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Iko Uwais

Indonesian actor and martial artist (born 1983)

Summary

Indonesian actor and martial artist (born 1983)

FieldValue
imageIko Uwais by Sachyn Mital.jpg
captionUwais at the New York premiere of The Raid 2 in March 2014
nameIko Uwais
birth_date
birth_placeJakarta, Indonesia
birth_nameUwais Qorny
nationality
occupation
years_active2007–present
spouse
children2
module{{Infobox martial artistembed=yes
styleSilat Tiga Berantai
signature[[File:Iko Uwais (signature).svg100px]]

Uwais Qorny (, born 12 February 1983), known professionally as Iko Uwais, is an Indonesian actor, stuntman, fight choreographer, and martial artist. He is best known for acting in the action films Merantau (2009), The Raid (2011), The Raid 2 (2014), Headshot (2016), Mile 22 (2018),* The Night Comes for Us* (2018), Stuber (2019), and the Netflix series Wu Assassins (2019–22).

Early life

Uwais was born Uwais Qorny in Jakarta, to Musthafa and Maisyaroh Kamaluddin. His grandfather, H. Achmad Bunawar, was a silat master and founded a silat school. He is named after the 7th-century Islamic figure Owais al-Qarani.

Career

In 2007, Uwais met director Gareth Evans, who was filming a documentary about silat, a form of martial arts, in Uwais's training hall. Uwais's natural charisma and great camera presence encouraged Evans to cast him as the leading role for his first martial art movie, Merantau. After signing a five-year contract with Gareth Evans and his production company, Uwais resigned from his daytime job as an operational driver at Esia, an Indonesian telecom company.

In his first acting experience in Merantau, Uwais played the role of a young Minang (West-Sumatran), which led him to learn the Minang style of silat harimau (tiger style) from Master Edwel Datuk Rajo Gampo Alam. Merantau was released in Indonesia on 6 August 2009. The film was featured in Puchon International Fantastic Film Festival in South Korea and Fantastic Fest in Austin, Texas with highly positive reviews. Merantau won the Best Film award at ActionFest 2010.

Uwais's second collaboration with Gareth Evans was The Raid (known as The Raid: Redemption in the United States), which began filming in mid-March 2011 and was released in mid-2012. The movie has been hailed by critics and audiences in various festivals as one of the best martial art movies in years. The following year, Uwais appeared in a small role in Keanu Reeves's directorial debut Man of Tai Chi.

In 2014, Uwais collaborated on a third movie with Evans, The Raid 2, a sequel to the original film. Uwais also appeared briefly in Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015), alongside his The Raid 2 co-stars Yayan Ruhian and Cecep Arif Rahman. He was also asked to choreograph a lightsaber fight in the film by director J. J. Abrams, but the sequence was rejected for being too violent.

In 2016, he appeared in the martial arts film Headshot, which received generally positive reviews.

In 2017, he filmed the international martial arts film Triple Threat, together with Tony Jaa, Michael Jai White, Tiger Chen, and Scott Adkins—the film was released in early 2019. In 2018, Uwais starred in the films, Mile 22 and The Night Comes for Us.

In the same year, it was announced that Uwais was cast in the lead role of Kai Jin on the Netflix series, Wu Assassins. The series premiered on 8 August 2019. Uwais reprised his role in the sequel film, Fistful of Vengeance. It was released on 17 February 2022 to mixed reviews.

In 2019, Uwais starred in the action comedy film Stuber alongside Kumail Nanjiani and Dave Bautista. In the same year, it was announced that Uwais would appear in a film called Chinatown Express playing a man who must fight through the gangland of New York to save his family after the disappearance of his son during a gang's killing spree. Uwais was also announced to star in The Bellhop, one of the first five films in development by Balboa Productions, the new production company co-founded by Sylvester Stallone in 2018.

Uwais played Hard Master in Snake Eyes, a spin-off from the G.I. Joe movie franchise. The film was released on 23 July 2021.

In October 2021, Uwais joined the cast of Expend4bles, which was released in 2023 to poor reviews. In May 2023, Iko Uwais was announced to star in a sci-fi thriller Ash directed by Flying Lotus alongside Aaron Paul, Eiza González, Beulah Koale, and Kate Elliott.

