UFC commentator Joe Rogan didn’t hold back his criticisms of how legendary martial artist Bruce Lee was portrayed in Quentin Tarantino’s film Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.
Despite being a self-proclaimed superfan of the director, Rogan made it clear that he believes Tarantino missed the mark when it came to Lee’s character.
“Well, the Bruce Lee thing [in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood] is one of the things that I really didn’t agree with,” Rogan told comedian Jimmy Carr during their podcast conversation this week.
The film, which features actor Mike Moh as Bruce Lee, has sparked controversy since its release. In one particularly contentious scene, Lee’s character boasts that he would make Muhammad Ali a “cripple” if they ever fought, before being easily defeated by Brad Pitt’s character, stuntman Cliff Booth.
While expressing his admiration for Tarantino, Rogan couldn’t overlook what he perceives as a fundamental mischaracterization of Lee.
“I love Tarantino. I’m a giant fan. As a human being, I love him. And as a director, I think he’s the greatest of all time. He is the most consistently exciting, groundbreaking, psychotic films. I f*cking love his movies,” Rogan said.
He continued, “The problem is, I know a lot about Bruce Lee. Bruce Lee was and he wasn’t like that. He wasn’t that arrogant guy. And I just think he’s misrepresented.”
Yet there’s a long-standing debate about exactly who Bruce Lee was behind the legend. While many revere him for revolutionizing martial arts, others point to a very different side of his personality. Lee was known to make bold, unapologetic statements that walked the line between confidence and outright ego. He often dismissed traditional martial arts as rigid and ineffective, referring to their techniques as “classical mess,” and emphasized his own method—Jeet Kune Do—as the superior path. In interviews and writings, Lee made it clear that he viewed his approach not just as a new style, but as an evolution of martial arts itself. He also reguarly engaged in Hong Kong scraps in his youth.
Accounts from other martial artists support the idea that Lee wasn’t always humble. Even respected martial artists like Chuck Norris noted that while Lee was brilliant, he had strong opinions and rarely held back in asserting that his way was the best. He often corrected others, regardless of their rank or experience, and was known to challenge opponents in full-contact sparring to prove philosophical points. His infamous bout with Wong Jack Man, initiated after Lee was criticized for teaching non-Chinese students, stemmed more from pride and principle than humility.
On set, Lee frequently clashed with directors and producers over creative control and refused to defer to established norms. Some of those who worked with him viewed this as uncompromising vision; others saw it as ego. He also allegedly looked down on stuntmen, a point Tarantino highlighted in defense of his film’s portrayal. Whether or not Tarantino exaggerated this trait, the claim isn’t without some precedent.
This isn’t the first time Rogan has addressed the issue. He previously raised his concerns directly with Tarantino during the director’s appearance on his podcast. Tarantino defended his portrayal, claiming Lee was known to look down on stuntmen. The director also stated that while he would empathize with Lee’s daughter having issues with the portrayal, everyone else could “go s**k a d**k.”
Rogan isn’t alone in his admiration for Lee’s legacy in martial arts. UFC CEO Dana White has previously referred to Lee as the likely “Father of MMA” due to his approach to combat techniques.
“If you look at the way Bruce Lee trained, the way he fought. And many of the things he wrote, he said, the perfect style was no style,” White said in 2004. “You take a little something from everything. You take the good things from every different discipline, use what works, and you throw the rest away.”
This philosophy of combining effective techniques from various martial arts disciplines has become fundamental to modern MMA training methodologies.
Lee, who passed away in 1973, left behind a legacy that transcended his film career, which included classics like Enter the Dragon, Fists of Fury, and The Chinese Connection. His influence on martial arts culture continues to resonate with practitioners and fans alike, including prominent figures in the UFC community.
