Chan Asks Asians To Shun Hollywood

(AP)  Hong Kong action hero Jackie Chan has a message for Asia's film industry: unite against American movies, you have nothing to lose but your culture.

Chan has starred, and earned millions, in a string of Hollywood blockbusters, including "Rush Hour" and its sequel. And even though he plans to soon start shooting "Rush Hour 3," the Hong Kong native told The Times of India newspaper "Asians should unite against American cinema."

Hollywood movies are eroding the culture of Asian countries, he said.

"Why do we need to ape their culture," Chan reportedly said. "I see an Indian saying, 'Yo Man!,' but that's not what Asians are about."

India, like Hong Kong, has its own thriving film industry, known as Bollywood, and while American movies are shown in Indian cinemas, Hindi movies dominate the big screens on the subcontinent.

Still, Chan, who offered no prescriptions for how to keep American movies out of Asian theaters, said he is concerned about their influence.

"Cinema reflects culture and there is no harm in adapting technology, but not at the cost of losing your originality," he said."