendition of other iconic black superheroes like Blade or Black Panther? Comment on that if you will and subscribe to the website so you can be notified of the next article which will be on a certain Silat stylist you might have heard of.....Iko Uwais.
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