Scott Adkins has been tearing up the screen in Hollywood for well over a decade now. His latest film Accident Man hits DVD and digital download on Monday 16th April, and is an absolute blast – a bit of a corker of a British comic-book movie from Pat Mills (creator of the “Judge Dredd” comic) and Tony Skinner, and well worth seeking out.
In the film, Adkins plays the Mike Fallon – aka the Accident Man – a stone cold killer and the best at what he does. But when a loved one is dragged into the London underworld and murdered by his own crew, Fallon is forced to rip apart the life he knew in order to avenge the one person who actually meant something to him. Based on the popular UK comic book, Toxic!, the film also stars Ashley Greene, Michael Jai White, Ray Park, Ray Stevenson, David Paymer, Nick Moran, Perry Benson, Ross O’Hennessy and Amy Johnston.
To celebrate the release of the movie in the UK, we take a look at some ofAtkins’ best movie roles.
Doctor Strange (2016)
Yes, Adkins was in the late-2016 Marvel movie Doctor Strange. Appearing in the film opposite the likes of Beneduct Cumberbatch and Chiwetel Ejiofor, Adkins starred as Lucian, one of Kaecilius’ (Mads Mikkelson) followers. The character of Lucian, according to Marvel, was among the Masters of the Mystic Arts of Kamar-Taj enlisted by Kaecilius to be part of the Zealots and rebel against the sorcerers aiming to find their own meaning within the Mystic Arts that the Ancient One (Tilda Swinton) was hiding from them. Adkins portrayed the character in the big-budget movie, and his likeness was also used in the digital comic book prequel Doctor Strange – The Zealot.
American Assassin (2017)
More hardcore action, this time in thee Hollywood adaptation of the bestseller American Assassin. In the film, which is led by Dylan O’Brian while also starring the likes of Michael Keaton and Taylor Kitsch, Adkins plays Victor, and ex-special forces guy who is involved in a secret assassin program. Obviously, the film calls for some supremely choreographed action scenes involving Adkins, the most memorable being a rough and ready scuffle with O’Brien’s Mitch Rapp early on, one where he also gets on the receiving end of the back of Michael Keaton’s hand.
Hard Target 2 (2016)
One of Adkins’ childhood heroes is Jean Claude Van Damme, and his 1980s movie Bloodsport is reportedly the one that made him want to get into acting and martial arts in the first place. With the 2016 film Hard Target 2, Adkins got to follow in his heroes’ footsteps with this sequel to JCVD’s 1993 original. Here, Adkins plays Wes Baylor, a retired MMA figher who is offered one last big million-dollar purse. When he turns up for the fight Burma, he realises that there is no fight – instead, he’s the prey in a deadly game of cat and mouse which sees him pursued by a group of bad-ass hunters. Using the same riffs as the original, Hard Target 2 truly gives Adkins the opportunity to show off his amazing movies and show off his acting chops in a high-profile lead role.
The Expendables 2 (2012)
If there’s one thing better than appearing in a movie sequel to one of your heroes’ biggest movie, its actually starring alongside him in a huge Hollywood movie. The ensemble action series The Expendables of course had to feature Britain’s hottest young action star. Appearing alongside the likes of Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Bruce Willis and, yes, Jean Claude Van Damme, Adkins’ character is seen in the second chapter of this hugely successful series. hector is the right hand man of Van Damme’s lead villain, the appropriately named Vilain. We love the film because of the central fight, complete with a parked, swirling helicopter in the background, between arguably two of our biggest Hollywood exports, Adkins and the equally talented Jason Statham. It’s just awesome.
Accident Man (2018)
Adkins recently told us that he used to read the comic-book series Accident Man when he was younger, so the opportunity to star in a movie version was one that he simply couldn’t turn down. Co-producing and co-writing, as well as leading the cast, Adkins stars as Mike Fallon, a hardcore assassin who makes his kills look like accidents – hence the nickname Accident Man. The film is layered with multiple action sequences, and has a steller cast, including Ashley Greene, David Paymer, Ray Park, Ray Stevenson and Michael Jai White. This superb feature is also directed by action supremo Jesse V. Johnson, a filmmaker who Adkins also teams with on the forthcoming The Debt Collector and Triple Threat. For fans of the genre, and of Adkins, Accident Man is an absolute treat.
Accident Man is available on Digital Download and DVD on April 16th.
