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PEOPLE<br />
028<br />
JOHNNY TRI<br />
NGUYEN’S TIME OFF<br />
HO CHI MINH CITY — I spend<br />
much of my time at my newly<br />
opened training centre for martial<br />
arts. I also like playing football<br />
and going to the theatres in the<br />
main districts.<br />
DA NANG — I love wandering<br />
around the central town of Hoi An.<br />
NHA TRANG — I like to go with a<br />
group of friends, rent a boat and<br />
venture out to the offshore islands.<br />
“This was the part that people<br />
would never notice because they<br />
naturally come to see the stars of<br />
the fi lm,” chuckles Nguyen. “It’s<br />
just the experience that I needed.<br />
In order to climb the hill, you need<br />
to take one step at a time.”<br />
His confi dence grew. And the<br />
time was ripe. Off ers for more<br />
prominent parts came pouring<br />
in. His fi rst noticeable screen<br />
appearance was in a stunt role in<br />
Cradle 2 the Grave alongside Jet<br />
Li in 2003. The success streak<br />
followed him with more stunt<br />
roles in The Protector, Spider-Man<br />
and Jarhead.<br />
The cut-throat nature of the fi lm<br />
industry in America is driven by<br />
a rich talent pool in Hollywood.<br />
“Everyone is talented and you<br />
have to be extremely talented to<br />
get the job,” he says candidly.<br />
How does he explain his<br />
success? “It’s just a case of right<br />
time, right place,” he laughs,<br />
humbly. “But, of course, I have<br />
an extremely good work ethic.<br />
And this will get you further than<br />
talent alone.”<br />
In 2000, Nguyen had his fi rst<br />
encounter with fi lmmaking<br />
experience back in Vietnam as<br />
director of photography for Chances Are,<br />
which was released in America. During this<br />
time, he got to travel the length and breadth<br />
of Vietnam and grew mesmerised by the<br />
scenery, culture and artistic side of the<br />
country. “At that point, I told myself, ‘Okay,<br />
one day I’m coming back to make more<br />
fi lms here’.”<br />
His life suddenly underwent a big change<br />
once he decided to head back to Vietnam in<br />
2004, in a move that heralds the return of<br />
a new breed of Vietnamese-born American<br />
actors. Johnny Tri Nguyen is a standout<br />
contender of his comeback generation.<br />
TOP/BELOW: Nguyen<br />
in The Rebel movie<br />
poster; Nguyen in a<br />
scene with a French<br />
colonist on the set of<br />
The Rebel
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