Venom Mob

The Venom Mob is the colloquial title of a group of actors from the Shaw Brothers Studio, popular creators of martial arts films in the 1970s and 1980s. Most were friends since childhood and attended the Peking Opera School in Taiwan before meeting director Chang Cheh and moving on to the Shaw Brothers studio in Hong Kong.

They appeared in numerous Shaw films, but did not become a group in high demand until Five Deadly Venoms. They were the main choreographers in all of their films, highly skilled Chinese weapon experts, talented actors, and excellent acrobats. Their films usually dealt with Chang Cheh's common themes of brotherhood, valor, and betrayal.

As with most groups, time saw their talents being pulled in different directions, not to mention in-fighting for starring roles and production credits.

Roster

This is the main 5 (though there are six, Chiang Sheng is actually the 5th member of the Venoms, not Wei Pai who only appeared in 4 films with the others).

RolePerformerAKABackground
HeroKuo Chui#4 LizardHe usually played the lead hero and was the last man standing with the exception of four films. An acrobat and stuntman recruited by Liu Chia-Liang in Taiwan (after appearing in Wang Yu's Master Of The Flying Guillotine fighting Liu Chia-Yung) for Chang's 1975 film Marco Polo. This was followed by cameos in The Fantastic Magic Baby, The Boxer Rebellion, New Shaolin Boxer and The Magnificent Wanderers. His directorial debut was Ruthless Tactics in 1983. He did have one villainous role, that of the White Dragons crime boss in The Chinatown Kid (1977) opposite the late Hong Kong actor Alexander Fu Sheng.
VillainLu Feng#1 CentipedeA weapons expert and usually the villain, he received very few heroic roles. Chu Lu Feng was also recruited in Taiwan and began is small bit parts in films such as The 7 Man Army, Shaolin Avengers, New Shaolin Boxers and The Chinatown Kid. He was one of the titular The Naval Commandos before cementing his reputation as a villain in both Heaven And Hell and Shaolin Temple. He is the only one of the actors to receive a credit as a "Fighting Instructor" on The Five Venoms.
HeroChiang ShengThe StudentKnown for his acrobatic ability he usually was cast as a comedic character who supported the hero Kuo Chui. His on screen debut was a comedic flashback with Lu Feng in the opening act of Shaolin Avengers followed by a pair of villainous bit parts in The Brave Archer and The Chinatown Kid. Official debut films were The Naval Commandos and Shaolin Temple filmed back to back. Was also Chang Cheh's assistant director on several films. These 3 formed an ensemble that would remain together after departing from the Shaw Studio in films such as Ruthless Tactics (a.k.a. Ninja In The Deadly Trap) and Fight Among The Supers. Chiang Sheng died in 1991 of a heart attack after a divorce and alcohol abuse.
Hero/VillainSun Chien#3 ScorpionPrimarily known for his kicking ability, he could be good or evil in Venom films depending on his role in the story. Sun Chien was a native Taiwanese recruited by Chang Cheh for Chinatown Kid to play opposite Fu Sheng. He practiced Tae Kwan-Do in the military and as a result many sources inaccurately report him as Korean. Sun Chien also worked for directors Sun Chung (Human Lanterns), Chu Yuan (Spirit Of The Sword), and Liu Chia-Liang (The Lady Is The Boss) among others.
Hero/VillainLo Mang#5 ToadKnown for his physique and physical strength, he usually was the first one to get killed. He did survive in two of the films (Crippled Avengers and Invincible Shaolin). Mainly a supporting hero with Kuo Chui, but a villain two or three times. Was an accountant at Chang Cheh Film Co. in Taiwan who studied Mantis for years before landing bit roles in Shaolin Temple and The Brave Archer. This led to a trio of modern-day parts showcasing his physique in The Chinatown Kid, Heaven And Hell, as well as Deadly Strike (a.k.a. "Soul Brothers Of Kung-Fu") for Shaw's satellite company Eternal Films. Afterwards, he returned to the Brave Archer series in an expanded role as 'The Iron Palm' before starring as "The Toad #5" in Five Venoms one of his signature roles. (The other being Kid With The Golden Arm the following year.)
Hero/VillainWei Pai#2 SnakeDid not star in many films with the previous five. He did not possess the same fighting skills as the rest of the group and preferred drama to action. In addition to The Five Venoms, Wei Pai only starred in Chang Cheh's Invincible Shaolin, Ten Tigers Of Kwangtung (which was shelved for a year due to Fu Sheng's injuries, hence the 1980 release date), The Kid With The Golden Arm and a flashback sequence in Brave Archer Part 2. He defected to Golden Harvest and starred in Chang Cheh protégé John Woo's Last Hurrah for Chivalry the following year.

