Bruce Lee filmography
This article details the filmography of actor and martial artist Bruce Lee.
Several of Lee's films premiered after his death, including Enter the Dragon, Game of Death and Circle of Iron.
Filmography
| Year | Title | Chinese title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1941 | Golden Gate Girl | 金門女 | As an infant | |
| 1946 | The Birth of Mankind | 人类的诞生 | ||
| 1948 | Wealth is Like a Dream | 富貴浮雲 | ||
| 1949 | Sai See in the Dream | 夢裡西施 | Yam Lee | |
| 1950 | The Kid | 細路祥 | Kid Cheung | a.k.a. My Son, A Chung. Available on region 1 English-subtitled DVD from Cinema Epoch. |
| 1951 | Infancy | 人之初 | Ngau | |
| 1953 | A Myriad Homes | 千萬人家 | ||
| Blame it on Father | 父之過 | a.k.a. Father's Fault | ||
| The Guiding Light | 苦海明燈 | Son as teenager | Available on region 1 English-subtitled DVD from Cinema Epoch | |
| A Mother's Tears | 慈母淚 | |||
| In the Face of Demolition | 危樓春曉 | |||
| 1955 | An Orphan's Tragedy | 孤星血淚 | Frank Wong (child) | Available on region 1 English-subtitled DVD from Cinema Epoch |
| Orphan's Song | 孤兒行 | |||
| Love | 愛 | |||
| Love Part 2 | 愛(下集) | |||
| We Owe It to Our Children | 兒女債 | |||
| 1956 | The Wise Guys Who Fool Around | 詐痲納福 | ||
| Too Late For Divorce | 早知當初我唔嫁 | |||
| 1957 | The Thunderstorm | 雷雨 | Chow Chung | Based on the play Lei Yu by Cao Yu |
| 1960 | The Orphan | 人海孤鴻 | Sam | |
| 1968 | The Wrecking Crew | 風流特務勇破迷魂陣 | Action director | |
| 1969 | Marlowe | 醜聞喋血 | Winslow Wong | Also action director |
| 1970 | A Walk in the Spring Rain | 春雨漫步 | Action Director | Lee, personal friend of producer Stirling Silliphant, is credited as the film's fight choreographer. |
| 1971 | The Big Boss | 唐山大兄 | Cheng Chao-an | Also action director a.k.a. Fists of Fury |
| 1972 | Fist of Fury | 精武門 | Chen Zhen | Also action director a.k.a. The Chinese Connection |
| Way of the Dragon | 猛龍過江 | Tang Lung | Also director, action director, producer and screenwriter The film was released in the U.S. after Enter the Dragon; hence the alternate title Return of the Dragon. | |
Note: The title The Chinese Connection (a play on the then-recently released The French Connection) was originally intended for The Big Boss due to the drugs theme of the story and Fists of Fury was intended for Fist of Fury. When it was exported, the titles somehow got switched.
