A South Tyneside dad who discovered he had a talent for acting has been snapped up by a Hollywood agent.
Former MMA World Champion Lee Shone has spent the past few years working towards building a career in the film industry after being bitten by the bug when he appeared in the firm My Name is Lenny in 2017.
Since then he has gone on to feature in films Death Race 4: Beyond Anarchy (2018) and The Corrupted (2019).
Recently, the 42-year-old former bare-knuckle boxer, appeared at the London Critics’ Circle Film Awards held at the Mayfair Hotel, alongside “Apostacy” actress Molly Wright, where he announced the nominations for the awards.
He will return to the capital at the end of January for the awards ceremony where the winners will be announced.
Oil-rig worker, Shone, who has already signed for two films next year with Dover Street Entertainment founded by film and documentary maker Graeme A Scott, originally from North Shields, has now been signed by a Hollywood agent.
He said: “The acting world is a far cry from my garage in South Shields, when I was training with ropes and sacks to be an MMA fighter, but the determination and tenacity to succeed is exactly the same.
“It’s been a crazy year.
“Tom Hardy modelled his character in blockbuster Warrior on me and he made the cast wear t-shirts with my name on.”
As well as films, the dad-of-four, also landed a voice over role in computer video game Fallen Angels. He was able to secure a role for his daughter Olivia too, who has proven to have a talent for acting too.
The pair have gone on to be cast together in an up and coming film – action thriller Perfidious.
The teenager who attends Harton Academy, is set to play an abducted girl in the film which stars dutch actor Rutger Hauer who has appeared in films including Blade Runner, The Hitcher and Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and Columbian actress Carolina Gaitan. Meanwhile, her dad will play a barman.
Olivia, who has been interested in performance since an early age, has set her sights on following in her dad’s footsteps within the acting industry.
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