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Eddie Shin plays Terry Phoo
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A new-wave cop fresh from Hong Kong's quasi-mystical, mutant-busting task force, Terry Phoo is the kung-fu crime-fighting answer to London's mutant-infested streets.
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Terry may be a Buddhist martial arts sweetheart but when it comes to crime-fighting he doesn't always pack a punch.
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American actor Eddie Shin relished the role of the hapless kung-fu cop: "He strikes me as part Bruce Lee, part Jackie Chan, part Inspector Clouseau and part Edward Scissorhands.
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"His best intentions often end up in botched results but Terry constantly strives to do good and his intentions are pure. His heart is always in the right place and his capacity to care, I think, makes him endearing."
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And as Eddie - who has appeared in international shows such as That 70s Show, ER and NYPD Blue - explains, the fight to rid the nation of criminal mutants sees Terry form a dynamic duo with teenage rebel Whitey Action.
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"They may not seem like a likely crime-fighting duo but, it turns out, they complement and need each other in more ways than one might think - a true yin to the other's yang."
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But while Phoo Action proves to be spiritually enlightening for Terry, the drama was, at times, physically testing for Eddie with intensive kung-fu training and stunts to master.
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"I had no idea what to expect with the kung-fu and fighting," admits Eddie. "I had visions of being asked to do back flips off a roof and me blinking through tears, shaking uncontrollably all the while. Thankfully, in the end, it all worked out fine!"
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A crack team of kung-fu experts gave Eddie guidance including iconic Jeet Kune Do (JKD) specialist Tommy Carruthers and fight co-ordinator Dave Forman, famed for creating fight scenes in films such as Batman Begins and The Last Samurai.
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"For a guy who could probably destroy me in three seconds, Tommy was incredibly gentle and kind," Eddie recalls. "He helped me work out in general, introduced me to basic JKD concepts and helped me find a rhythm and style to my movement."
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For the more complex kung-fu moves, Eddie turned to stunt double Liang Yang but, as Eddie explains, seeing his doppelganger on set sometimes proved to be an odd experience for the young actor.
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"It was bizarre having Liang double me. Every once in a while, I'd see Liang on set, done up like me, and I'd do a double take thinking, whoa, that was...me!," he says.
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"Whenever we hung out on set together, people would constantly go up to one of us, mistaking one for the other. It got ridiculous after a while. Liang can do jaw-dropping things with his body and weapons, yet he's as humble and Zen as they come."
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Leaving behind the sunny climes of his home in Los Angeles to shoot Phoo Action in Glasgow was a welcome journey for Eddie, not least because it gave him the opportunity to sample some Scottish delicacies.
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"I did my first haggis which was delicious and had an ambitious sampling of the local single malts, also delicious. I can't say enough about Scotland. I even adored the grey skies for which all the locals seemed to apologise!" laughs Eddie.
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While Eddie's alter ego Terry Phoo is somewhat lacking in the superhero department, the actor admits he'd have high hopes if he was to live the superhero life himself.
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"I've always thought it'd be funny if I had a superpower that was essentially useless, like having flight but only being able to fly six inches above the ground and really, painfully, slow," he jokes.
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Surreal superhero powers aside, Eddie is certain audiences will be wowed by the wonder of Phoo Action.
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"I think they'll be thrilled. It's unique – he [Hewlett] gave us a world that allowed us to be very visually, musically, thematically and stylistically rich and different from most anything else on the TV. And hopefully audiences will join us in the Phoo Action world for a surreal ride."
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