Released posthumously
| Year | Title | Chinese title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1973 | Enter the Dragon | 龍爭虎鬥 | Mr. Lee | Also action director, writer and producer Sent as a spy into a martial arts tournament hosted by a rogue-monk-turned-drug lord Released six days after Lee's death |
| 1974 | The Green Hornet | 青蜂侠 | Kato | A compilation of episodes from the TV series edited together and released as a feature film Released one year after Lee's death |
| 1978 | Game of Death | 死亡遊戲 | Billy Lo | There are two versions of this film, each one with a different plot (the original from an incomplete 1972 film and the 1978 build doing a "footage mashup") Lee was shown in incomplete original footage from 1972, plus stock footage from Enter the Dragon and other films The original was finally released as a short film in the year 2000 |
| Circle of Iron | Co-writer a.k.a. The Silent Flute Film co-written by Bruce Lee, who was seeking to illustrate the differences between Eastern and Western philosophies | |||
| 1981 | Game of Death II | 死亡塔 | Billy Lo/Lee Chen Chiang | a.k.a. Tower of Death Unrelated to the first Game of Death, it was marketed as a sequel in the U.S. Lee appears in stock footage from Enter the Dragon and other films |
Box office performance
| Year | Title | Worldwide gross revenue (est. US dollars) | Budget (US dollars) |
Return on investment (ROI) |
Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nominal value | Inflation adjusted | |||||
| 1968 | The Wrecking Crew | $8,000,000 | $59,000,000 | ‹See Tfd›? | ‹See Tfd›? | [lower-alpha 1] |
| 1971 | The Big Boss (Fists of Fury) | $50,000,000 | $300,000,000 | $100,000 | 50,000% | [lower-alpha 2] |
| 1972 | Fist of Fury (The Chinese Connection) | $100,000,000 | $610,000,000 | $100,000 | 100,000% | [lower-alpha 3] |
| Way of the Dragon (Return of the Dragon) | $130,000,000 | $730,000,000 | $130,000 | 100,000% | [lower-alpha 4] | |
| 1973 | Enter the Dragon | $350,000,000 | $1,200,000,000 | $850,000 | 41,000% | [lower-alpha 5] |
| 1978 | Game of Death | $43,054,960 | $170,000,000 | $850,000 | 4,700% | [lower-alpha 6] |
| Circle of Iron | $2,600,000 | $10,000,000 | ‹See Tfd›? | ‹See Tfd›? | [lower-alpha 7] | |
| 1981 | Game of Death II | $349,181 | $1,000,000 | ‹See Tfd›? | ‹See Tfd›? | [lower-alpha 8] |
| Total | $684,004,141 | $3,080,000,000 | $2,030,000 | 100,000% | ||
| Average | $85,500,518 | $385,000,000 | $406,000 | 33,000% | ||
Television appearances
| Year | Title | Chinese title | Role | Country and channel | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1966 | The Green Hornet | 青蜂侠 | "Kato" |  U.S. - ABC | a.k.a. The Kato Show (Hong Kong title) 1966-1967 |
| Where the Action Is | Himself | U.S. - ABC | |||
| 1967 | Batman | 蝙蝠俠 | "Kato" | U.S. - ABC | Visiting hero Episodes: "The Spell of Tut", "A Piece of the Action" and "Batman's Satisfaction" |
| Ironside | 無敵鐵探長 | "Leon Soo" | U.S. - NBC | Guest star Episode: "Tagged for Murder" | |
| 1968 | Blondie | "Mr. Yoto, Karate Instructor" | U.S. - CBS | Guest star Episode: "Pick on a Bully Your Own Size" | |
| 1969 | Here Come the Brides | 新娘駕到 | "Lin" | U.S. - ABC | Guest star Episode: "Marriage, Chinese Style" |
| 1970 | Enjoy Yourself Tonight | 歡樂今宵 | Himself | .svg.png.webp){kind=small} Hong Kong - TVB | |
| 1971 | Longstreet | 血灑長街 | "Li Tsung" Fight choreographer | U.S. - ABC | Appeared in four episodes: "The Way of the Intercepting Fist", "Spell Legacy Like Death", "Wednesday's Child" and "I See, Said the Blind Man" |
| The Pierre Berton Show | Himself | .svg.png.webp){kind=small} Canada - Screen Gems | |||
| 1972 | Enjoy Yourself Tonight | 歡樂今宵 | Himself | Hong Kong - TVB | |
| 1993 | Fame in the Twentieth Century | Himself |  U.K. - BBC | ||
| 1999 | Famous Families | Himself | U.S. - FOX | Episode: "The Lees: Action Speaks Louder" | |
| 2003 | I Love the '70s | "Lee" | U.S. - MTV | ||
| 2007 | La Rentadora | Himself |  Spain - TV3 | Episode: "Be Water My Friend" | |
Note: all the series produced after Lee's death (1973) feature archival footage of Lee.
