A work in constant progress (and occasional regress).
Alias:
"Flying Saucer From Korea"
"Sonny The Scorpion"
"The Scorpion King"
"飛碟來自韓國"
Dr. Won Jin
Jin Won
Kim Won-Jin
Kim WonJin
Won-Jin
WonJin
Yuan Jin
Yuan Zhen
Yuen Chun
Yuen Jung
元振
元珍
元金
김원진
원진
Birthplace:
Seoul, South Korea
Born:
December 8, 1962
South Korean martial arts master known mainly for his role as Sonny Wong in The Scorpion King (aka Operation Scorpio) and his action direction of the My Wife Is A Gangster movie series. He created a very unique style that was well ahead of it's time, showcasing many techniques used in modern Tricking and he also inspired famous martial art actors such as Scott Adkins and Tony Jaa. He began learning Taekwondo around age 7 and created his own style of kicking and acrobatics. He was was a big fan of Bruce Lee and fell in love with the nunchaku He would go on to learn Hapkido, Wushu and various other styles. In late 70s he trained alongside Elton Jeong at the YMCA Mechanical Gymnastics Club and became a member of the Korean martial arts / stunt group Ottogi Martial Arts Team, working on his first movie in 1979. He appeared as a side character in some Korean martial arts movies and in 1988 got his first starring role. In the early 90's he sent out a demo tape which resulted in David Lai casting him in a few Hong Kong movies, the most notable being The Scorpion King, which secured his place as a cult favourite. After a few films he returned to work in Korea and became one of nation's top action directors. He continues to practice and promote martial arts and has received many awards and commendations for his work. J.J. Hayden
Action Director:
1992 Swordsman San Ji-Ni 2 - Swordsman San Ji-Ni Appeared At The Port
1992 Yeong-Gu And The Bushman
1993 Boy Wong Fei-Hung
1993 Invincible Fighter Thunderhawk
1995 Lynx 2 - Challenger
1996 The Gate Of Destiny
2001 My Wife Is a Gangster
2002 4 Toes
2002 Boss X File
2002 Emergency Act 19
2003 Elysium
2003 My Wife Is A Gangster 2
2003 Romantic Warriors
2003 Sword In The Moon
2004 The Scarlet Letter
2004 Thomas Ahn Joong-Keun
2004 Who's Got The Tape?
2005 A Bold Family
2005 Sad Movie
2006 Almost Love
2006 My Wife Is a Gangster 3
2006 Sunday Seoul
2007 Beautiful Sunday
2011 Choked
2013 Azooma
2013 When Winter Screams
2015 Martial Arts Detective : Chinatown
2016 No Tomorrow
2018 Brothers in Heaven
2019 Bongcheon Tiger Lee
2019 Heavenly Seung: Extreme Brawler
2021 Lotto Share
Director:
1992 Swordsman San Ji-Ni 2 - Swordsman San Ji-Ni Appeared At The Port
1992 Yeong-Gu And The Bushman
1993 Boy Wong Fei-Hung
1993 Invincible Fighter Thunderhawk
1995 Lynx 2 - Challenger
1996 The Gate Of Destiny
2001 My Wife Is a Gangster
2002 4 Toes
2002 Boss X File
2002 Emergency Act 19
2003 Elysium
2003 My Wife Is A Gangster 2
2003 Romantic Warriors
2003 Sword In The Moon
2004 The Scarlet Letter
2004 Thomas Ahn Joong-Keun
2004 Who's Got The Tape?
2005 A Bold Family
2005 Sad Movie
2006 Almost Love
2006 My Wife Is a Gangster 3
2006 Sunday Seoul
2007 Beautiful Sunday
2011 Choked
2013 Azooma
2013 When Winter Screams
2014 Dokdo 512
2015 Martial Arts Detective : Chinatown
2016 No Tomorrow
2018 Brothers in Heaven
2019 Bongcheon Tiger Lee
2019 Heavenly Seung: Extreme Brawler
2021 Lotto Share
Martial Arts Choreographer:
