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The popularity of actor Ke Huy Quan continues to rise after fans discovered a job he had on the X-Men film during his years in the Hollywood wilderness.
The Vietnamese-born American actor is making a career comeback this year after starring in the action comedy Everything Everywhere All at Once. In 2023, he's already won the Best Supporting Actor Golden Globe and Critics' Choice Awards, with many expecting him to go on and win the Academy Award.
His career trajectory has been widely discussed now he's back in the public eye. He got his break as a child star in the '80s movies Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, and The Goonies. However, in the years that followed, Quan has said he struggled to get any jobs within Hollywood.
During the decades before his first and latest big jobs, Quan took on a number of behind the camera roles, including being an assistant fight choreographer on the set of the 2000 movie X-Men.
A video of him working behind the scenes on X-Men is doing the rounds on the internet, with almost 2 million people watching him at work on Twitter.
"23 years ago Ke Huy Quan was a fight coordinator on X-Men," wrote @mccrabb_will on Twitter. Attached is a 19 seconds-long video of Quan working with a stunt double dressed as Wolverine. A man who resembles Hugh Jackman can also be seen in the video and is also part of the scene a group is planning. The same Twitter user continued: "Ke has a trove of skill, experience and talent at his disposal. It is so exciting to see what's next for this multi-talented man."
Unlike many actors, Quan has a stacked IMDb page with a number of off-camera roles too. Under the names Ke Huy Quan and Jonathan Ke Quan, he has credits as a stunt coordinator, an assistant director, stunt rigger, translator and an actor.
The clip of Quan working on X-Men spurred many on social media to praise him even further.
"He could never be stopped. Love to see him thriving even more now," journalist Lan Pitts wrote. Another Twitter user said: "I need a full biopic on this man," while another added: "Ke Huy Quan has lived a thousand lives in one lifetime huh."
"Wow," proclaimed NPR TV critic Eric Deggans. "That guy's story is amazing. And a sad commentary on Hollywood that he had to step away from acting for so long."
Quan has become the subject of many TikTok videos and Reddit threads too. One pointed out that while he's set to join the MCU in the Disney+ show Loki in Season 2, his role on X-Men means he's already been part of the Marvel universe. It will be the second time he's shared a credit with Marvel boss Kevin Feige.
Quan has also been delighting social media users with his own content. During the awards season events, he's been posing with a number of celebrities which makes for wholesome content. One of the internet's favorites appears to be Quan reuniting with Steven Spielberg, who directed him in the Indiana Jones movie almost 40 years ago.
About the writer
Jamie Burton is a Newsweek Senior TV and Film Reporter (Interviews) based in London, U.K. His focus is reporting on ... Read more