Jaden Smith, the 12-year-old son of actors Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith makes his debut in a lead role in the new Karate Kid film and brought his family to Berlin on Monday for the German premiere.Smith plays Dre Parker, an American boy who moves to China with his mother, who is transferred to Beijing from Detroit, USA for work. Dre quickly finds life tough in Beijing. He is no match for the local bullies who attack him with their kung fu moves and Dre's attempt to fight them with the little karate he knows, fails spectacularly. He must learn how to defend himself, or continue to be bullied. Enter Mr Han, played by Jackie Chan. He's the maintenance man in Dre's block who just happens to be a kung fu master willing to take on a young charge. To prepare for the role, Smith was paired with Wu Gang, the stunt co-ordinator from Jackie Chan's Stunt Team, formed in 1983 to choreograph movie fight scenes. The karate reference in the movie comes when Dre is teased for using karate instead of kung fu. The film was produced by Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith, meaning Jaden was working with his parents. It was their job, along with director Harald Zwart to give Karate Kid a modern update. Karate Kid will be released in Germany on July 22nd.
