Martial arts actor, star of ‘Ong Bak’ Tony Jaa joins ‘Fast and Furious 7’

It is recently reported that international martial arts actor Tony Jaa is being added to the cast for Fast and Furious 7.

Jaa, the star of the Ong Bak series, has long been considered one of the world’s best martial arts stars. The Hollywood Reporter broke the news of the casting. Here’s what the actor told them in an e-mail from Thailand.

“I have been a big fan of the Fast and Furious franchise. The films are fast paced, fun and keep the audience involved. There is a great mix of humor and action, something I really appreciate. There is no better film to be involved in for a first U.S. studio production.”

Jaa is a stuntman-turned-actor who spent his youth as an elephant herder. He watched martial arts movies and decided to follow in the footsteps of heroes Jackie Chan and Jet Li.

The seventh film, which will star Paul Walker, Vin Diesel, Dwayne Johnson, Jason Statham and others, is scheduled for release July 11, 2014.

Chris Morgan is still penning the script and production is expected to start very soon. James Wan will be directing, moving away from his credits in the horror genre which include: Saw, The Conjuring, Insidious and Dead Silence.