Martial arts star Jet-Li is popularly known for his involvement in Hollywood films like Lethal Weapon, The Forbidden Kingdom, and The Expendables. 

Li whose forte is action is famous for doing his stunts and has regaled audiences with his skills and prowess in action. The star was initially an integral part of The Matrix sequels and was considered the perfect choice to play the role of Seraph, The Oracle’s trained bodyguard. Despite committing to the role and working on the filming for a considerable amount of time, Jet-Li ultimately let go of the film.

Jet-Li Had An Issue With His Role In The Matrix Sequel

Directors of The Matrix the Wachowski siblings brought Jet-Li on board to play the role of Seraph for the sequel. But the actor who was fully involved in the film’s production for almost a year abruptly ended his association with the movie after learning that the production team wanted to digitize his moves. Li had spent years perfecting his martial arts. and The Matrix would have been his golden chance to showcase his talent.
Jet-Li in The Expendables

However, the actor said that the production would then need him to spend nine months with the crew, with six of those months involving the digital crew recording his moves and copying them. This would then mean that the rights to these action moves would go to the production house, which posed a conflict of interest for Jet-Li. The actor spoke of his trepidation and said,

“I’ve been training my whole life- Yet they could own my moves as an intellectual property forever. So, I couldn’t do that”
The actor added that he was worried about technology taking over and US filmmakers using their technology to paste any actor’s face onto his moving body and this did not sit well with him.

Colin Chou replaced Jet-Li In The Matrix Sequel

After Jet-Li stepped down from a prominent role in The Matrix, the role of Seraph was then taken up by fellow martial artist Collin Chou for the sequels. Chou went on to gain a lot of fame for his presence in the 3 sequels and became a household name for his role as Seraph.

Colin Chou played Seraph in The Matrix sequels

Interestingly, Chou and Li ended up working together in 2006 on the film Fearless. Li subsequently stepped away from the limelight, occasionally appearing in franchises such as The Expendables. The actor in recently times worked in the Disney remake of Mulan, where he played the Emperor of China. Post this film, the martial arts star has mostly remained under the radar and is yet to sign up for prominent Hollywood projects.

Source: Cheat Sheet