Ip Man 3 star Donnie Yen relives a frightening fight scene near miss when he was filming a brawl with Mike Tyson. The first film in the Ip Man franchise was released in 2008, introducing audiences to Yen's titular martial artist. The third film, which was released in 2015, follows Yen's character as he fights to defend a local school from a ruthless gang and a property developer named Frank (Tyson).
During a recent appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live, Yen recalls a time while filming an Ip Man 3 fight scene in which Tyson came dangerously close to actually punching him in the face. Tyson had relatively little filming experience at the time and Yen, who was a fan of the boxer, remembers being a little nervous. Check out Yen's full comment or watch the interview below (Yen's comment begins at 5:18):
"I’ve always been a big fan of Mike. When I was doing Ip Man 3 with him I didn’t know what to expect. Mike, I love him, but he doesn’t really have a lot of film experience. I didn’t want him to come to the set and start swinging. And my character, I was supposed to be very poised and very calm and always block these strikes at the very last second.
"So there was this choreography where Mike was coming at me with a left hook, his famous hooks. And he was supposed to knock this punching bag right next to my face and there was this close-up on me. We were doing it, going at it, very fast and I said, ‘Wait a minute, what am I gonna do?’ I promised my wife that I would get home in one piece.
"I felt his punch coming at me, 90 miles per hour, I kid you not. And I couldn’t really move sooner because I had to be poised. I felt his forearm just… I felt the wind. It was like a tornado. And he knocked that punching bag."
The Ip Man Franchise Launched Donnie Yen's Career
For many audiences, Yen is still best known for his role in the Ip Man movies, and the franchise as a whole remains a staple of martial arts cinema. His role as the martial arts master has also, however, opened a number of doors. Yen continues to appear regularly in Hong Kong action movies, but has also since branched out into major Hollywood productions.
Outside of the Ip Man franchise, Yen is probably best known for his role as Chirrut Îmwe in 2016's Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. Îmwe is a blind martial artist in the film with a deep connection to the Force, and he eventually joins the doomed team that attempts to steal the plans for the Death Star. Following his Star Wars role, Yen would appear in 2017's xXx: Return of Xander Cage opposite Vin Diesel.
Next, of course, Yen is slated to appear in the highly-anticipated John Wick: Chapter 4 as Caine, a rival assassin to Keanu Reeves' character. As clips have already shown, the upcoming John Wick movie might actually be the Hollywood film that has best utilized Yen's martial arts abilities. While it remains to be seen how Yen will put his skills to the test next, Ip Man 3 evidently remains a unique filming experience in his long and impressive resume.
Source: Jimmy Kimmel Live