In celebration of the growing popularity of martial arts cinema,

Black Belt asked me to devise a list of the top

20 martial arts film stars.

In reality, this list could have been

different for each decade since the

1970s because in years past, one could reflect only on

names with which the audience might be familiar.

But today’s kung fu film fans are more

sophisticated and aware of not only who the

biggest martial arts stars of today are but also who the legends of yesteryear were.

So this ranking promises to stand the test of time.

The actors were chosen based not on their

martial arts abilities but on their

impact on the history and development of the genre.