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James Tien

James Tien

Actor · Born May 28, 1942 (84) · Guangdong Province, China

James Tien-Chun (Chinese: 田俊; born 28 May 1942) is a Hong Kong actor from Guangdong, China. He appeared in almost 70 films, primarily in Hong Kong action cinema, including roles in the films of martial arts stars including Bruce Lee, Jackie Chan and Sammo Hung. He often played villains or supporting roles. He retired from the Hong Kong film industry in 1996.

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Biography from TMDB.

Born
May 28, 1942 (84)
From
Guangdong Province, China
Works as
Actor
Titles
38 on MovieCove · 84 credits in all
Links
IMDb (opens in a new tab)TMDB (opens in a new tab)Wikidata (opens in a new tab)

Known for

TMDB popularity, last 37 days to Oct 26Down 10% in 30 days

What are James Tien's films like?

Across their 23 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Morality and Bonds.

Genres

Action17 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 44th percentile
: browse their Action movies
Comedy2 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 47th percentile
: browse their Comedy movies
Crime2 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 75th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Crime movies

Their MovieCove films by primary genre. The badge is the typical Midcredits score of the genre's films, the median percentile; an up arrow marks a genre at or above their average across these genres.

Themes

share of theme weight
Morality
32%
Bonds
29%
Self
13%
Power
10%
Society
8%
Survival
8%
Revenge8 titles, browse their movies with this themeFamily bonds6 titles, browse their movies with this themeFriendship4 titles, browse their movies with this themeLoyalty4 titles, browse their movies with this themeSacrifice5 titles, browse their movies with this themeJustice3 titles, browse their movies with this themeCorruption2 titles, browse their movies with this themePurpose2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 23 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Serious: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their serious movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

A split, not a type: Light 12 · Serious 6 · Dark 5

Stylized: How far its world departs from everyday reality. Browse their stylized movies.
Tone · Style
naturalisticheightened

Grounded 3 · Stylized 16 · Heightened 4

Charged: How hard the emotional peaks hit while you watch. Browse their charged movies.
Feel · Intensity
gentleintense

Gentle 7 · Charged 10 · Intense 6

Shifting: How much it swings between very different feelings. Browse their shifting movies.
Feel · Swings
steadyswings

Steady 7 · Shifting 13 · Whiplash 3

Some laughs: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their some laughs movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

A split, not a type: Straight-faced 8 · Some laughs 5 · Funny 10

Even-paced: How fast it moves from scene to scene. Browse their even-paced movies.
Demand · Pace
slowrelentless

Slow burn 3 · Even-paced 16 · Relentless 4

Casual: How much focus it asks of you — look away and lose the thread? Browse their casual movies.
Demand · Attention
casualfull focus

Casual 17 · Engaged 6 · Full focus 0

Resolved: How much is left for you to interpret. Browse their resolved movies.
Demand · Resolution
resolvedambiguous

Resolved 23 · Open-ended 0 · Ambiguous 0

Roles they play

7 analyzed roles

Usually the Shadow: 3 of 7 analyzed roles.

Shadow
3 of 7
Mentor
3 of 7
Ally
1 of 7
Show the 7 roles

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Tense
12
Thrilling
12
Joyful
7
Absurd
8
Melancholic
8
Other
10

How their films linger

Fun12 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFeel-good7 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteRousing7 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteBittersweet6 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteThought-provoking3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteCathartic3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end · 3 with a twist

  • Happy12
  • Bittersweet7
  • Tragic3
  • Ambiguous1

AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.

Where can I watch James Tien's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 19 of their 38 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on The Criterion Channel (7).

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for James Tien's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.

Filmography

84 credits, 38 with a MovieCove page; 1 appearance as themselves is hidden until asked for.

  • The Final Game of Death (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2023)

    as Tien Da

  • Game of Death Redux (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2019)

    as Hai Tien's Companion 1

  • Bruce Lee in G.O.D. (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2000)

    as Charlie Wang

  • Blade of Fury(1993)

    Assistant Director · as Bandit Leader

    Midcredits score: 77th percentile of all films

  • The Inspector Wears Skirts IV (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1992)

    Actor

  • Daddy, Father and Papa (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1991)

    as Brother Ho

  • Lee Rock II(1991)

    as Silverfish

    Midcredits score: 69th percentile of all films

  • Lee Rock(1991)

    as Silverfish

    Midcredits score: 80th percentile of all films

  • Slickers vs. Killers (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1991)

