Between 1993 and 1998, three Hong Kong filmmakers collaborated with Van Damme for their debuts in Western cinema: John Woo, Tsui Hark, and Ringo Lam.

[2] After a decline in popularity in the late 1990s and early 2000s, he returned to prominence with the critically acclaimed crime drama JCVD (2008), in which he starred as a fictional version of himself.

From thereon, he continued starring in action films and doing extensive voice work, appearing in the well-received Enemies Closer (2013), The Bouncer, Kickboxer: Retaliation (both 2018), Minions: The Rise of Gru (2022), and Darkness of Man (2024), among others.

[16] Among his acting heroes growing up were Charles Bronson, Bruce Lee, James Dean, Montgomery Clift, Steve McQueen, Jean-Paul Belmondo, and Sylvester Stallone.

[20] On 8 March 1980, in Brussels, Belgium, he competed against his former teammate Patrick Teugels at the Forest National Arena on the undercard of the Dan Macaruso-Dominique Valera Professional Karate Association Light-Heavyweight World Championship bout.

[citation needed] In 1979, he had an uncredited role in André Delvaux's Woman Between Wolf and Dog, a Belgian-French drama film starring Marie-Christine Barrault, and Rutger Hauer.

In 1980, he caught the attention of Professional Karate Magazine publisher and editor Mike Anderson and multiple European champion Geert Lemmens.

During his early life, he sold flowers in restaurants, and got a loan to open a gym to save some money before his move to the United States.

He described his early days in the United States as being particularly difficult – excluding $2,000, he had placed all of his money from the sale of his gym into a European bank;[26] thus, he struggled financially.

[31][32] Corey Yuen's martial arts film No Retreat, No Surrender, which premiered On 2 May 1986 in Los Angeles,[33] was his first sizeable role when he was cast as the Russian villain.

[37] He worked for director John McTiernan for the film Predator (1987) as an early (eventually abandoned) version of the titular alien, before being removed and replaced by Kevin Peter Hall.

[38] As the first choice to play the titular Predator character, with the intent that he would use his martial arts skills to make the alien an agile, ninja-like hunter, but after few days shot, he left the film.

Producer Mark Di Salle said he was looking for "a new martial arts star who was a ladies' man, [but Van Damme] appeals to both men and women.

"[45] In reality, Van Damme had begged for a starring role; at the point of casting, he was homeless, sleeping in cars and garages, and sometimes had to resort to stealing food to survive.

Directed by Lettich, it features Van Damme in the dual role of Alex and Chad Wagner, estranged twin brothers fighting to avenge the deaths of their parents.

At the 1992 Cannes Film Festival, Van Damme and Lundgren were involved in a verbal altercation that almost turned physical when both men pushed each other only to be separated, but it was believed to have only been a publicity stunt.

Now removed from active duty, he has become demoted to being fire marshal for the Pittsburgh Civic Arena, where a gang of terrorists are holding U.S. Vice President and several other VIPs hostage in a luxury suite during a game.

Time Magazine named his performance in the film the second best of the year (after Heath Ledger's The Joker in The Dark Knight),[76] having previously stated that Van Damme "deserves not a black belt, but an Oscar.

He then reprised his role as Luc Deveraux alongside Dolph Lundgren in the 2009 film Universal Soldier: Regeneration, directed by John Hyams.

[88] Empire's Nick de Semlyen praised Van Damme's "grandstanding, plutonium-crazed baddie" and Lundgren's "action-troll" as high points in the film.

[90] He also appeared in commercials for Coors Light beer, showing him on a snow-covered mountain wearing a sleeveless denim jacket,[91] and for the washing powder Dash.

James plays a sheriff in a small town who has a dark past that he can not remember, only to have to confront it when his ex-partners show up looking for stolen money they believe he has.

The game features Van Damme in the role of Max Valliant, a former ICA agent who avoided a previous assassination attempt several years prior.

The artwork, which depicts a younger incarnation of the Muscles from Brussels in one of his fighting poses from the movie Kickboxer, was commissioned to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the Westland Shopping complex.

The unveiling took place on Boulevard Sylvain Dupuis and was attended by Van Damme, his parents, Wallonia-Brussels culture minister Fadila Laanan [nl] and nearly 2,000 fans.

Van Damme said the statue "represented the dream of a Brussels kid" and was "for all the children who want something bad", adding that "if you believe in something strongly enough, it can come true".

[115][116] At the height of his career, he was one of the biggest action movie stars in the world, and one of the most successful martial arts actors of the 1980s and 1990s, alongside Steven Seagal.

[117][118] His popularity is credited with opening the Hollywood doors to names like Don Wilson, Olivier Gruner, Dale Cook and Loren Avedon.

Described as the most 'remade' action star, his films have spawned endless sequels, such as Bloodsport II: The Next Kumite (1996), Bloodsport III (1997), Bloodsport 4: The Dark Kumite (1999), Cyborg 2 (1993), Cyborg 3: The Recycler (1994), Kickboxer 2–6 in the Kickboxer (film series), Universal Soldier II: Brothers in Arms (1998), Universal Soldier III: Unfinished Business (1998), Hard Target 2 (2016), Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li (2009), Street Fighter: Assassin's Fist (2014), Timecop 2: The Berlin Decision (2003), the Timecop (TV series) (1997), and Welcome to Sudden Death (2020).

[120][121][122] Many martial artists, athletes, and filmmakers have cited Van Damme as an influence, such as Alain Moussi,[123] Scott Adkins,[124] Dave Callaham,[125] Adam Brody,[126] Jay Cutler,[127] Lyoto Machida,[128] Michael Page,[129] Anderson Silva,[128] Georges St-Pierre,[130] Cain Velasquez,[131][132] Nick Diaz,[133] Nate Diaz,[134] Conor McGregor,[128] Jiří Procházka,[135] Mirko Cro Cop,[136] James P. Bennett [pl],[137][138] Rico Verhoeven,[139] Tom Duquesnoy,[140] John Albert,[141] Charles Rosa,[142] Murad Ramazanov,[143] Halil Amir,[144] Andrei Stoica,[145] Giorgio Petrosyan,[146] Alfie Davis,[147] Enkh-Orgil Baatarkhuu,[148] and Angela Chang.