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200th Special: Action Stars of 90s
Credit: MyTechPiece
This is our 200th article, and like with our 100th article, today we want to do something special. So, we invite on a journey back in time to the flashy 90s. Back when big explosions and cheesy lines were ruling movies, and when the ultimate goal was to offer fun to the audience.
Here are our favorite action stars of the 90s and how they contributed to the world of entertainment.
The 5 Biggest Action Stars of The 90s
Table of Contents
Credit: MyTechPiece
1. Jean-Claude Van Damme: The Muscles From Brussels
JCVD is a legend of action movies, not only because he showed some athletic feats on screen, but also due to his unique story. Born Jean-Claude Van Vaerenbergh, he took the name of his karate mentor as his stage name. The Belgian came to the US with a friend and no money to become a star.
His drive and incredible energy took a while to pay off, since it took him several years to get noticed. He’s known for his split and spectacular kicks in movies like Bloodsport, Kickboxer, and Full Contact. During the 90s he quickly rose to prominence, but the stardom affected his personal life with heavy use of drugs, parties, and his rivalries with other actors. However, like Schwarzenegger, he has left his mark on action movies by offering more nuanced performances than others. He often missed the mark, but he always tried to give it his best.
Credit: MyTechPiece
2. Steven Seagal: The Man Who Never Died
Steven Seagal is now known for being an arrogant, obese man starring in the worst movies, but it wasn’t always the case. In the 90s, Seagal was a unique action star, offering more brutal movies than others with his broody delivery and arm breaking techniques.
However, his ego was, and still is, out of control with the actor claiming he deserves an Oscar, while starring in increasingly bad movies. The first movies were great and even offered interesting filmmaking with competent directors at the helm. Moreover, his outlandish claims quickly made his interventions as fascinating as his movies with Seagal claiming he was Japanese, then Italian, then Native American, then Russian, each time he decided to change his persona and star in different projects. Also, he only dies in one movie, and his career counts some of the best 90s movies.
Credit: MyTechPiece
3. Nicolas Cage: Over The Top and Beyond
Nicolas Cage is an actor you’d have a hard time defining. The nephew of Francis Ford Coppola has been both an award-winning actor and an action star. In movies like Con Air, and Face Off brought us some of the cheesiest lines delivered with such uniqueness it’s hard not to love it.
Able to be frightening and tense one minute and yelling at the top of his lungs the next one, Cage has pushed the boundaries of acting, and offered us golden cinema moments. His career is too big to be summed up here, but he’s definitely one of the most recognizable faces in Hollywood. That’s also why we’re happy to see him have a second chance recently with more incredible roles.
Credit: MyTechPiece
4. Wesley Snipes: Blade Don’t Pay No Taxes
Wesley Snipes is probably one of the best actors of the 90s. His incredible range allows him to be funny, scary, or a hero. He started with roles like New Jack City, but he also has comedy chops, as demonstrated in White Men Can’t Jump.
However, if we had to keep two movies, we’d say his best work was in Demolition Man, where he flawlessly plays an unhinged criminal, and of course Blade. For the role of the Marvel vampire hunter, Snipes decided to literally become the character, wearing the clothes on and off set. He also famously refused to be addressed as Wesley, and really adopted the persona during filming. Some people may not enjoy this type of behavior, but he would respond that “Some motherf***ers are always trying to skate uphill”.
Credit: MyTechPiece
5. Kevin Costner: The King of 90s Hollywood
Kevin Costner is the perfect example of an actor becoming too big too quick. Dancing with the Wolves, Robin Hood, Bodyguard, Costner was the lead in some of the biggest movies of the 90s, a hero that could do no wrong. However, his ego made him take on projects that didn’t meet expectations, like Waterworld. As a result, he fell into oblivion… Hard.
It also didn’t help that his career took off late in his life, as he was already in his 40s during the 90s. Thankfully, the man is smart, and starting his own production company ensured profits, even when he stopped being at the forefront of the scene.
Everything Was Possible, They Did It!
These are just some of the biggest action stars of the 90s and the ones that in our opinion impacted cinema. Of course, there are others we didn’t mention, and we invite you to discuss them with us in the comment section below.
