Following the path: actor Dustin Nguyen's V.I.P moves are no Hollywood make-believe; he's a genuine, accomplished martial artist - Cooldown - Interview

Men's Fitness, March, 2002 by Allan Donnelly

Dustin Nguyen isn't your typical Hollywood pretty boy. In addition to choreographing his own fight scenes on the syndicated television series V.I.P., the 38-year-old Vietnamese-born actor adheres to a workout regimen that typically includes up to six 50-minute runs a week, three days of weight training, and three days of shadow boxing, sparring and heavy-bag work.

At least he did before last April, when, while filming an action sequence, Nguyen tore his medial collateral and anterior cruciate ligaments and his meniscus. The injury knocked him down--"It's like being on the A team, then all of a sudden you end up sitting the bench, watching everyone play," he says--but not out. Nguyen was back on the treadmill five months after the incident, and seven months removed from reconstructive surgery he was mixing it up on set once again.

You can trace the dedication requisite for keeping such a rehab schedule to Nguyen's early involvement with martial arts. At the age of 16, only two years after taking up tae kwon do, he earned his second-degree black belt. Before he graduated high school, Nguyen spent a year and a half boxing in the Golden Gloves, in addition to making the rounds on the amateur kickboxing circuit.

Nguyen admits to being intrigued by the notion of developing his own martial arts-style TV series or movie in the future. For the time being, however, he's satisfied to finally have to the opportunity to showcase his skills alongside Pamela Anderson and the rest of the starlets on the V.I.P. crew. All in all, not a bad gig for a guy who had trouble finding his niche until he found an outlet through martial arts.

Q: What's the basic attraction of martial arts?

A: It's really about what catches your heart, your passion. I knew [it] was a passion of mine, and I was willing to sacrifice things to do whatever it takes.

Q: You're a big advocate of jeet kune do, the martial arts discipline created by Bruce Lee. Why?

A: I basically embraced the philosophy. Bruce Lee was quite ahead of his time because he believed in incorporating different strengths of different arts.... I felt like [he] had the right idea in terms of training himself realistically for battle.

Q: Has anyone ever challenged you on the street after watching your V.I.P. episodes, thinking your skills are just for show?

A: No, that would never happen to me. I believe it has a lot to do with how you carry yourself, the vibe you send off. If you walk around believing your own hype and acting like a fool, people will challenge you. When Carl Lewis was the fastest man in the world, everyone wanted to try and outrun him on the street, but he wouldn't even bother [responding]. I'm not saying I'm the best martial artist out there or anything like that. But I don't need to answer someone's physical challenge.

Q: Best martial arts movie of all-time?

A: Enter the Dragon. No doubt. In my opinion, it's the Gone With the Wind of martial arts movies. My second favorite--although it's a totally different style--is Jackie Chan's Drunken Master, Part 2. It's unbelievable.