2nd Tier Venoms

Those listed (males) usually were the supporting villains with Lu Feng, if Lu Feng had a rare hero role the lead villain was usually either Wang Lung-Wei or Wang Li. Lung Tung-Sheng was usually a questionable character in a film who ended up siding with the heroes in the end. Females listed were usually "eye-candy" and got little fighting time in Venom films.

  • Wang Lung Wei - The villain in several early Venom films. Made his debut in Chang Cheh's Shaolin Martial-Arts filmed in Taiwan during 1974.
  • Wang Li - Appeared in later Venom films replacing the absent Wei Pai, usually as a villain, and great with weapons. Wang Li was also recruited in Taiwan and appeared in bit parts in New Shaolin Boxers and The Chinatown Kid before his official debut in Shaolin Rescuers. Best known as Chief #3 in Masked Avengers and a Wudang Master in 2 Champions of Shaolin
  • Sun Shu-Pei - Usually a villain with minimal Kung-Fu skills, but very conniving and sneaky. Only heroic role was as "Long Axe" in the Kid With The Golden Arms.
  • Yang Hsiung - Better known as 'Brass Head' in Kid with the Golden Arms. Appeared throughout Chang Cheh's Venom cycle of films in various heroic and villainous roles.
  • Lau Shi Kwong - The cowardly type, best known as the snitch Wong Fa in Five Deadly Venoms and as "The Dangerous Kid" in The Flag Of Iron. He also played the henchman known as "Leopard Boy," in Shaolin Rescuers as well as one of the seven Shaolin pupils in Two Champions Of Shaolin.
  • Cheng Tien-Chi - Another master of Peking Opera, Cheng made his debut in The Brave Archer Part 3 followed by House Of Traps and Ode To Gallantry, and would later take the lead roles in Five Element Ninja, The Weird Man and The 9 Demons.
  • Chu Ko - Also debut in Brave Archer Part 3 and continued into the 80s replacing Sun Chien, usually as an insidious villain. Would later achieve heroic status in later films Five Element Ninja and The Weird Man
  • Lung Tien-Sheng - Best known as "The Spearman" from Flag of Iron, usually a misguided anti-hero.
  • Wen Hsueh-Erh - Lead female in Sword Stained With Royal Blood, Ode To Gallantry, Two Champions Of Shaolin, as well as The Brave Archer And His Mate. Excels at playing spoiled brat roles.
  • Yu Tai Ping – The lead henchman in earlier Venom films, would later switch sides during 1981's The Flag Of Iron (literally) as his appearances afterwards were usually of the second-tier heroic nature in the films Masked Avengers and The Weird Man. He was one of the lead 'Super Ninjas' in Chang Cheh's gore-filled opus Five Element Ninja alongside Cheng Tien-Chi, Wang Li and Chu Ko.
  • Tony Tam Jan Dung - A henchman and usually partnered with Yu Tai Ping, Yang Hsuing or Lau Shi Kwong and serves as under Lu Feng's character. He was usually seen as a character in background before becoming a top henchman in Crippled Avengers. He is best known as "Tiger Boy" in Shaolin Rescuers and one of the seven Shaolin pupils in Two Champions of Shaolin. Just like the venoms' Sun Chien, he also uses Tae Kwon Do and was known for his kicking ability.
  • Shirley Yu - One of Shaw's leading ladies, appeared alongside the Venom Mob in Chang Cheh's The Chinatown Kid, Life Gamble, and The Brave Archer Part 2.
  • Pan Ping-Chang – Usually the lead female in Venom films. After a cameo appearance in Crippled Avengers, she went on to co-star as Swordswoman Leng in Kid With The Golden Arm, and portrayed Kuo's wife in Legend Of The Fox.
  • Chin Siu-Ho - First appeared in small role in The Rebel Intruders prior to making his official credited debut in Two Champions of Shaolin. Proceeded to co-star in 10 Tigers Of Kwangtung, Legend of a Fox and Masked Avengers among others, in addition to films for other directors at Shaws after Chang Cheh's cohorts disbanded.

Venom films

Original Hong Kong movie titles, followed by original Hong Kong release date (where available) and alias titles also known as.

See also

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