1988 Dragon Tiger Mouse
1989 Super Hong Gil-Dong 3
1989 Thunder Ninja Kids In The Golden Adventure
1990 The Doofus Detective And The Twin Light Brothers
1991 Little Kickboxer
1991 Swordsman San Ji-Ni Appeared in the City
1991 The Trio Stars
1992 Operation Scorpio
1992 Swordsman San Ji-Ni 2 - Swordsman San Ji-Ni Appeared At The Port
1992 Yeong-Gu And The Bushman
1993 Boy Wong Fei-Hung
1993 Invincible Fighter Thunderhawk
1995 Lynx 2 - Challenger
1996 The Gate Of Destiny
1998 The Expert
1999 Venomous
2000 Gen-Y Cops
2001 Born Wild
2001 My Wife Is a Gangster
2002 4 Toes
2002 Boss X File
2002 Emergency Act 19
2002 No Problem 2
2003 Elysium
2003 My Wife Is A Gangster 2
2003 Romantic Warriors
2003 Sword In The Moon
2004 The Scarlet Letter
2004 Thomas Ahn Joong-Keun
2004 Who's Got The Tape?
2005 A Bold Family
2005 Sad Movie
2005 Seoul Raiders
2006 Almost Love
2006 My Wife Is a Gangster 3
2006 Sunday Seoul
2007 Beautiful Sunday
2011 Choked
2013 Azooma
2013 The Suspect
2013 When Winter Screams
2014 Dokdo 512
2015 Martial Arts Detective : Chinatown
2016 No Tomorrow
2018 Brothers in Heaven
2018 The Princess and the Matchmaker
2019 Bongcheon Tiger Lee
2019 Heavenly Seung: Extreme Brawler
2021 Lotto Share
Stunt Coordinator:
1988 Dragon Tiger Mouse
1989 Super Hong Gil-Dong 3
1989 Thunder Ninja Kids In The Golden Adventure
1990 The Doofus Detective And The Twin Light Brothers
1991 Little Kickboxer
1991 Swordsman San Ji-Ni Appeared in the City
1991 The Trio Stars
1992 Operation Scorpio
1992 Swordsman San Ji-Ni 2 - Swordsman San Ji-Ni Appeared At The Port
1992 Yeong-Gu And The Bushman
1993 Boy Wong Fei-Hung
1993 Invincible Fighter Thunderhawk
1995 Lynx 2 - Challenger
1996 The Gate Of Destiny
1998 The Expert
1999 Venomous
2000 Gen-Y Cops
2001 Born Wild
2001 My Wife Is a Gangster
2002 4 Toes
2002 Boss X File
2002 Emergency Act 19
2002 No Problem 2
2003 Elysium
2003 My Wife Is A Gangster 2
2003 Romantic Warriors
2003 Sword In The Moon
2004 The Scarlet Letter
2004 Thomas Ahn Joong-Keun
2004 Who's Got The Tape?
2005 A Bold Family
2005 Sad Movie
2005 Seoul Raiders
2006 Almost Love
2006 My Wife Is a Gangster 3
2006 Sunday Seoul
2007 Beautiful Sunday
2011 Choked
2013 Azooma
2013 The Suspect
2013 When Winter Screams
2014 Dokdo 512
2015 Martial Arts Detective : Chinatown
2016 No Tomorrow
2018 Brothers in Heaven
2018 The Princess and the Matchmaker
2019 Bongcheon Tiger Lee
2019 Heavenly Seung: Extreme Brawler
2021 Lotto Share
Stunt Double:
1979 Eighteen Women Fighters of Murim
1982 Manager Of The Shaolin Hall
1988 Dragon Tiger Mouse
1989 Super Hong Gil-Dong 3
1989 Thunder Ninja Kids In The Golden Adventure
1990 The Doofus Detective And The Twin Light Brothers
1991 Little Kickboxer
1991 Swordsman San Ji-Ni Appeared in the City
1991 The Trio Stars
1992 Operation Scorpio
1992 Swordsman San Ji-Ni 2 - Swordsman San Ji-Ni Appeared At The Port
1992 Yeong-Gu And The Bushman
1993 Boy Wong Fei-Hung
1993 Invincible Fighter Thunderhawk
1995 Lynx 2 - Challenger
1996 The Gate Of Destiny
1998 The Expert
1999 Venomous
2000 Gen-Y Cops
2001 Born Wild
2001 My Wife Is a Gangster
2002 4 Toes
2002 Boss X File
2002 Emergency Act 19
2002 No Problem 2
2003 Elysium
2003 My Wife Is A Gangster 2
2003 Romantic Warriors
2003 Sword In The Moon
2004 The Scarlet Letter
2004 Thomas Ahn Joong-Keun
2004 Who's Got The Tape?
2005 A Bold Family
2005 Sad Movie
2005 Seoul Raiders
2006 Almost Love
2006 My Wife Is a Gangster 3
2006 Sunday Seoul
2007 Beautiful Sunday
2011 Choked
2013 Azooma
2013 The Suspect
2013 When Winter Screams
2014 Dokdo 512
2015 Martial Arts Detective : Chinatown
2016 No Tomorrow
2018 Brothers in Heaven
2018 The Princess and the Matchmaker
2019 Bongcheon Tiger Lee
2019 Heavenly Seung: Extreme Brawler
2021 Lotto Share
Stunts:
1977 Guest Of Black Leopard
1979 Eighteen Women Fighters of Murim
1981 Hitman in the Hand of Buddha
1981 Inchon
1982 Manager Of The Shaolin Hall
1983 Master Of Guangdong Hall
1984 Sadae Shaolin Temple
1987 Imbecile 3
1987 Park Cheol-Su's Hello Lim Guk-Jeong
1988 Dragon Tiger Mouse
1989 Super Hong Gil-Dong 3
1989 Thunder Ninja Kids In The Golden Adventure
1990 The Doofus Detective And The Twin Light Brothers
1991 Little Kickboxer
1991 Swordsman San Ji-Ni Appeared in the City
1991 The Trio Stars
1991 To Catch A Thief
1992 Operation Scorpio
1992 Saviour Of The Soul II
1992 Swordsman San Ji-Ni 2 - Swordsman San Ji-Ni Appeared At The Port
1992 Yeong-Gu And The Bushman
1993 Boy Wong Fei-Hung
1993 Hero - Beyond the Boundary of Time
1993 Invincible Fighter Thunderhawk
1993 Women on the Run
1995 A Boy & 2 Cops - Kids Sold To The Island
1995 Lynx 2 - Challenger
1996 The Gate Of Destiny
1998 The Expert
1999 Venomous
2000 China Strike Force
2000 Gen-Y Cops
2001 Born Wild
2001 My Wife Is a Gangster
2002 4 Toes
2002 Boss X File
2002 Emergency Act 19
2002 No Problem 2
2003 Elysium
2003 My Wife Is A Gangster 2
2003 Romantic Warriors
2003 Sword In The Moon
2004 The Scarlet Letter
2004 Thomas Ahn Joong-Keun
2004 Who's Got The Tape?
2005 A Bold Family
2005 Sad Movie
2005 Seoul Raiders
2006 Almost Love
2006 My Wife Is a Gangster 3
2006 Sunday Seoul
2007 Beautiful Sunday
2011 Choked
2013 Azooma
2013 The Suspect
2013 When Winter Screams
2014 Dokdo 512
2015 Martial Arts Detective : Chinatown
2016 No Tomorrow
2018 Brothers in Heaven
2018 The Princess and the Matchmaker
2019 Bongcheon Tiger Lee
2019 Heavenly Seung: Extreme Brawler
2021 Lotto Share
???? Venomous 2
Action Director:
2004 2004 Human Market
2006 Yeon Gaesomun
2010 Smile, Mom
Martial Arts Choreographer:
2004 2004 Human Market
2006 Yeon Gaesomun
2010 Smile, Mom
Stunt Coordinator:
2004 2004 Human Market
2006 Yeon Gaesomun
2010 Smile, Mom
Most data and links to images for the Movies section come from TheMovieDB (TMDB).
Additional data for Film Titles come from The Open Movie Database (OMDb).
At least one plug-in comes from IMDb.
Data are -- hey, it's a plural -- subject to the limitations of their sources. (For example, TMDB search results currently max out at 20.) I am limiting myself to free data sources for now. (No, a "free trial" is not free.)
While much of the above data are retrieved directly from outside APIs and other such sources, data from American Film Institute (AFI) and British Film Institute (BFI) were manually entered the old fashioned way into a MySQL database. Re BFI I took the following liberties:
Regarding profile removals and data corrections:
Filtering is applied here to film projects flagged as "adult" by TheMovieDB. Pending "popular demand" I am contemplating a login and profile system with preferences (such as whether to allow adult images to appear) and permissions (such as data entry).
Whereas the overall purpose of this website is to serve as a personal demo/portfolio/workshop of web and data skills, this Movies section is not meant to compete with or substitute for far more definitive movie websites.
Whether or not he still clings to an award which he won in 1986 as a film critic for his college's newspaper, Jeffrey Hartmann is not responsible for the texts of overviews and biographies supplied by external data sources.