In January 2025, Uwais revealed that he had started a film production company, Uwais Pictures. The company's initial slate of films includes Uwais's directorial debut Timur, a dramatization of the Mapenduma hostage crisis that Uwais also stars in.

Personal life

On 25 June 2012, Uwais married singer Audy Item at the Hotel Gran Mahakam in Jakarta. The couple have two daughters, Atreya Syahla Putri Uwais and Aneska Layla Putri Uwais.

Filmography

Film

YearTitleRoleDirector(s)Notes
2009MerantauYudaGareth Evans
2011The RaidRamaAlso action choreographer
2013Man of Tai ChiGilang SanjayaKeanu ReevesUS debut
2014The Raid 2Rama/YudaGareth EvansAlso fight choreographer
2015Star Wars: The Force AwakensRazoo Qin-FeeJ. J. Abrams
2016HeadshotIshmael/AbdiThe Mo Brothers
2017Beyond SkylineSuaLiam O'DonnellAlso action choreographer
2018Mile 22Li NoorPeter BergAlso co-fight choreographer
The Night Comes for UsArianTimo TjahjantoAlso action coordinator
2019Triple ThreatJakaJesse V. Johnson
StuberOka TedjoMichael DowseAlso action choreographer
2021Snake EyesHard MasterRobert Schwentke
2022Fistful of VengeanceKai JinRoel Reiné
2023Expend4blesSuarto RahmatScott Waugh
2024Marni: Kisah Wewe GombelBilly ChristianAlso stunt choreographer
2025AshAdhiFlying Lotus
Skyline: WarpathSuaLiam O'Donnell
Ikatan DarahSidharta TataAlso executive producer
TimurTimurHimselfDirectorial debut, also executive producer
TBAWings of DreadAshton Chen
Pengfei QinHong Kong debut
The Bellhop
Chinatown Express
The Blind of the Phantom CaveBarda MandrawataTimo Tjahjanto
Road House 2Ilya NaishullerFilming

Television

YearTitleRoleNetworkNotes
2019Wu AssassinsKai JinNetflixMain role; also as producer and lead fight choreographer

Awards and nominations

YearOrganisationAwardWorkResult2010201320142016
Indonesian Movie AwardsBest Newcomer ActorMerantau
Favorite Newcomer Actor
Indonesian Movie AwardsBest Chemistry
(shared with Donny Alamsyah)The Raid
Indonesian Choice AwardsActor of the YearHimself
Indonesian Yahoo! Celebrity AwardsMost Wanted Male
Republika AwardsThe Best Republika's Change Figure
Infotainment AwardsIndonesian Celebrity of World Achievement
JawaPos Group AwardsActor of the Year

