Al Leong

Albert Leong is an American retired actor, martial artist, stuntman, and stunt co-ordinator. Often credited as "Asian Bad Guy", Leong was Hollywood's henchman of choice throughout the 1980s and 1990s. Characterised by his martial arts skills, long wavy hair, and a prominent Fu Manchu moustache, he has had a number of small but memorable roles in many popular action films, including Lethal Weapon with Mel Gibson and Danny Glover; Die Hard with Bruce Willis; Death Warrant with Jean-Claude Van Damme; and Rapid Fire with Brandon Lee. He is also notable for his role as Genghis Khan in Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure. He collaborated with director John Carpenter in Big Trouble in Little China and They Live. Such appearances have garnered him a cult following.
In television, he appeared in series such as T. J. Hooker, The Fall Guy, Knight Rider, and 24, among others. Leong's martial art foundation is steeped within the 5 Animal Styles taught by Grandmaster Ark Yuey Wong in Chinatown, Los Angeles. In 2014, he was inducted into the Martial Arts History Museum Hall of Fame.

Early life

Leong was born in St. Louis, Missouri. The youngest of three children born to Chinese American parents, he grew up behind the Chinese laundry that they owned. In 1962, when he was ten years old, they moved to Los Angeles. Leong attended Hollywood High School.

Career

His credits include Lethal Weapon, Die Hard, Joshua Tree, Big Trouble in Little China, The Scorpion King, and They Live. and a recurring role on the first season of the TV series 24. He also portrayed an out-of-time Genghis Khan in the comedy Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure. In 2003, Leong lampooned himself as well as the Hollywood tradition of actor and director 'reels' by starring in screenwriter David Callaham's "Writer's Reel." In the five-minute short film, Leong portrayed Callaham going through a typical day in the life of a writer. The 'reel' was accepted into a number of short film festivals.
As a stuntman, Leong was involved with the production of numerous films including The Golden Child, Last Action Hero, Roland Emmerich's Godzilla, Tim Burton's Planet of the Apes, and Daredevil. He also has made appearances on several television shows such as The A-Team, Knight Rider, Magnum, P.I., The Twilight Zone, T. J. Hooker, MacGyver, That '70s Show, and HBO's Deadwood. He wrote and directed the low-budget film Daddy Tell Me a Story....

Personal life

Health

Leong had brain cancer in 1993 and suffered a stroke in 2005.

Filmography

Film

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes	Date
1984	The A-Team	Thug At Boat	Episode: "The Maltese Falcon"	1984-01-03
1985	The A-Team	Asian-Looking Thug	Episode: "Lease with an Option to Die"	1985-10-22
1985–1986	The A-Team		3 episodes
1983	The Greatest American Hero	Uncredited Extra	Episode: "Thirty Seconds Over Little Tokyo"	1983-02-03
1983	Hart to Hart	Tai-Chi Man	Episode: "Year of the Dog"	1983-12-13
1984	Knight Rider	Fong's Bouncer	Episode: "Knight of the Drones"
1984	Magnum P.I.	Bodyguard #2	1 episode
1984	The Fall Guy	Johnny	Episode: "Sandcastles"	1984-11-07
1985	Airwolf	General Rangavara Bandit Soldier	1 episode
1985	MacGyver	Wayne H. Lim	Episode: "Murderers' Sky"	1988-05-09
1986	The Twilight Zone	Proprietor	Segment: "The Misfortune Cookie"
1986	The Fall Guy	Quon	Episode: "Trial by Fire"	1986-01-24
1986	Riptide	Mr. Yeem	Episode: "The Frankie Kahana Show"	1986-02-11
1986	Renegade	The Yakuza Boss	Episode: "Samurai"	-
1986	T. J. Hooker	Nabutsu Hood #1	Episode: "Blood Sport"	1986-05-21
1986	The Equalizer	"Joe Boy" Chinese gangster	Episode: "China Rain"	1985-09-25
1987	Steele Justice	Long Hair	TV movie
1994	Kung Fu: The Legend Continues	Unknown / Stunt Coordinator	Episode: "The Warlord"
1994	Vanishing Son III	Triad Lieutenant #1	TV movie
2000	That '70s Show	Kung-Fu Master / Ninja Warrior	Episode: "Jackie Moves On"	2000-04-03
2002	24	Neill	4 episodes

Music videos

2003 Poppin' Them Thangs by G-Unit