Jason Statham has most likely been in at least one action film in the last few years. Statham has established himself as our generation's official action movie star, having gone from racing car driver to hit man to ex-special forces operator. The English actor has been gracing the silver screen with his cockney accent and wild fighting routines since the late 1990s, doing all of his own stunts and acting in over 40 films during his career.
Statham's childhood
Statham did not always lead the life of fame and fortune that he does now; he grew up in a working-class home. Because his mother was a dancer and his father was a street salesman/lounge singer, the action star grew up in poverty. After a disastrous professional diving career, Statham moved on to a brief career as a model, where he struggled to make ends meet. He finally joined the criminal market, where he sold imitation perfume and jewelry on the street with his father. Statham's acting career did not take off until he met English crime filmmaker Guy Ritchie. Ritchie admired Statham's previous existence on the streets and cast him in Jason's first film right immediately. Statham literally walked from the streets to the film studio, and the rest, as they say, is history. In addition to being an action star, Statham is notorious for making news by dating considerably younger (and outrageously attractive) women. Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, his current fiancée and the mother of his new newborn child, is 20 years his junior. There are even allegations that the pair held a private wedding. Continue reading to learn more about Statham's extraordinary career, from diver to street vendor to model to music video actor to the world's most popular action film star. Jason Statham was born on July 26th, 1972, in Shirebrook, Derbyshire. Statham was born to parents who loved the arts. His mother, Eileen, was a dancer, and his father, Barry Statham, was a street merchant who also worked as a lounge singer at night. Statham was best friends with Vinnie Jones in elementary school, who became a professional soccer player and eventually an actor.