
Robin Shou (仇雲波, born July 17, 1960 in Hong Kong) is a martial artist, actor and stuntman, best known for his role as Liu Kang in Mortal Kombat: The Movie and Mortal Kombat: Annihilation.
Prior to his success in Hollywood, Shou frequently appeared in low-budget Hong Kong films, usually B-movies alongside Yukari Oshima and Alex Fong.
Besides acting, Shou is also an accomplished stunt choreographer and trainer who is trained in Kenpo karate, wushu, kung fu, and sanda.
He has an official website that details his life and career here.
Notable Films:
- The Big Heat (1988)
- The Big Brother
- In the Line of Duty III: Force of the Dragon
- City War
- Long Arm Of The Law 3
- Burning Ambition
- Casino Raiders
- Triads The Inside Story
- Death Cage
- Fatal Termination
- Tiger Cage 2
- The Cyprus Tigers
- Fury In Red
- In The Line Of Duty 6 Forbidden Arsenal
- Fatal Chase
- Black Cat 2
- Gun n' Rose
- Angel The Kickboxer
- Undefeatable
- Honor and Glory
- The Most Wanted
- Mortal Kombat: The Movie
- Beverly Hills Ninja
- Mortal Kombat: Annihilation
- Eighteen Fingers Of Death
- DOA: Dead or Alive
- Death Race
- Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li
- Death Race 2: Frankenstein Lives
- Mortal Enemies
- Death Race 3: Inferno
Television Roles
- Yellowthread Street
- Forbidden Nights
- Soldier Soldier
- The Outer Limits (1995)
- Cold Case
- Way Of The Empty Hand
Video Game Roles:
Producer
Robin Shou's work provides examples of:
- Cast the Expert: He was a working stuntman and proficient in kung fu before he was cast as Liu Kang. In fact, he was friends with Ho Sung-Pak, Liu Kang's actor in the first two Mortal Kombat games.
- Casting Gag: Before becoming an actor, he was a hired bodyguard in Hong Kong in his early years. In the film In The Line Of Duty III: Force Of The Dragon, he plays an unnamed bodyguard who quits after his boss mistreats him.
- Friendship on the Set:
- He became friends with Linden Ashby while filming Mortal Kombat: The Movie. At the time, both did their own stunts and were martial artists before they got their roles.
- His friendship with Simon Yam in his early films, starting with The Big Brother, helped him get later roles (such as a villain in Fatal Termination, where he worked with Yam).
- During his time in Hong Kong, he befriended David Wu while filming Tiger Cage 2.
- He became friends with Melissa Gilbert during the filming of Forbidden Nights.
- Mr. Fanservice: In Forbidden Nights, in the scenes where Liang is in Judith's apartment after taking a bath, he wears a Modesty Towel. He also goes shirtless for the final battle in Mortal Kombat: The Movie.
- '90s Hair: While filming The Most Wanted, he didn't cut his hair and kept the mullet when auditioning for Liu Kang in Mortal Kombat: The Movie. He also carried said style with him into Beverly Hills Ninja as Gobei.
- Typecasting: His characters in Tiger Cage II, Long Arm of the Law 3, the Death Race remake trilogy, and Sleeping Dogs are either connected to the triads or have backgrounds as hired assassins.