A widely circulated black-and-white image showing Jackie Chan alongside the dates 1954 and 2026 sparked a hoax about the death of the 72-year-old action star, before it emerged that the claim was false and the image had been designed in the style of a death notice. The image spread widely across social media platforms in recent hours, alongside posts claiming that the actor had died, with some of those posts receiving millions of views.
The image’s visual design fuelled the death hoax
The image’s visual design, including colours and dates commonly associated with death announcements, helped lead users to believe the report was true and share it. Information about Chan’s most recent activities indicates that he continues to work and make public appearances.
Video footage from the visit showed Jackie Chan speaking with students and members of staff, as well as performing his song “Hard to Say Goodbye”. The footage was circulated in reports that cited his public activity in response to the claims spreading about his death. This is not the first time the famous actor has been targeted by a death hoax.
Previous death hoaxes have targeted Jackie Chan
A year ago, Facebook accounts circulated a series of images, claiming that one showed his body, while another was said to have been taken of him in hospital before his death, alongside a third image in which he appeared in normal condition. After examining the posts, the Rumour Scanner website concluded that the claims were false.
It explained that the image said to show Chan’s body had been created using artificial intelligence techniques and then combined with an old image of the actor from a period when he was receiving treatment in hospital. The website said the images had been used to promote the death hoax and exploit Jackie Chan’s global fame, noting that a report of this magnitude would, if true, have received extensive coverage from international media outlets.
The new hoax comes as Chan recently began filming “Armour of God: Ultimatum”, the fourth instalment of the well-known action film series. Filming locations are spread across Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan and Hong Kong. Jackie Chan began his career at an early age as a stunt double for actor Bruce Lee, before his work expanded to more than 150 films.
His career includes “The Drunken Master”, “The Young Master” and “Police Story”, as well as all three instalments of “Rush Hour”. These films reinforced his position among the world’s leading martial arts and action film stars.
