Once a martial arts sensation specializing in a rapid-fire American Kenpo martial arts technique, Jeff Speakman is back in action after disappearing from the screen for twenty years.
The 1990s marked the golden era of direct-to-video and B-movie martial arts cinema, introducing cinematic icons from Don “The Dragon” Wilson to Gary Daniels, Jeff Wincott, and Olivier Gruner. But let’s not forget Jeff Speakman, who famously made his mark in The Perfect Weapon back in 1991. His last acting project so far was Striking Range in 2006, where he co-starred with Lou Diamond Phillips and Yancy Butler.
But after two decades, Speakman is set to return from a long-acting hiatus in Lost Echoes, even fuelling anticipation after declaring “1991 was just the beginning” in a post on his official Facebook page. Adapted from Joe R. Lansdale’s 2007 supernatural mystery novel of the same name, his upcoming feature-length project will bypass the standard Hollywood procedure in favor of an indie approach through a Kickstarter campaign, launching on Sept 1st.
The story follows a young man named Harry Wilkes, cursed with a hindsight-like ability that allows him to see and hear violent crimes from the past. He has since carried the burden until adulthood, relying heavily on alcohol as a numbing form of solace. His life changes after he meets Tad, who’s not only a sensei and a mentor but also a friend who helps him master his extraordinary gift. Things reach a turning point when Harry’s childhood crush demands his help to solve her father’s murder, leading Harry and Tad on a high-stakes mission.
A role tailored for Jeff Speakman
Speakman will play Tad, a fitting role that combines his martial arts prowess and mentorship, especially given his own real-life coaching experience establishing the international martial arts network of Kenpo 5.0 in over 20 countries. His upcoming movie would feature Kenpo 5.0, a contemporary martial arts hybrid that blends traditional American Kenpo with MMA-style grappling and defensive combat realism.
Joe R. Lansdale himself will adapt his own book for the screen with his son Keith, while Chef Joe Gatto serves as the director. The latter, who is also a private chef and cookbook author for Seriously From Scratch, previously hosted Pluto TV’s culinary series From Scratch.
RELATED: Why Jet Li Really Disappeared From Hollywood — And Why He’s Finally Coming Back
How Jeff Speakman made American Kenpo famous in the ’90s
Going back to 1991, Speakman’s breakout role as martial arts expert Jeff Sanders made history as the first Hollywood film that prominently featured American Kenpo in The Perfect Weapon. Like his peers who have their own distinct martial arts moves, such as Van Damme with his signature helicopter kick mid-air jump and Steven Seagal with his defensive-heavy aikido technique, Speakman’s specialty lies in his lightning-quick, multi-hand “Five Swords” strike that elevates his Perfect Weapon.
After the success of that 1991 movie, particularly in the lucrative home video and VHS rental market, the martial arts star continued to boost his popularity over the next few years in the ‘90s. He then led more action movies, including Street Knight (1993), The Expert (1995), and Deadly Takeover (1996), where the latter featured Blue Steel and Timecop’s Ron Silver playing the main antagonist role in this high-octane Die Hard-style action thriller.
Jeff Speakman’s stage-four cancer battle
From the 2000s onward, Speakman’s career declined and never reached the creative heights he enjoyed in the 1990s. He gradually stepped away from Hollywood to focus on building his martial arts empire before he found himself battling stage-four throat cancer, forcing him to undergo harsh chemotherapy and radiation treatments. Fortunately, he managed to overcome the life-threatening disease in 2014.
Now 67, it’s nice to see him back on screen, proving that age is just a number.
