That bluejean jacket. That amazing mullet. That whopping sense of privilege that keeps him from seeing he’s not the hero of his own story. Jack Burton was a quintessential ’80s kind of character, but it’s taken until now for someone to capture it all in plastic.
Oh, there have been Big Trouble in Little China toys before, but aside from one attempt in 2002, none of them has featured Kurt Russell‘s specific likeness. It’s not that he wouldn’t grant legal permission–the actor has been immortalized in plastic for everything from Stargate to The Hateful Eight. It’s that the license for the movie, the makers of which never anticipated toys, does not include the actor likenesses, and so both must be obtained separately. And at a certain point, the cost becomes unrealistic if you hope to hit a mass-market price. Russell’s other great ’80s antihero, Snake Plissken, whom we’ve seen as a toy a number of times, likely benefits from the fact that Escape From L.A. came out in 1996, during a massive boom period for action figures based on R-rated or “mature” properties.
But since Sideshow makes figures that they can charge $240 for, the math finally works out on Big Trouble in Little China merchandise. Thus we have this beautiful rendition of the Pork Chop Express driver and one of his foes, the eyeball-heavy Guardian.
It looks like he can’t believe it either. But you know what ol’ Jack Burton says…”HAAAAAAAAA!” [shoots gun, knocks self out with falling rubble]. Even though it may bankrupt you, a full line from the movie would be sweet. Lo-Pan with light-up laser eyes is a toy that has to happen in our lifetimes, y’all.
Check out fully detailed pics of Jack in our gallery below, then tell us in comments below how you’d display him!
Featured Image: 20th Century Fox
Images: Sideshow