    Assistant Director

  • Money Maker (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1991)

    as Lacha

  • The Gambling Ghost(1991)

    as Foster

    Midcredits score: 34th percentile of all films

  • The Nocturnal Demon (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1990)

    Actor

  • Pantyhose Hero (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1990)

    Assistant Director · as Tsen

  • Burning Sensation (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1989)

    as Fire Dept Commander

  • Lady Reporter(1989)

    as Assistant Prosecutor (uncredited)

    Midcredits score: 42nd percentile of all films

  • Spooky, Spooky(1988)

    as Villager (opening scene)

    Midcredits score: 49th percentile of all films

  • Hero of Tomorrow (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1988)

    as Officer Tso

  • Dragons Forever(1988)

    as Boss Feng

    Midcredits score: 86th percentile of all films

  • Last Eunuch In China (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1987)

    as General Lei

  • Eastern Condors(1987)

    as Angry Customer

    Midcredits score: 85th percentile of all films

  • My Cousin, the Ghost(1987)

    as Restaurant Manager

    Midcredits score: 24th percentile of all films

  • Righting Wrongs(1986)

    Assistant Director · as Johnny Kwong / Chou Ting-kuang

    Midcredits score: 86th percentile of all films

  • Mr. Vampire II(1986)

    as Officer Tien

    Midcredits score: 38th percentile of all films

  • Lucky Stars Go Places(1986)

    as Police Special Force Commander

    Midcredits score: 27th percentile of all films

  • Rosa (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1986)

    as Wang Ping Tang

  • Millionaires' Express(1986)

    as Shi Yu

    Midcredits score: 79th percentile of all films

  • Yes, Madam!(1985)

    as Henry Tin Wai Keung

    Midcredits score: 71st percentile of all films

  • Heart of Dragon(1985)

    as Mr. Kim Tin Chun

    Midcredits score: 57th percentile of all films

  • Twinkle Twinkle Lucky Stars(1985)

    as Boss Lau Yan Foo

    Midcredits score: 52nd percentile of all films

  • My Lucky Stars(1985)

    as Prison Warden

    Midcredits score: 54th percentile of all films

  • The Owl vs. Bumbo(1984)

    as Au Gung / Au Gan

    Midcredits score: 31st percentile of all films

  • The Return of Pom Pom (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1984)

    as Insp. Tien

  • Pom Pom(1984)

    as Inspector Tien

    Midcredits score: 41st percentile of all films

  • Winners & Sinners(1983)

    as Chan Chiu

    Midcredits score: 70th percentile of all films

  • Fearless Hyena 2(1983)

    as Ching Tsun-nam

    Midcredits score: 15th percentile of all films

  • Carry On Pickpocket (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1982)

    as Sgt Wu's Superior

  • The Prodigal Son(1981)

    as Broken Right Arm Fighter

    Midcredits score: 90th percentile of all films

  • Chu Liu Hsiang and Hu Tieh Hua (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1980)

    Actor

  • Dragon Fist(1979)

    as Fong Gong

    Midcredits score: 44th percentile of all films

  • The Fearless Hyena(1979)

    as Chen Peng-fei

    Midcredits score: 70th percentile of all films

  • The Bone Crushing Kid (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1979)

    Actor

  • Spiritual Kung Fu(1978)

    as Lu Qing

    Midcredits score: 39th percentile of all films

  • Immortal Warriors (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1978)

    Actor

  • Half a Loaf of Kung Fu(1978)

    as Master Mao

    Midcredits score: 31st percentile of all films

  • Magnificent Bodyguards(1978)

    as Tsang

    Midcredits score: 32nd percentile of all films

  • Game of Death(1978)

    as Charlie Wang

    Midcredits score: 42nd percentile of all films

  • Naked Comes the Huntress (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1978)

    as Tu

  • Iron Fisted Monk(1977)

    as Shaolin Instructor

    Midcredits score: 64th percentile of all films

  • The Shaolin Plot (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1977)

    as Little Tiger

  • Shaolin Iron Finger (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1977)

    Actor

  • The Hand of Death(1976)

    as Commander Shih

    Midcredits score: 44th percentile of all films

  • The Last Message (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1975)

    as Bike Policeman

  • My Wacky, Wacky World (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1975)

    as Fake villager

  • The Seven Coffins (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1975)

    Actor

  • The Dragon Tamers (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1975)

    as Nan Kung

  • All in the Family (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1975)

    as Citizen

  • The Bedevilled (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1975)

    as Tseng Chia Chu

  • Naughty! Naughty! (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1974)

    as Boss Feng's thug

  • The Shaolin Boxers (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1974)

    as Lin Chi-Gang

  • The Tattooed Dragon (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1973)

    as Jun Lee Kwan

  • Thunderbolt (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1973)

    as Chen Ying Chieh

  • None But the Brave (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1973)

    as Chinese revolutionary

  • Seven Magnificent Fights(1973)

    as Golden Hair (Boss)

