What Jason Statham Did Prior to Becoming an Actor!
Before playing the character of Bacon in 1998’s Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, Statham had to wait until he was 31.
As a stylish tough guy who can compete with anyone on screen, Jason Statham is well-known. But he wasn’t always a hitman for the movies.
Before playing the character of Bacon in 1998’s Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, Statham had to wait until he was 31. Statham had previously worked as a model for companies like Tommy Hilfiger, Griffin, Levis, and French Connection.
Fortunately, there is a wealth of Jason Statham material from the 1990s on YouTube. Must-see television features his background dancing career in electro-pop. Statham appears shirtless in a leopard-print speedo in The Shamen’s Comin’ On, and he literally glows in Run to the Sun by Erasure.
Then there are the commercials: a funny 1997 promo for a hot new computer game and a beautiful jeans commercial shot aboard a spaceship. He had previously been on television, too.
As a member of the British diving team, Statham competed in the 1990 Commonwealth Games, where he placed eighth in the 1 m springboard event, 11th in the 3 m springboard event, and 10th in the 10 m platform event. He was 12th in the world, according to the Sydney Morning Herald, at one point.
The gymnastics Statham developed while competing for 12 years with the British diving squad have helped him in his acting career. His first role in the aforementioned Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, however, was made possible by a different facet of his past.
Statham once worked as a hustler, trading things on what would be called the black market. Director Guy Ritchie chose Statham for the role because of this experience.
It so occurred that the fictional figure Bacon worked in the same field.
His work inspired another Guy Ritchie movie, Snatch, which was a box office hit and featured Statham in a supporting role with Brad Pitt and Benicio Del Toro.
Statham then started his rapid ascent to fame. starting with The Transporter, which had two follow-up films. His inclusion in the Expendables cast for each of those three movies essentially served as proof that he had made it as an action star. When he made a cameo appearance in Fast and Furious 6, he advanced yet again in 2013. He then turned that brief cameo into leading roles in the following two Fast movies as well as a stand-alone picture with Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson called Hobbs & Shaw.
Infiltrating the elite of Hollywood through sleaze, Statham is here to stay.
As of this writing, just two upcoming films are listed on his IMDB page: Guy Ritchie’s action movie Cash Truck and Spy 2, the sequel to the Melissa McCarthy comedy from 2015. The movie Cash Truck is slated for release in January 2021, and if Ritchie can repeat his prior success with Statham, it will be a hit.