References

References

  1. (13 January 2022). "Belajar Silat Dari Iko Uwais". Trans7.
  2. Brown, Todd. (4 February 2009). "Gareth Evans and Iko Uwais talk ''Merantau''". [[Screen Anarchy.
  3. (21 January 2014). "Iko Uwais". Martial Arts & Action Entertainment.
  4. Harvey, Dennis. (16 September 2016). "Film Review: 'Headshot'". [[Variety (magazine).
  5. (18 December 2015). "Iko Uwais and the Indonesian heroes of Star Wars: The Force Awakens". [[BBC News]].
  6. (22 December 2017). "Biografi Iko Uwais – Dari Supir Truk Hingga Menjadi Aktor Laga Holywood".
  7. Liputan6.com. (2018-02-13). "Rayakan Ultah Ayahnya, Iko Uwais Undang Kesedihan".
  8. Arditya, Andreas D.. (5 April 2014). "Iko Uwais juggles films and fatherhood". [[The Jakarta Post]].
  9. (2014). "10 things you need to know about Iko Uwais". Movies.ie.
  10. Lee, Ann. (11 April 2014). "The Raid 2 star Iko Uwais: Gareth Evans is like my ugly brother".
  11. Lambie, Ryan. (14 May 2012). "The Raid Q&A: director Gareth Evans and star Iko Uwais". [[Dennis Publishing#Publications.
  12. Brown, Todd. (28 September 2009). "Reviews: Fantastic Fest 09: 'Merantau' Review". Twitchfilm.net.
  13. (13 October 2011). "Iko Uwais, Mantan Supir Merambah Dunia Akting". [[Pikiran Rakyat]].
  14. Saputra, Aditia. (1 April 2014). "Iko Uwais, Sopir Truk yang Menjadi Aktor Laga". [[Liputan6.com]].
  15. Soo-Mee, Park. (23 July 2009). "Puchon film festival wraps, sets encore".
  16. Brooks, Brian. (30 September 2009). "Fantastic Fest Thrills Up Prize Winners".
  17. Brown, Todd. (25 September 2009). "Fantastic Fest 09: 'Merantau' Review".
  18. Renninger, Bryce J.. (22 April 2010). "Chuck Norris Passes on Lifetime Achievement Award at ActionFest".
  19. (30 April 2010). "'Undisputed 3', '14 Blades', and 'Merantau' win at ActionFest 2010, Chuck Norris declines Lifetime Achievement Award!". Twitchfilm.net.
  20. Deri. (4 March 2011). "'Serbuan Maut' (The Raid) Lebih Dahsyat dari 'Merantau'".
  21. Jones, Gareth. (15 May 2012). "UK Readers: Check Out This Bullet-Ridden New Clip from The Raid and Win a Limited Edition Bag!".
  22. (25 January 2015). "The Raid trio to appear in Star Wars: Episode 7 – The Force Awakens". [[Screen Anarchy.
  23. St. Clair, Joshua. (2019-07-12). "Iko Uwais Is Hollywood's Next Big Martial Arts Star. Just Ask Keanu Reeves and Mark Wahlberg.".
  24. "Headshot".
  25. Roxborough, Scott. (5 November 2016). "AFM: Tony Jaa, Tiger Chen and Iko Uwais Are a 'Triple Threat'".
  26. (2 March 2015). "Ronda Rousey, Peter Berg and Iko Uwais Team on Action Pic 'Mile 22' (EXCLUSIVE)". [[Penske Business Media]].
  27. Donato, Matt. (25 September 2018). "'The Night Comes for Us' Review: A Bloody, Action-Packed, Punch-a-Minute Thriller [Fantastic Fest]". Slash Film.
  28. Petski, Denise. (20 July 2018). "'Wu Assassins': Katheryn Winnick, Lewis Tan, Tommy Flanagan & Tzi Ma Join Netflix Martial Arts Drama". Deadline.
  29. PacificRimVideoPress. (19 April 2019). "Juju Chen on working on NetFlix Wu Assassins and Lewis Tan".
  30. Petski, Denise. (26 February 2021). "'Wu Assassins' Standalone Movie Set At Netflix". [[Deadline Hollywood]].
  31. Massoto, Erick. (20 January 2022). "'Fistful of Vengeance' Trailer Reveals the 'Wu Assassins' Standalone Movie Coming to Netflix".
  32. Fachriansyah, Rizki. (25 June 2019). "Iko Uwais changes his game in 'Stuber'". The Jakarta Post.
  33. Bona, J. J.. "'The Raid' star Iko Uwais boards the 'Chinatown Express' {{!}} cityonfire.com".
  34. Donnelly, Matt. (23 July 2019). "Sylvester Stallone's Production Company Wants to Be the Blumhouse of Action Films". Variety.
