So I’m a little bit behind on this, but because there isn’t really many blogs talking about this, it’s worth a mention: “The Disciple,” a Chinese reality show produced by Jackie Chan where the winner, skilled in both acting and martial arts, will be the lead in a film scripted by Chan. Other finalists will become members of the Jackie Chan Stunt Team. Kinda like that horrible NBC reality show from a couple of years back, Next Action Star, except that Jackie Chan’s movie might be, you know, watchable.
What makes this especially appropriate for a blog like 8Asians is the fact that five of the sixteen finalists aren’t from China, including Xin Wuku, a Cambodian-Chinese martial artist who is now an American Gladiator and Philip Sahagun, the token non-ethnic Chinese finalist. There’s a lot of guowai — what we call ABC‘s — on the show as well, such as UCR Hip-Hop dancer Aoni Ma and Julie Tu, which wins my award for “best use of Chinglish on a Chinese Reality Show.” (Hey, I’d do the same.)
Why all this screen time and outreach to all these Americans, anyway? Maybe Jackie Chan and the producers of The Disciple are eager for their winner to be an international superstar, the same way that a lot of Asian popstars grew up in North America to become superstars overseas. That or they’re just making fun of our bastardized American accents. (Also, to whoever revives the AZN network: BRING THIS SHOW TO THE UNITED STATES. This show could totally be a cult hit here.)
