Tony Jaa of Ong Bak 3

The martial arts action film "Ong Bak 3" is set to be released in U.S. theaters this January. The story follows from Ong Bak 2 which ended in a cliffhanger. In Ong Bak 3, star Tony Jaa continues his part as Tien, and audiences will get to see Tien and the warrior Demon Crow battle it out in the series finale. One of the few things more potentially action packed and outrageous as the showdown of Ong Bak 3 might be the life of Tony Jaa himself.

After Tony Jaa experienced success as an actor in the first Thai film Ong Bak, he signed on to direct Ong Bak 2 which later was split into two movies due to the filmmaker going over budget and seemingly becoming overwhelmed by the process.

In the time between Ong Bak and Ong Bak 3, the Thai action hero Tony Jaa disappeared for awhile, became a Buddhist monk, and has been the focus of rumors which include kidnappings, animal sacrifices, and failed business relations. Due to his entering the monkhood last year, his future in film is now unknown.

But fans of Tony Jaa can still try to check him out in his past roles. Although, outside of Ong Bak, I would not expect much. As what's often done when an actor becomes a star, they market older small roles as if he is the lead when in fact he's not. With this in mind, he made his debut in the 1994 Thai film Plook mun kuen ma kah 4. Two years later, he could be seen in Puen hode and Mission Hunter 2. In 2001, he had a part in Nuk leng klong yao. Then finally came Ong Bak in 2003. His 2005 role as Kham in The Protector is closest to that of Ong Bak.

The form of martial arts Tony Jaa is known for in his movies is called muay Thai. English speaking people might refer to it more so as Thai boxing. As the name suggests, muay Thai is the national sport of Thailand. This boxing sport involves kicking and punching and the use of elbows, knees, head-butts, and standing grappling.

Fast Tony Jaa Facts

He was born on February 5, 1976.

Tony Jaa is a nickname. His real name is actually Panon Yeerum. Although, Worawit was the name given to him at birth, but changed it during his 20's.

His favorite fight scene was between Bruce Lee and Chuck Norris in "The Way of the Dragon".

Sources

Brown, Todd. "Ong Bak Star Tony Jaa Joins the Monkhood." URL: (http://twitchfilm.com/)

Tonyjaa.org, "The International Tony Jaa Fansite." URL: (http://www.tonyjaa.org/facts.shtml)

Thaiboxing.com, "Thai Boxing Association of the US". URL: (http://www.thaiboxing.com/)