Michael Jai White (born November 10, 1967) is an American actor and martial artist. He is the first Black American to portray a major comic book superhero starring as Al Simmons , the protagonist in the 1997 film Spawn . White appeared as Marcus Williams in the Tyler Perry films Why Did I Get Married? (2007) and Why Did I Get Married Too? (2010), and starred as the character on the TBS / OWN comedy-drama television series Tyler Perry's For Better or Worse . White portrayed Jax Briggs in Mortal Kombat: Legacy and the Cyborg Seth in Universal Soldier: The Return , opposite Jean-Claude Van Damme . He portrayed boxer Mike Tyson in the 1995 HBO television film Tyson . He also played the title role in the blaxploitation parody film Black Dynamite (2009), as well as the animated series of the same name .
17-472: White is a martial artist in nine different styles : Shōtōkan , Goju-Ryu (for which he studied under Master Eddie Morales where he learned to sharpen his Goju karate technique), Taekwondo , Kobudō , Tang Soo Do , Wushu , Jujutsu , Kyokushin and Boxing , with a specific focus in Kyokushin Karate (although his style incorporates aspects of many different martial arts forms). White started training in
34-402: A ceremony at the 2019 Urban Action Showcase & Expo at AMC 25, New York City. White briefly dated actress Angela Bassett during the 1990s. White is a cousin of comedian and actress Kym Whitley . List of martial arts There are many distinct styles and schools of martial arts . Sometimes, schools or styles are introduced by individual teachers or masters, or as a brand name by
51-443: A specific gym. Martial arts can be grouped by type or focus, or alternatively by regional origin. This article focuses on the latter grouping of these unique styles of martial arts. For Hybrid martial arts , as they originated from the late 19th century and especially after 1950, it may be impossible to identify unique or predominant regional origins. It is not trivial to distinguish "traditional" from "modern" martial arts. Chronology
68-863: Is a remake of the 1995 film Sudden Death starring Jean-Claude Van Damme . On July 12, 2021, White laid out a vision for starting a film studio in New Haven, Connecticut called "Jaigantic Studios". He wants to create a studio district on New Haven's Quinnipiac River waterfront. From 2005 to 2011, White was married to Courtenay Chatman and together they have a daughter named Morgan. In addition, White has two sons. In February 2014, White announced his engagement to actress Gillian Iliana Waters. In April 2015, White penned an open letter via Facebook entitled "Apologies to My Ex's", where he credited Waters for helping him become "the very best version of myself." In July 2015, White married Waters in Thailand. They appeared together in
85-434: Is not the decisive criterion, as, for example, "traditional" Taekwondo was developed in the 1950s, while the "modern" hybrid martial art of Bartitsu was developed c. 1900 . A large portion of traditional martial arts can be categorized as Folk wrestling (see the separate article), although in some cases a folk wrestling style and a modern combat sport may overlap or become indistinguishable from each other once
102-489: The Indiegogo campaign not reaching its goal, he was still able to secure enough backers and additional donors to get the project off the ground. In July 2023, its trailer was released. Its theatrical release date was September 15, 2023. In October 2020, White's latest film Welcome to Sudden Death debuted on Netflix and became one of the most watched films on the platform. The Universal Pictures Home Entertainment release
119-694: The remake of the 1980 film Fame . In 2010, Tancharoen directed the short film Mortal Kombat: Rebirth as a proof of concept for his vision of a new Mortal Kombat feature. From that, he directed and produced the Mortal Kombat: Legacy web series. In 2011, Tancharoen directed Glee: The 3D Concert Movie , a 3D concert film of the Glee Live! In Concert! tour based on the musical TV series . On September 29, 2011, New Line Cinema/Warner Bros. announced that Kevin Tancharoen had signed on to direct
136-529: The direct-to-DVD film Undisputed II: Last Man Standing . He also appears in Michelle Yeoh's Silver Hawk in 2004. He appeared in Kill Bill: Volume 2 , although his role was cut from the theatrical release. His film Why Did I Get Married? opened at number one at the box office on October 12, 2007. White played the role of the mob boss Gambol in the 2008 film The Dark Knight . He also starred in
