“They push you to your limit and when you are so deprived and so hungry for everything, a little window opens up in your mind that when they do give you something you’re going to get it, understand it, appreciate it, and you’ll understand some of the mystical deeper meaning that starts to become available to you.” Entering show business “The martial arts have to be an endeavor in which you’re trying to develop the physical man and perfect the spiritual self at the same time,” he added. “If that you’re doing is devoid of the spiritual essence, i’s nothing but street fighting.” Seagal stayed in Japan for 15 years before moving back to the US in 1984. He opened up his own dojo there alongside stuntman Craig Dunn. At first, he was shocked by the fact that teachers in the US were teaching a “fast-food approach” to martial arts. He even criticized the films of legendary actor Chuck Norris because of his martial arts skills. Seagal decided to do something about it, and started teaching martial arts on his own. After a while, he decided to leave New Mexico for Los Angeles to pursue the dream of becoming an actor. Alongside a senior student, Haruo Matsouka, who he brought with him from Japan, Seagal opened up an Aikido dojo in West Hollywood. At the same time, he worked as a martial arts coordinator. The martial arts master worked on films such as The Challenge (1982), starring Scott Glenn, and the James Bond film Never Say Never Again (1983) with Sean Connery.

Never Say Never Again was the final Bond film starring Connery. But working with Steven Seagal on the film turned out to be quite a painful experience. Broke Sean Connery’s wrist Connery was reportedly a trained black belt in karate. But when the Bond actor got “a little cocky” with his moves, Seagal made it clear that it wasn’t OK. “We were going to do a film called Never Say Never Again and there was a possibility I was going to do Aikido and what have you,” Connery said while appearing on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno in 1996. “I got ahold of Steven and we had this training in the building where I had an apartment and he was really very, very good and everything. And I got a little cocky because I thought I knew what I was doing because the principle is its defense, so it’s a pyramid and I got a bit flash.” “I did that – and he broke my wrist,” Connery said, raising his hand to his face. He claimed that he never realized his wrist was broken until years later. At this time, Seagal worked on films, but was never in them himself. Instead, he decided to become a bodyguard to different celebrities. One of them was Kelly LeBrock, who would go on to become his future wife.