So, let's talk about the time a former James Bond and the world's most famous martial artist decided to stop playing for laughs and actually try to break our hearts. Honestly, if you missed the 2017 collaboration between Pierce Brosnan and Jackie Chan, you’re missing out on one of the weirdest, grittiest, and most surprisingly effective action-thrillers of the last decade. It’s called The Foreigner.
Most people hear "Jackie Chan" and think of him sliding down ladders or hitting guys with step-stools while making a funny face. This isn't that.
What Really Happened With Pierce Brosnan and Jackie Chan in The Foreigner
This movie didn't just happen by accident. It was directed by Martin Campbell, the guy who basically saved the Bond franchise twice—first with GoldenEye (starring Brosnan) and then with Casino Royale. Campbell knew how to get under Brosnan's skin.
He also knew how to make Jackie Chan look old. Like, really old.
Jackie plays Quan Ngoc Minh, a humble London restaurant owner. His life gets ripped apart in the first five minutes when his teenage daughter dies in a political bombing. The bombers? A splinter group calling themselves the "Authentic IRA."
Enter Pierce Brosnan.
Brosnan plays Liam Hennessy. He's a high-ranking Northern Irish politician who used to be a leader in the IRA but has "gone straight." He’s got the sharp suits, the expensive whiskey, and a beard that screams "I have secrets."
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The dynamic is basically a game of cat-and-mouse where you’re never quite sure who is the cat. Quan wants the names of the bombers. Hennessy claims he doesn't know them. Quan doesn't believe him.
Chaos—the very quiet, very scary kind—ensues.
Why This Movie Hits Different
Most Hollywood movies treat Jackie Chan like a cartoon. They want him to do the "Jackie thing." But in The Foreigner, Campbell reportedly kept telling Jackie to "slow down." He wanted him to look like a 60-year-old man who is carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders.
It worked.
- Jackie Chan’s acting: He spent half the movie looking like he was about to cry and the other half looking like a ghost. There's no slapstick here. When he fights, it’s desperate. He uses his environment, but it feels like he’s actually getting hurt.
- Brosnan’s "Gerry Adams" vibe: People at the time pointed out how much Hennessy looked and acted like the real-life Sinn Féin leader. Brosnan brings this oily, pressurized intensity to the role. He’s not a villain in the traditional sense; he’s a man watching his political legacy burn down because of one "foreigner" who won't go away.
The Complicated Politics of the Film
The movie is based on a 1992 novel called The Chinaman by Stephen Leather. Yeah, the title didn't age well, which is why they changed it to The Foreigner.
There was actually some pushback regarding the casting. Jackie Chan is Chinese, but his character, Quan, is a Vietnamese immigrant who fled to the UK after the war. Critics at the time, including some Asian-American bloggers, argued that casting a Chinese superstar in a specifically Vietnamese role felt like cultural erasure.
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Then there's the Irish side of things.
The film leans heavily into the history of "The Troubles." For some, seeing a movie in 2017 focus on Irish terrorism felt a bit like a throwback to the 90s. Some reviewers, like those at Roger Ebert, felt the movie was a bit "turgid" and focused too much on Brosnan’s political boardrooms and not enough on Jackie.
But honestly? That’s what makes it interesting. It’s two movies in one. One is a gritty political drama about old men in suits lying to each other. The other is a First Blood-style revenge flick where an old man builds bombs in the woods out of sugar and fertilizer.
By the Numbers: Was it a Success?
Budget-wise, the movie was a massive win. It cost about $35 million to make and pulled in over $145 million worldwide.
Interestingly, it didn't do huge numbers in the US (about $34 million). It was a monster hit in China, where it made over $80 million. For Pierce Brosnan and Jackie Chan, it proved that there was still a huge appetite for "dad cinema"—those R-rated thrillers that don't involve capes or multiverses.
The Action Everyone Talks About
There is a scene where Quan enters a flat to take out the bombers. It’s not a "cool" fight. It’s cramped, ugly, and loud. Jackie looks exhausted.
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That’s the brilliance of the Pierce Brosnan and Jackie Chan partnership. Brosnan provides the "why" and the "where," while Jackie provides the "how." The film doesn't even have them in the same room for a lot of the runtime, yet their chemistry is electric.
It’s all about the phone calls. Hennessy yelling into a receiver while Quan watches him through a sniper scope from a cold forest.
Actionable Takeaways for Your Next Rewatch
If you’re going to dive back into this one, keep a few things in mind to really appreciate what Campbell was doing:
- Watch the eyes: Jackie Chan reportedly spent the whole shoot trying to keep his eyes "empty." Compare this to his performance in Rush Hour. It’s a masterclass in shedding a persona.
- Listen to the score: The music was done by Cliff Martinez (Drive). It’s synth-heavy and moody, which is totally weird for a Jackie Chan movie but fits the London rain perfectly.
- Check the subplots: There’s a whole bit about Hennessy’s wife and a younger man that feels like it’s from a completely different movie. It adds to the "messy" feel that some critics hated, but it makes the world feel lived-in.
The collaboration between Pierce Brosnan and Jackie Chan in The Foreigner remains a high-water mark for both actors. It’s a reminder that even after decades in the spotlight, you can still surprise people.
If you want to see the film, it’s frequently cycling through platforms like Netflix and Amazon Prime. It's the perfect "Saturday night with a beer" movie—just don't expect the usual "happy-go-lucky" Jackie. This one bites.