Page "Action film" Paragraph 7

Also inspired by the success of James Bond ; specifically the Asian-influenced You Only Live Twice, martial-arts-themed action movies exploded onto the western cinema screens with Bruce Lee's Enter the Dragon ( 1973 ), and his imported films like Way of ( or Return of ) the Dragon ( 1972 ).

The latter also introduced action fans to then-rising star Chuck Norris as well.

Though Jackie Chan's Rush Hour is often credited as popularizing the martial arts action film in the United States, Chuck Norris had been blending martial arts with cops and robbers since Good Guys Wear Black ( 1977 ) and A Force of One ( 1979 ).