Biography

Scott Adkins was born in Sutton Coldfield, England on June 17th, 1976, into a family that for generations were Butchers. Along with his elder brother Craig, he was raised by John and Janet Adkins, a loving middle class family. It is worth mentioning that Scott's great, great grandmother was of Spanish descent. Scott attended Bishop Vesey's Grammar School in Sutton Coldfield. Probably not the best of students, "I used to sneak down stairs after my parents had gone to bed and watch films all night then fall asleep in my lessons". A natural athlete, Scott enjoyed a variety of sports as he grew up, but when he was 10 years old, he accompanied his father and brother to the local Judo club.

The attraction was instantaneous. "Martial arts became my obsession! It was like I'd found what I was meant to be".Idolising stars such as Bruce Lee and Jean Claude Van Damme, Scott began to train everyday. "I took over my Dad's garage and turned it into my own Dojo. I even had a shrine to Bruce Lee in there that I would bow to. I remember being mugged on a bus when I was around 13 and that really kicked my training into overdrive. I wasn't ever going to let that happen again". At the age of 14, Scott went on to train in Tae Kwon Do under the instruction of Ron Sergiew with the T.A.G.B.

After a few years he moved on to Kickboxing under Anthony Jones. A self confessed "film junkie" Scott's attention was drawn to acting through the Hollywood Greats. He enrolled in a drama class at Sutton Coldfield College. Being a shy lad he initially found it difficult to be put on stage in front of an audience. "I knew I wanted to do it but it scared the hell out of me". Finally, at the age of 21, Scott was offered a place at the prestigious Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art. However, as an impoverished student he found it hard to make ends meet without a grant, and was forced to leave without completing the course. Very dejected he thought that was the end. Scott's first break came when he was offered a role in a Hong Kong martial arts film called "Extreme Challenge".

Spotted by Head of The Hong Kong Stuntmen Association and director Stephen Tung Wai and English born Hong Kong movie expert Bey Logan, Adkins found himself in the East for the first time. "I know that a lot of martial artists go to Hong Kong to try and work in their film industry but for some reason I had never really considered it myself. I was literally plucked from obscurity and before I knew it, it seemed like everybody out there wanted to work with me". Scott got the chance to work with some of Hong Kong cinema's leading action directors including Yeun Wo Ping, Cory Yeun, Sammo Hung and the legendary Jackie Chan. Acting roles started to come in and he was offered a guest role in BBC's "Doctors" filmed at Birmingham's Pebble Mill. A few episodes in BBC's "Eastenders" as Joel, the barman, City Central, Dangerfield to name but a few. A lead role in Sky One comedy drama Mile High followed, along with appearances on Holby City Scott filmed in Los Angeles in a movie called 'Pit Fighter' in which he didn't have to fight at all, although he plays a mercenary, he says: "it was a really nice cameo role but I found it strange to watch the others do the fighting" other credits include Talbot (lead) in "Special Forces" and stunt work in "Unleashed" the feature by Luc Besson. The film Undisputed 2 was the film which has set the mark for Scott for huge success, starring alongside Micheal Jai White. Upcoming projects include The Shepherd with Jean Claude Van Damme and The Bourne Ultimatum.