    Midcredits score: 38th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)

  • A Man Called Tiger (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1973)

    as Liu Han Ming

  • Bruce Lee: The Man and the Legend(1973)

    as (The Game of Death: original 1972 footage)

    Midcredits score: 57th percentile of all films

  • Fist of Fury(1972)

    as Fan Chun-hsia

    Midcredits score: 89th percentile of all films

  • Duel for Gold(1971)

    Actor

    Midcredits score: 73rd percentile of all films

  • Vengeance of a Snowgirl (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1971)

    as Prince's Son / Palace Guard of Armour

  • The Big Boss(1971)

    as Hsiu Chien

    Midcredits score: 79th percentile of all films

  • The Chase (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1971)

    as Shih Hai-lung

  • The Crimson Charm (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1971)

    as Red-gowned Chief Au-Yang Kwun

  • The Eunuch (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1971)

    as Gui's men

  • The Blade Spares None (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1971)

    as Chen Jo Yu

  • The Invincible Eight (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1971)

    as Lei Kuei

  • The Iron Buddha(1970)

    as Bandit

    Midcredits score: 46th percentile of all films

  • A Taste of Cold Steel(1970)

    as Taoist Sikong

    Midcredits score: 32nd percentile of all films

  • The Twelve Gold Medallions(1970)

    as Juxian Hall Member

    Midcredits score: 70th percentile of all films

  • Brothers Five (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1970)

    as Bandit

  • The Eagle's Claw (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1970)

    as Security guard

  • Dark Rendezvous (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1969)

    as Thug

  • The Golden Sword (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1969)

    as One of the 3 Cripples

  • Raw Courage (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1969)

    as Checkpoint officer

  • A Pearl in Command (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1969)

    as Escort fighter

  • That Fiery Girl (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1968)

    Actor

Career shape

Star power in the 98th percentile of 239,109 people with a billed film role, over a full career of 83 titles from 1968 to 2023; peak year 1978.

Biggest box office

Mr. Vampire II (1986)

$2.1M worldwide

Highest rated

Fist of Fury (1972)

Midcredits 89th

Film career

19682023

Peak 1978 · fewer prominent film roles lately. Top draw in 5 MovieCove titles. Film roles by billing, audience size and rating; 25+ votes. A show carries a single first-air date, so shows are not on the curve.

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting82 of 83: 79 only acting, 3 with another role · typical Midcredits score52ndOther crew4 of 83: 1 only other crew, 3 with another role

83 titles, 3 with more than one role — acting and other crew overlap on 3 of them.

By decade

1960s5 · acting1970s40 · acting1980s25 · 25 acting · 1 crew1990s10 · 9 acting · 3 crew2000s1 · acting2010s1 · acting2020s1 · acting

Billing

usually 9th · top billed in 0% of 25 roles
718186

Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored. Billing is TMDB cast order for roles with 25+ votes, billed in the top 30; the columns are the share of top-billed roles in each era, 5-year spans from the year on the label, merged until each holds at least 5 roles.

How do James Tien's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 53rd percentile, the median of all 38; across their 23 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 56th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

56thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 23

Approval · how many liked their films

44thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 23

Reach · how many have seen their films

73rdpercentile
Typical film, the median of 23

Midcredits score across 38 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up9
  • 50th to 74th11
  • 25th to 49th16
  • Below 25th2

Shape of the crowd

None of their 38 titles divides audiences: 19 are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Universally Loved1
  • Crowd Pleaser19
  • Broadly Agreed6
  • Mixed12

Most loved · actor

The Prodigal Son (1981)

Midcredits 90th · 78% liked

Reviewers score the acting 61/100 in their films, across 19 reviewed titles; fans 69, detractors 43. The element that speaks to their work as an actor.

Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.

Is James Tien's work okay for kids?

Across a limited sample of up to 4 MovieCove titles with content scores.

Their medianMedian of all films
Sex & Nudity4 titlesmedian 39 · moderateMedian of all films: 32

Severity 0–100 from the Content Guide. Categories with under 10 votes on a title are not counted.

Who does James Tien work with?

People who share at least 2 of James Tien's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Sammo Kam-Bo Hung shares the most, 10.

Directors

Writers

Actors

Composers, cinematographers and editors

Producers