Read PART 1 here
Again, these are not in any order...
6. Michael Dudikoff
Most famous for Cannon Films'
American Ninja series, model turned action star
Michael Dudikoff spent most of the 80s and all of the 90s blowing stuff up and kicking ass in straight-to-video fare. Although none of them were stand out classics of the genre, along with the 5 film strong
American Ninja series, there was enough of them for his name to be recognisable to the right set of B-Movie action fans. He often starred alongside
Steve James, his co-hort in
American Ninja and has studied Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.
Has been a name mentioned a lot in conjunction with the
Expendables films and he himself expressed a desire, in an interview, to appear in part 3. Sadly, it looks like, that hasn't happened.
Must See:
American Ninja and
Avenging Force
Also Suggest:
The Human Shield and
Midnight Ride
Check out our commentary for the following Michael Dudikoff film:
American Ninja
7. Michelle Yeoh
Ok, so maybe it's pushing it calling her second tier as
Michelle Yeoh is, now a superstar when it comes to females in Asian action movies and has been, for western audiences especially, since 2000's
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. However, from the mid 80s onwards she has been a force to be reckoned with. She has been paired with
Donnie Yen,
Jackie Chan, Chou Yun Fat, and
Cynthia Rothrock and she was a kick ass
Bond girl in
Tomorrow Never Dies (
Brosnan's best outting as
James Bond, for my money, mainly because of
Yeoh's involvement).
She's never studied any martial arts but does a huge amount of her own stunts and has a dance background from which she draws a lot of her moves. No action list, second tier or not, is complete without her on it.
Must See:
Yes, Madam!,
Supercop,
Tomorrow Never Dies and
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
Also Suggest:
Dynamite Fighters,
Butterfly and Sword and
The Heroic Trio
8. Eric Roberts
One of the most prolific actors working today,
Eric Roberts has worked in everything from big budget, A list movies, to shot in a back garden for a few coins and some scraps of beef jerky films. In action films he has been mainly known as a villain, like in
The Specialist opposite
Stallone but back in the 80s and 90s he made
Best of the Best,
Best of the Best 2,
Hitman's Run and others where he had a rare outing as the good guy.
Must See:
Best of the Best,
Best of the Best 2,
The Nature of the Beast and
Runaway Train
Also Suggest:
By The Sword, Past Perfect,
The Hard Truth and
The Specialist
9. Carl Weathers
While not a prolific action star,
Carl Weathers has a few choice roles that make his short resume, very impressive. Starting out in small and sometimes villainous roles in Blaxploitation classics like
Bucktown and
Friday Foster, he would go on to make his mark in film history playing
Apollo Creed in
Sylvester Stallone's legendary boxing franchise
Rocky. He played the role 4 times between 1976 and 1985 and that lead to a secondary role in
Predator alongside other 80s action legend,
Arnold Schwarzenegger. After which he got his one, single, starring action role in the brilliant, over the top,
Action Jackson. Sadly no sequel or franchise followed and
Weathers would find the action film roles dry up but for a moment there he was part of 2 of the coolest action franchises around and had been the lead in his own larger than life, cop, action adventure. Can't beat that really, can you?!
Must See:
Rocky 1-4, Predator and
Action Jackson
Check out our commentary for the following Carl Weathers' film:
Action Jackson
10. Rutger Hauer
Although, critically acclaimed, Dutch actor
Rutger Hauer has been known for a mad variety of film roles in his time, from the release of
Wanted: Dead or Alive in 1986 onwards, he had a 12 year run of being something of an action star.
This was not an unfamiliar world to him as he had started the decade as the main villain in the
Stallone and
Billy Dee Williams starring action, cop, serial-killer film
Nighthawks.
His next role after
Wanted: DOA would be that of a blind, samurai sword wielding ex-soldier in the excellent 80s, action adventure romp
Blind Fury, where he even got to face off with, none other than,
Sho Kosugi!
This would be followed up with the
Mad Maxian
The Salute of The Jugger, the battle-of-the-sexes-on-the-run adventure
Wedlock and then, the best of them all,
Split Second in which
Hauer turns in a cigar chomping, coffee swigging, wise crack spewing, action machine of a performance, the likes of which
Kurt Russell himself would've been proud.
Other roles in things like
Beyond Justice,
Arctic Blue and
Surviving The Game would fill up the rest of the decade.
Must See:
Split Second and
Blind Fury
Also Suggest:
Wedlock,
Nighthawks and
Wanted: Dead or Alive
Avoid:
Beyond Justice
Check out our podcast coverage of Rutger Hauer on The After Movie Diner here:
http://amdpodcast.blogspot.com/2012/12/episode-63-rutger-hauer-special-were.html
PART 3
- The Kick Ass Kid
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