The Statham Resume

Director: Guy Ritchie

Co-Stars: Jason Flemyng, Vinnie Jones

Release Date: August 28, 1998

Statham's first film role after being discovered modeling men's underthings by Guy Ritchie just happened to be in one of the most memorable British films of the 1990s. Ritchie's debut cleverly weaved together a number of barely-related narratives into a propulsive slice of lowlife London that still thrills today. Owing obvious debts to Quentin Tarantino's rejuvenation of the crime flick with Pulp Fiction, Lock, Stock... still manages to be its own beast. As Bacon, one of the quartet of "good guys" (in a very loose sense of the word), Statham is obviously still finding his footing as an actor on the big screen, but his physical charisma carries the day for him and he acquits himself quite well overall. His notorious scene where he's shilling stolen goods on the street in a hilarious blend of auctioneer's patter and Cockney slang is worth rewatching. It obviously impressed Guy Ritchie enough that he would cast Statham in his next film as well.

Director: Guy Ritchie

Co-Stars: Brad Pitt, Dennis Farina

Release Date: September 1, 2000

Ritchie's follow-up to Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels shares some similarities with his first film - interweaving plotlines, large ensemble casts, and a wicked sense of humor. But where it differs is in the much higher budget and much bigger stars on the marquee, including Brad Pitt in one of his most unforgettable roles. But even with all this star power, Ritchie didn't forget his old crew, casting both Statham and footballer Vinnie Jones in Snatch. However, Statham moved from a supporting role to one of the film's two leads as Turkish, a boxing promoter who gets in a spot of trouble with gangster Brick Top Polford when his boxer gets hospitalized by an Irish drifter. Throw in a stolen diamond that changes hands faster than Paris Hilton and you've got a crime caper for the ages. Statham steps up the intensity with a bigger role and proves that he can carry his share of a film.

Director: John Carpenter

Co-Stars: Ice Cube, Pam Grier

Release Date: August 24, 2001

Statham's first role after making the jump to Hollywood may be one of Carpenter's lesser features, but it's still a damn fun movie. As part of a police force assigned to transport a prisoner (played by Ice Cube) across the Martian landscape, Statham shines in a supporting role. As grisly horror befalls the human colonists when mysterious spirits possess them, the Mars Police Force disintegrates under the assault. It's vintage Carpenter in many ways - steadily ratcheting tension blown apart by unforgettable shock scenes, but with an interesting overt science fiction feel. The film was actually lensed in an abandoned gypsum mine that had to be painstakingly dyed red to simulate the Martian atmosphere.

Director: James Wong

Co-Stars: Jet Li, Carla Gugino

Release Date: November 2, 2001

Statham and Jet Li have a certain chemistry on-screen - the British bruiser and the Chinese kung fu master play off each other well, and have collaborated several times. In the first film they made together, 2001's The One, Li plays a superhuman criminal with the power to hop across parallel worlds. In each world, he kills his alternate self and absorbs their power, becoming stronger and stronger with each act of self-murder. Statham plays Evan Funsch, an agent of the Multiverse Authority, the organization created to track and apprehend universe-jumping criminals. It's a kick-ass movie filled with some fun CGI-enhanced fight scenes, as Jet Li uses his ill-gotten power to rip things up to hell and back. An interesting bit of trivia is the Jet Li role of Gabriel Law was originally written for WWE wrestler The Rock!