  35. Borys, Kit. (6 September 2019). "'The Raid' Star Iko Uwais in Talks to Join G.I. Joe Spinoff 'Snake Eyes' (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter.
  36. D'Alessandro, Anthony. (14 October 2019). "G.I. Joe Spinoff 'Snake Eyes': Samara Weaving To Play Scarlett". [[Deadline Hollywood]].
  37. D'Alessandro, Anthony. (9 April 2021). "'Snakes Eyes: G.I. Joe Origins' Moves Up To Summer".
  38. D'Alessandro, Anthony. (1 May 2020). "'G.I. Joe' Sequel In Development With 'Seberg' Scribes". [[Deadline Hollywood]].
  39. Mancuso, Vinnie. (27 July 2020). "'G.I. Joe' Spinoff 'Snake Eyes' Delayed Until 2021". Collider.
  40. LeBlanc, Wesley. (29 August 2020). "Snake Eyes Delayed to 2021".
  41. Kroll, Justin. (26 October 2021). "'The Raid' Star Iko Uwais To Play Villain In 'The Expendables 4'".
  42. Ntim, Zac. (2023-05-15). "'Ash': Flying Lotus's Sci-Fi Thriller Starts Production And Rounds Out Cast".
  43. Brzeski, Patrick. (2025-02-13). "Indonesian Action Star Iko Uwais Is Now Kicking Ass Behind the Camera".
  44. Daniel, Ruben. (26 June 2012). "'Pulau Kapuk' Idaman Bulan Madu Audy dan Iko". KapanLagi.com.
  45. Suhendra, Ichsan. (12 October 2013). "Iko Uwais-Audy Item Dikaruniai Anak Pertama". [[Kompas]].
  46. (11 October 2013). "Audy Item lahirkan anak perempuan secara caesar". Merdeka.com.
  47. Rismoyo}}{{Dead link, Mauludi. (13 June 2018). "Lewat Persalinan Caesar, Ini Nama Anak Kedua Audy dan Iko Uwais". Detik.com.
  48. Elley, Derek. (8 November 2009). "Merantau".
  49. Bradshaw, Peter. (17 May 2012). "The Raid – review".
  50. "Man of Tai Chi (2013) – Full Cast & Crew".
  51. Chang, Justin. (22 January 2014). "Sundance Film Review: 'The Raid 2: Berandal'". [[Variety (magazine).
  52. Robinson, Joanna. (20 December 2015). "24 Delightful 'Star Wars: The Force Awakens' Cameos You Might Have Missed".
  53. Wira, Ni Nyoman. (1 November 2017). "Uwais-Ruhiyan duo at it again in 'Beyond Skyline'".
  54. Kroll, Justin. (2 March 2015). "Ronda Rousey, Peter Berg and Iko Uwais Team on Action Pic 'Mile 22' (Exclusive)".
  55. Sembiring, Ira Gita Natalia. (19 September 2017). "Iko Uwais Jadi Aktor Sekaligus Koreografer di "The Night Comes for Us"".
  56. "Triple Threat (2019)".
  57. White, James. (8 April 2018). "The Raid's Iko Uwais joins action comedy 'Stuber'".
  58. Wiseman, Andreas. (January 16, 2024). "XYZ Picks Up U.S. Rights To Martial Arts Alien Invasion Pic 'Skyline: Warpath' Starring Iko Uwais & Scott Adkins; First Look Images Revealed". [[Deadline Hollywood]].
  59. Donnelly, Matt. (23 July 2019). "Sylvester Stallone's Production Company Wants to Be the Blumhouse of Action Films". Variety.
  60. Golden, Lee. (19 June 2019). "CHINATOWN EXPRESS: Iko Uwais Boards New Action Thriller From Er Dong And Hollywood Gang". Film Combat Syndicate.
  61. (18 June 2019). "Chinatown Express (Iko Uwais)". Kung Fu Fandom.
  62. O'Connell, Michael. (29 June 2018). "Netflix Orders Martial Arts Drama 'Wu Assassins'".
  63. (5 May 2010). "Indonesian Movie Awards 2010 : Siap Digelar".
  64. Yuniar, Nanien. (21 May 2013). "Daftar nominasi Indonesian Movie Awards 2013".
  65. Effendi, Ahmad. (7 May 2014). "Yuk, Intip Daftar Nominasi Indonesian Choice Awards 2014!".
  66. (7 December 2014). "Daftar Pemenang dan Nominasi Yahoo Celebrity Awards 2014".
  67. (8 November 2021). "Penghargaan dan Nominasi yang Pernah Dicapai Iko Uwais".
  68. (22 January 2016). "Daftar lengkap pemenang Infotainment Awards 2016".
Wikipedia Source

This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page.

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