Ah,Jean-Claude Van Damme— the “Muscles from Brussels.” A successful action star who, like Stallone and Schwarzenegger before him, is more or less an entirely self-made man (though, as Schwarzeneggerwisely said onConan O’Brien Needs a Friend, one’s success is neverconstructedjustby them).
Van Damme’s had an admirable career in Hollywood, but he has, quite naturally, been pigeonholed into the action realm. But, like Jason Statham inSpy, he has found ways toembrace his funny side over the years.
If he wanted, he couldjustcash checks, but Van Damme likes to explore when he can, and that’s admirable. His critics throughout the ’80s and ’90s may not have been entirely wrong about his wooden nature (for a lead performer in a bunch of studio pictures), but what’s equally true is that they have never given him proper credit.
And Van Damme himself has admitted that, at the beginning of his career, his skills were lacking. In his words (viaDigital Spy): “I was a bad actor, man, but the heart was there.” So to say he has no range is to not look closely enough at a career trajectory. Here are the 8 best examples why Jean-Claude Van Damme has more range than he’s given credit for.
9Bloodsport (1988)
Bloodsport
Jean-Claude often gets lumped in with other muscle man A-listers who, if critics are to be believed, basically have no talent. But, does that even make sense? How does one stand out from the rest unless they’re bringingsomething beyond athleticism to the table?
The answer is, they don’t. Just look at Michael Dudikoff fromAmerican Ninja, a highly successful film that still led to absolutely nothing of note for the lead performer — and for good reason.
Why Is He So Great in Bloodsport?
With his first leading role (basically his first movie outside background parts and, for a brief period, the suit performer behind the Yautja inPredator), Van Damme proved himself to be a martial arts master. But, more importantly,Bloodsportis a film that shows an inexperienced actor genuinelytryingto sell the film’s dialogue-driven, deeper scenes.
And, inBloodsport, there’s a surprising number of those. Given the acting experience he had at the time, Van Damme is exceptional. His inexperience actually works surprisingly well for the film, as it more or less links up precisely with his character’s trajectory within the narrative.
Stream Bloodsport on Showtime
8Double Impact (1991)
Double Impact
1988 hadBloodsportand the little-seenBlack Eagle. 1989 had the dreadfulCyborgand the serviceableKickboxer. 1990 hadLionheart(which was basicallyBloodsportandKickboxeragain) and the prison action-dramaDeath Warrant.
In other words, Van Damme blew up in a short amount of time — leading two films in a single year absolutely means one is a star. And, clearly, studios had faith in the man, because his seventh film had him leading it in a dual role.
Why Is He So Great in Double Impact?
Is a lot ofDouble Impactclunky? Absolutely, but one must really give it to Van Damme for helping to craft two distinctive personalities in the same film. One of those personalities hasn’t aged incredibly well, but there was still talent involved in bringing him to life.
Stream Double Impact on The Roku Channel
7Universal Soldier (1992)
Universal Soldier
Schwarzenegger started out as a villain, not a hero. And the same could be said of Dolph Lundgren, who gets his best antagonist role outsideRocky IVwith Roland Emmerich’sUniversal Soldier. But Van Damme, he’s almost always been the hero, andUniversal Soldierwashis biggest heroic venture yet.
Why Is He So Great in Universal Soldier?
Van Damme is the main character in Emmerich’s film, but he doesn’t have to do nearly as much (figurative) heavy lifting. Lundgren carries nearly half of the 100 minutes.
This allows Van Damme to have a little more fun than usual, like a greater display of his silly side. And it works like a charm.Universal Soldierisn’t great, but it’s as solid as it is because of Emmerich, Van Damme, and Lundgren.
Stream Universal Soldier on Hoopla
6Nowhere to Run (1993)
Like Schwarzenneger, Stallone, Seagal, or Lundgren, Van Damme’s bread and butter is in being a nice guy with a rough past supplanted into a small town that’s currently under threat of corporate dominance. And, frankly, inNowhere to Run, he did that better than any of them — particularly Seagal in his hollow and blandFire Down Below.
Why Is He So Great in Nowhere to Run?
Arguably more than any of his other films, Van Damme brings believable heart to his role inNowhere to Run. He truly sells the good Samaritan character, especially one who has made mistakes and genuinely hopes to reform.Nowhere to Runwouldn’t be the effective (and criminally underseen) time-waster it is without Jean-Claude.
Stream Universal Soldier on Paramount+
5The Quest (1996)
Like Steven Seagal had done two years prior, Jean-Claude Van Damme made his directorial debut withThe Quest. And, also like Seagal and hisOn Deadly Ground,The Questdidn’t lead to very much for the action star’s directorial prospects.
