Jason Statham

Background

Jason Statham was born in Shirebrook, Derbyshire, on July 26, 1967, to dancer Eileen Yates and street seller Barry Statham. In the Canary Islands, his father also worked as a house painter, coal miner, and vocalist. Statham relocated to Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, where he first preferred to practice martial arts over his father’s employment at the local market stalls. He grew up with football player Vinnie Jones, with whom he later starred in a film. Statham was introduced to football by Jones and went on to play for the local grammar school from 1978 to 1983, a passion he shared with diving. He practiced diving techniques daily and was a member of Britain’s National Swimming Squad for 12 years. He competed for England in the 10-meter, 3-meter, and 1-meter events at the 1990 Commonwealth Games.

Statham’s career in the media began when he was recognized by the sports modeling agency, Sports Promotions, while practicing at London’s Crystal Palace National Sports Centre. During the 1996 spring/summer collections, he was also signed by Tommy Hilfiger, Griffin, and Levi’s for various modeling contracts. In 1997, he signed on as a model for the clothing company French Connection. To make ends meet, he was compelled to follow in his father’s footsteps as a street vendor, selling fake perfume and jewelry on street corners. He became acquainted with emerging British director Guy Ritchie while working as a model for French Connection, who was creating a film project and needed to fill the role of a street-wise con artist. After learning about Statham’s career as a black market trader, Ritchie cast Statham in the part of Bacon in his 1998 crime comedy thriller “Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels.” The film was well-received by reviewers and spectators alike, and it helped to establish Statham in the public eye. He was paid $6,500 for his role in the film. Statham’s second collaboration with Ritchie was in the 2000 picture “Snatch” when he played the character Turkish. The movie earned more than $80 million in box-office revenue. For his role in “Snatch,” he was paid $19,500, three times the amount of his first film. In 2001, Statham was able to break into Hollywood and appeared in two movies, the science fiction action horror film “Ghosts of Mars” and the science fiction martial arts action film “The One.”

Statham appeared in “Mean Machine,” “The Italian Job,” and “Cellular” as a supporting actor. His movie “Transporter 2” was released in 2005, followed by “Transporter 3” in 2008. Ritchie cast Statham again in “Revolver” in 2006, which was a box office flop. That same year, he starred in the action picture “Crank,” which was very successful. Statham began working on a new film in 2009, which was scripted by David and Janet Peoples. In the 2009 sequel “Crank: High Voltage,” he appeared again as Chev Chelios. In 2010, he co-starred in “The Expendables” with other action actors Sylvester Stallone, Jet Li, Dolph Lundgren, and Mickey Rourke. In 2011, he starred in the remake of the 1972 Charles Bronson film, “The Mechanic.” In 2012, he played an assassin named Danny who comes out of retirement to save an old friend, played by Robert De Niro. He was offered a three-film contract to reboot the “Transporter” series in 2015 but turned it down. “The Meg” was the next picture in Statham’s career, which garnered $758 million worldwide. And in 2019, he played Deckard Shaw again in “Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw.”