Muay Thai in popular culture
Movie Year Description
Master KIMs - The Nak Muay team appears in the final scene
Duel of Fists 1971 A Hong Kong engineer ( David Chiang ) goes to Thailand to find his long-lost half-brother ( Ti Lung ) , who is a Muay Thai boxer
Bloodsport 1988 Paco ( Paulo Tocha ) is a Muay Thai practitioner
A Fighter 's Blues ( A Fu ) 2000 Mong Fu ( Andy Lau ) , a former Muay Thai boxer , returns to Thailand from Hong Kong and challenges the champion to a match
Beautiful Boxer 2003 The life story of Parinya Charoenphol ( Asanee Suwan ) , who masters Muay Thai in order to realize her dream of becoming a woman
Ong-Bak : Muay Thai Warrior 2003 The series popularized Muay Thai , and featured some Muay Boran techniques . The film had two sequels : Ong Bak 2 ( 2008 ) and Ong Bak 3 ( 2010 )
Born to Fight 2004 Dan Chupong stars in the film
Chok-Dee : The Kickboxer 2005 The film is based on the life of Algerian - French Muay Thai boxer Dida Diafat , who stars as himself
Tom-Yum-Goong 2005 Tony Jaa , who starred in the movie and was also the fight choreographer , incorporates a Muay Thai style ( มวยคชสาร , muaykodchasarn , roughly translated as Elephant Boxing ) , which emphasizes grappling moves . The movie also showcased Jaturongkabaht , which was used by the Royal Thai Bodyguards
Fight or Flight 2007 A documentary on Thailand 's ring fighting circuit
Muay Thai Chaiya 2007 Is a film about two talented muay Thai boxers , boyhood friends whose lives take divergent paths after they arrive in Bangkok
Chocolate 2008 Muay Thai fighters Yanin Vismitananda and Lim Su-Jeong star in this film
Down for the Count ( Aukmen ) 2009 Muay Thai boxer Ahmad Al-Sulaiti appears as himself
The Kick 2011 A Korean family of Taekwondo experts immigrate to Thailand and are exposed to Muay Thai fighting
Only God Forgives 2013 A Bangkok policeman and a gangster settle their differences in a Muay Thai match
A Prayer Before Dawn 2017 The film is based on the true life experience of Billy Moore who survived his Thai prison ordeal by becoming a Muay Thai boxing champion
The Legend of Muay Thai : 9 Satra 2018 A Thai 3D computer animated action-fantasy film
Film
Muay Thai has been featured in an assortment of films :
The combat sport of Muay Thai has been featured in media, including film, television, manga, anime and video games. It gained international attention when Yodtong Senanan led the Nak Muay Team against Osamu Noguchi's Kickboxer Team on October 16, 1972. It has heavily influenced the sport of kickboxing, and is used in mixed martial arts (MMA), where athletes train in its techniques.