Bruce Lee

[Raiden]

I would say Jet Li. Despite Royce Gracie's success and what he has done for Martial Arts, i'm still amazed at how many people here locally have never heard of him.

[Rich_2k3]

Bruce Lee wasn't just an actor, he created his own style (JKD) which is taught globally how many other movie artists have done that! he also studied philosiphy and wrote many good books on his views. He believed that people should just be themselves, not false images (this idea was a large part of his philosohy). Also he was the greatest martial artist ever far, far better than people like Jean Claude Van Damme and even Jet Li, Jackie Chan or any other martial artist, Bruce Lee was the greatest, he is the greatest, nobody even compares to his skill, power or speed.

[kchenault]

JKD is not a style. It is a way of thinking and executing your techniques. At least that is the way I see it.

 

As far as Jet Li is concerned, have you seen his moves?

 

If anyone would have taken over the legacy of Bruce, it would have been his son Brandon, had he lived. Hands down! Shannon isn't a slouch in the martial arts either.

[martialartist1]

i think, no one will ever compared to bruce lee. some say jackie chan is the next bruce lee, but thats no true, because jackie is the action comedy star, not the serious one. some say jet li is the next bruce lee, that can be true in some ways, but not all. even jet said himself he would borrow some ideas of bruce, but will not borrow all ideas, cos jet has his own opinions.

 

people who copy him will be imitators. they said donnie yen was the bruce lee of the 90's, that is true in terms of how bruce lee would of carried on in terms of martial arts action filmaking, but for rest of the qualities, donnie yen is regarded to be influenced by bruce. donnie will never be exactly like bruce, but will be influenced by him and contain similiar qualities, whenever donnie is involved with filmaking and martial arts.

[martialartist1]

"If anyone would have taken over the legacy of Bruce, it would have been his son Brandon, had he lived. Hands down! Shannon isn't a slouch in the martial arts either."

 

i think your wrong, brandon lee said himself that he loved his father bruce lee, but wouldnt follow in the same footsteps as him because brandon unfortuntely didnt have bruce lee's charisma, skill. so brandon would make decent action martial arts movies, but without the charima and true martial arts qualities. brandon was like the opposite of bruce in terms of true martial arts abilities, except for making movies. brandon said himself he wanted to be more of an action star actor than a great martial artist. and as for shannon, well atleast shes made some decent action films with martial arts in, just like brandon i suppose. shannon isnt a slouch, cos i heard shes had training in TKD, just like brandon had training in wing chun, JKD, kickboxing by i believe JKD legendary dan inosanto.

[Pacificshore]

Bruce Lee will always be Bruce Lee, and no one else can compare to his accomplishments, because frankly he set the bar that everyone strives for in their own way. If I recall right, even in one of Jackie Chan's interviews, he has said that he didn't want to be the next "Bruce Lee". He just wants to be himself and be known for what he has accomplished. I think Chan has set his mark in the martial arts world, so has Jet Li, and any other martial artist/action star out there.

[1ONEfighting]

I say Royce. Just as Bruce Lee changed the face of martial arts in the late 60's-early 70's, Royce did in the 90's.

 

The difference is, Royce did it through competition, Bruce did it through movies. Sure Bruce had a wider impact, but give the legacy of Royce another twenty years.

 

None have equalled Lee, but Gracie is the only one who even comes close.

 

Okay, maybe Billy Blanks.

[delta1]

Bruce Lee was a part of an era when martial arts was exploding world wide. After WW II a lot of cultural barriers were broken down, many people displaced, and the advances in travel and communication took interaction in the martial arts community to an unprecidented level. Men like Prof. Remy Presas were able to use their skills and genious to bring arts together and establish new arts like Modern Arnis. Bruce Lee was influenced by many of the great martial artists of that time, as he developed his skill as a martial artist and his philosophy of Jeet Kun Do. The movie industry, which also was exploding throughout that era, was one vehicle for exchange of ideas in the martial arts. I've heard stories about how Bruce learned a lot of his kicking skills working with Chuck Norris. Another great person who he worked with both in the movie industry and trained with for a while was Ed Parker. I've heard stories from senior Kenpoists about working out with Bruce Lee. He was very human, though a great martial artist and somewhat larger than life. He did not win all his fights, which does not diminish his stature as a martial artist. In fact, it increases that stature in my mind as to say otherwise would make him a god- and where's the greatnes in a god whipping mere mortals? Bruce Lee was a stand out figure in a singularly outstanding era. But he was only one of many. There were greater minds, better martial artists and more charismatic personalities at that time. But no one combined all these elements quite like Bruce Lee. And there will not be another Bruce Lee, if for no other reason than that it is not possible to relive that era.

 

3:20 AM guys, and that is as philisophical as I get. Have a good day!

[Treebranch]

I think delta 1 summed it up, beautifully. It's good to be a die hard fan, but no one may ever know the best Martial Artist.

[100-Artiste]

I believe that Jackie Chan has come closest in terms of movie accomplishment - although Jet Li is superb

 

(and while he isn't much of an artiste a lot of non-MA people think that Van Damme etc. are great)

 

In terms of fighting i would say that Gracie is certainly superb. However, Oyama was also brilliant and often forgotten or not even heard of - he did also start his own 'style' (i know JKD is not a style but a philosophy but you know what i mean) in a similar way to Oyama (Kyukoshin Karate.) Kyukoshin is closest to a new style as JKD as oyama incorporated parts of Muay Thai and Wing Chun into his style - as well as Judo which he was also a 4th Dan in...

 

However, none of these can compare to Bruce Lee as he was both a martial artist and a movie star. He was more importantly very good at both..neither has reached either to the same level as him in my opinion..although there is still time..