Documentaries
| Year | Documentary title | Chinese title | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1973 | Bruce Lee, the Man and the Legend | 李小龍的生與死 | Updated in 1984 and re-titled Bruce Lee, the Legend |
| The Real Bruce Lee | |||
| The Last Days of Bruce Lee | |||
| 1974 | Kung Fu Killers | ||
| 1976 | Bruce Lee, the Legend | 李小龍的生與死(下) | Golden Harvest tribute; focused on their films starring Lee. Featured on the Hong Kong Legends Bruce Lee, the Man and the Legend DVD. |
| 1990 | The Best of the Martial Arts Films | 金裝武術電影大全 | |
| Bruce Lee - Best of the Best | |||
| 1992 | Bruce Lee and Kung Fu Mania | ||
| 1993 | Top Fighter | ||
| The Life of Bruce Lee | |||
| Bruce Lee: The Curse of the Dragon | Included on Enter the Dragon DVDs and Blu-rays | ||
| Death by Misadventure | |||
| 1994 | Bruce Lee: The Lost Interview | ||
| Cinema of Vengeance | History of martial arts cinema with clips of Lee | ||
| Bruce Lee: The Immortal Dragon | Biography episode; available on DVD | ||
| 1998 | Bruce Lee: The Path of the Dragon | ||
| Bruce Lee: In His Own Words | Featurette on Enter the Dragon DVDs and Blu-rays | ||
| Mystic Origins of the Martial Arts | |||
| The Immortal Masters | |||
| Jackie Chan: My Story | 成龍的傳奇 | ||
| 1999 | Century Hero | ||
| Hollywood Screen Tests: Take 2 | |||
| 2000 | Bruce Lee: A Warrior's Journey | 李小龍：死亡遊戲之旅 | Found as a special feature on the 2004 DVD release of Enter the Dragon. Also on HD DVD and Blu-ray. |
| Bruce Lee in G.O.D.: Shibōteki Yūgi | Bruce Lee in G.O.D 死亡的遊戲 | ||
| 2001 | The Unbeatable Bruce Lee | ||
| 2002 | Bruce Lee: The Legend Lives On | ||
| The Art of Action: Martial Arts in Motion Picture | 功夫片歲月 | ||
| Jackie Chan: Fast, Funny and Furious | |||
| Modern Warriors | |||
| 2003 | Cinema Hong Kong: Kung Fu | 電影香江：功夫世家 | |
| 2004 | Dragon: Since 1973 | 龍：一九七三以後 | |
| 2009 | Sebring | ||
| 2011 | I Am Bruce Lee | ||
| 2013 | Fighter of Death | ||
| 2020 | Be Water | part of ESPN Films' 30 for 30 |
Note: all the documentaries listed here were produced after Lee's death; therefore, all the Lee footage is composed of archive footage and some never-before-seen footage.
Video games
| Year | Video game title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 | Bruce Lee | Himself | |
| Kung-Fu Master | Thomas | Originally based on Game of Death | |
| 1989 | Bruce Lee Lives | Himself | |
| 1993 | Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story | Himself | |
| 2002 | Bruce Lee: Quest of the Dragon | Himself | |
| 2003 | Bruce Lee: Return of the Legend | Himself | |
| 2010 | Bruce Lee: Dragon Warrior | Himself | Smartphone game Limited release |
| 2011 | Kung Fu Warrior | Himself | Smartphone game |
| 2014 | EA Sports UFC | Himself | PS4 and Xbox One game |
| 2014 | Bruce Lee: Enter the Game | Himself | Smartphone game |
| 2018 | Bruce Lee Dragon Run | Himself | Smartphone game |
Notes
- In the United States and Canada, the film earned $2.4 million in theatrical rentals.[1] This was equivalent to estimated box office gross receipts of approximately $8 million.[2]
- See The Big Boss § Box office
- See Fist of Fury § Box office
- See The Way of the Dragon § Box office
- See Enter the Dragon § Box office
- See Game of Death § Box office
- See Circle of Iron § Box office
- See Game of Death II § Box office
References
- "Big Rental Films of 1969", Variety, 7 January 1970 p 15
- Vogel, Harold L. (2010). "Table 3.4. Motion picture theater industry statistics, 1965-2009". Entertainment Industry Economics: A Guide for Financial Analysis. Cambridge University Press. pp. 88–9. ISBN 978-1-139-49732-9.
1965 (...) MPAA U.S. + Canadian rentals % of BO (...) 29.8
External links
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