153-425: The film Blood and Bone and the blaxploitation homage Black Dynamite , both released in 2009. White wrote the scripts for both Black Dynamite and 3 Bullets in which he stars with Bokeem Woodbine . On March 30, 2010, White appeared on The Mo'Nique Show to promote his film Why Did I Get Married Too . The two joked about the acclaim that comes with winning an Oscar . In May of that year he appeared in
170-508: The martial arts at the age of four in Jujutsu . He next took up Shōtōkan and moved on to other styles later. White holds seven legitimate black belts in Kyokushin Karate, Goju-Ryu Karate, Shotokan Karate, Taekwondo, Tang Soo Do, Kobudo , and Wushu. White is a former special education teacher and taught students with behavioral problems for three years. He cites his history in education as
187-618: The martial arts thriller movie Take Back (2021), with Gillian White starring as the female lead. In 2014, White was honored with the Fists of Legends Decade Award at the Urban Action Showcase & Expo at HBO. In 2015, he was inducted into the International Sports Hall of Fame . On November 8, 2019, he assumed the "Mantle of The Black Dragon" from Ron van Clief , Don "The Dragon" Wilson , Cynthia Rothrock , and Taimak , in
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#1732891837530204-596: The music video for Toni Braxton 's new song "Hands Tied" from her album Pulse , as well as the Nicki Minaj music video for " Your Love " as Nicki's sensei and love interest. He also starred in Kevin Tancharoen 's short film Mortal Kombat: Rebirth , as Jax Briggs , and reprised the role in Mortal Kombat: Legacy , a webseries from the same director. He posted on Twitter that he would not be returning to
221-461: The project in 2013. Tancharoen was born in Los Angeles, California. He is the brother of writer and producer Maurissa Tancharoen (and brother-in-law of Jed Whedon ) and the son of Tommy Tancharoen. He is known for being a choreographer for Madonna , directing Britney Spears ' " The Onyx Hotel Tour " and co-creating DanceLife on MTV. He made his feature film directorial debut in 2009 with
238-519: The reason why, despite his personal love for the music genre on "a lot of levels", he cannot "in good [conscience]" have a positive opinion on hip hop or "excuse some of [its] pervasive and destructive elements", mainly due to his experience with youngsters who had difficulty seeing the difference between it and real life. He graduated from Central High School in Bridgeport, Connecticut in 1982. White's first major starring role and breakout performance
255-526: The role for the second season, but would return for the 2013 film. White made his directorial debut and starred in Never Back Down 2: The Beatdown , which was released on home video on September 13, 2011. White also provided the voice of Green Lantern in the video game Justice League Heroes . In October 2019, White announced that the spiritual successor to Black Dynamite titled Outlaw Johnny Black had officially entered pre-production. Despite
272-485: The sport has been regulated. Kevin Tancharoen Kevin Tancharoen (born April 23, 1984) is an American director, producer, screenwriter, dancer, and choreographer. On September 29, 2011, New Line Cinema/Warner Bros. announced that Tancharoen would be helming a big-screen adaptation of Mortal Kombat after he created the successful web series Mortal Kombat: Legacy , although he dropped out of
289-1270: Was in the 1995 HBO film Tyson , as heavyweight boxer Mike Tyson . He portrayed the eponymous character in the 1997 film Spawn , making him the first African American to portray a major comic book superhero in a major motion picture. His work in Spawn earned him a nomination for the Blockbuster Entertainment Award . White starred opposite Jean-Claude Van Damme in Universal Soldier: The Return , in 1999. A few years earlier, he acted in Full Contact, with Jerry Trimble . In 2001, he also starred opposite fellow martial artist Steven Seagal in Exit Wounds . In 2003, he starred in Busta Rhymes and Mariah Carey 's music video " I Know What You Want ". Since 2003, in addition to his on screen roles, White has been doing voice work, including in Static Shock and Justice League . White showcases his martial arts skills in
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