If you go with quality over quantity, then Tony Jaa easily belongs on this list. Jaa is the face of Thai action cinema and his work is adored around the world. He's a martial artist, sure, but it's his breathtaking stunt work and use of Muay Thai in his choreography that makes him so fresh and exciting.

Jaa’s stunt work is so incredible and so well captured that I have sought out as many Thai action films as possible just to see what everyone else from his team can do. And while ‘Ong Bak’ and ‘The Protector’ have remained his best films and there are rumors of some mental instability, I’m rooting for Tony to keep cranking out his own hits instead of just being the inspiration for dozens of Thai martial arts fests. Apparently ‘The Protector 2’ is on its way and here’s to hoping it cements Tony’s rise to international fame.

"You killed my father, and you stole my elephant!" -– Kham, ‘The Protector’

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