Jennifer Love Hewitt takes on Jackie Chan despite injury.....

by Louis B. Hobson

Jackie Chan and Jennifer Love Hewitt (along the the cast of "The Tuxedo") at a Jackie Chan honor in Toronto, Canada during the filming of the movie.

It certainly has been for Chan, who's broken almost every major bone in his body. So, it was with some trepidation that Jennifer Love Hewitt agreed to play Chan's sidekick in his latest comedy The Tuxedo, which opens Sept. 27.

"I play a real nerd. She's a water expert who has a major anger management problem. When she teams up with Jackie, she finally finds an outlet for her frustration," explains Hewitt.

As initially written, Hewitt's character was supposed to morph into a female version of Chan's fighting machine. "They had me do a lot of wire training and martial arts training, but then Jackie suggested he do all the things normal people could never do, and I do the kind of things people can do if they try.

Hewitt did not walk away unscathed.

"I got karate chopped on the hand and broke my middle finger. On any other movie, I'd have been rushed to the hospital and given a few days off.

"We just taped my fingers together and kept shooting. That's what happens with Jackie. If he injures himself, they just patch him up and keep on going."

Hewitt says she and Chan have remained best friends since filming wrapped.

"He sings to me on my answering machine."

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