ButunlikeOn Deadly Ground,The Questhas heart, solid production values, and good action sequences. It may not have done well in the States (its budget wasn’t low, either), but at the end of the day,The Questwas profitable, and that’s for the best, because it’s clear it was a passion project for Van Damme.
Why Is He So Great in The Quest?
UntilJCVD, Van Damme’s most ranged work was inThe Quest. He’s still playing the archetypal good guy with a heart of gold (he even helps orphans in the first act), but there’s a lot of internal conflict. The audience knows this via Van Damme’s facial expressions, leading one to believe he gave his character in the film a lot of fault.The Questis not high art, but it shows that Van Damme’s range isn’t exclusive to acting or doing the splits.
Rent The Quest on Prime Video
4JCVD (2008)
After 1994’sStreet Fighterand 1995’sSudden Death, Van Damme’s domestic box office appeal took a nosedive. 1996’sThe QuestandMaximum Riskdid fine, but then there were a few bombs, culminating in his reprisal of the role of Luc Deveraux inUniversal Soldier: The Return.
That sequel came out in 1999, and was Van Damme’s last wide theatrical release untilThe Expendables 2in 2012. In between those two films wasJCVD, which admittedly isn’t the type of film that would do well in wide release but has still, thankfully, found quite a bit of critical appreciation.
Why Is He So Great in JCVD?
JCVDis something else. Rarely has an actor been so willing to poke fun at their own image, especially in a way that isn’t so much poking fun as flat-out realistic and (effectively) depressing.
Of course, it’s notentirelytrue to the man’s life, but it’s obvious he’s bringing a mixture of true-to-life emotion and some further developed acting gravitas. In other words, Van Damme’s acting prowess grew during his DTV years andJCVDshould have made for a more long term mainstream comeback.
Rent JCVD on Tubi
3The Expendables 2 (2012)
expendables 2
Of the fourExpendablesfilms (and that’s going to remain the number withExpend4bles' horrendous box office failure),The Expendables 2is by far the best. With the first sequel, everyone both in front of and behind the camera knew what they were doing, were well-versed in their characters, and had the franchise’s more upped-than-usual bombast.
And, more importantly, they knew what audiences wanted from the film. This includes Van Damme, whose contemptible (and humorously named) Vilain is, bar none, the franchise’s best villain — which is saying something, considering Mel Gibson was the only one having fun inThe Expendables 3.
Why Is He So Great In The Expendables 2?
With each of his (admittedly few) scenes, Van Damme makes Vilain seem like the opposite of his name. He’s no punchline, he’s an ethically repugnant killer with no remorse. Van Damme casts all of his charm aside and goes for something a little more robotic, as if he’s the T-800 in the originalThe Terminator, but with a mind all his own.
That may sound like it’s Van Damme turning in a one-note performance, but it isn’t, not by a long shot. He dominates every scene ofThe Expendables 2in which he’s featured.
Stream The Expendables 2 on ViX
2Welcome to the Jungle (2013)
Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle
Make no mistake,Welcome to the Jungleis really rough. It’s a direct-to-video comedy with production values that show as much. But, it also has a weirdly stacked cast, withThe Blacklist’s Megan Boone, Rob Huebel, Kristen Schaal, Dennis Haysbert, and Adam Brody all playing major roles. And, yet, it’s Van Damme’s smaller appearance that steals the show.
Why Is He So Great In Welcome to the Jungle?
When an actor is having fun, it’s infectious. And, whenever he actually is on-screen, Van Damme seems like he’s having fun inWelcome to the Jungle. Even surrounded entirely by actors well-versed in comedy, the action star holds his own, and it’d be great to see him do so in a stronger comedy.
Rent Welcome to the Jungle on Prime Video
1Minions: The Rise of Gru (2022)
minions the rise of gru
The fact that Van Damme was game to play an animated villain loosely based on himself inMinions: The Rise of Grushows a great level of self-awareness. After all, just look at Seagal to see an action star who has always been adamantly opposed to playing anything other than the hero. Though, Seagal’s options had dried up by the timeMachetehit theaters. And, in that, he’s been rightly seen as one-note.
Why Is He So Great In Minions: The Rise of Gru?
But Van Damme’s never been satisfied with playing theexactsame character over and over again. He was game forThe Rise of Gru,and God bless him for it. An action star must be able topoke fun at their own image; after all, they’re mortal men perpetually shown to be anything but.
