Martial-arts master Jet Li made his name in "Once Upon a Time in China" and is now the $10-million-per-movie actor. The star of hits such as "Lethal Weapon 4," "Shaolin Temple" and "Romeo Must Die," he spoke to TIME recently on the set of Hero, Asia's most ambitious motion picture. Edited excerpts:

TIME: What surprised you about working with director Zhang Yimou?
Jet Li: He's always tried to challenge and change culture through his films. He's always wanted to break the rules. But now, it's different. With this film he's trying to set new rules, to win rules back, to put them in place.

What do you think the Chinese will make of the film?
The older generation will like it but I'm not sure about the youngsters. The government will definitely like it. It's a film that says country comes first, then city, then family.

It seems a very commercial move to have cast Donnie Yen in the film. Very Miramax.
Donnie was my decision. I talked to Zhang about the feel of the film. I wanted the fighting to look the way it did 2,000 years ago, like real martial arts. So Donnie Yen was the one. Films now are all about killing one's opponent as fast as possible. In the old days, guys had more respect for each other. There was a dignity about the way they fought.

How big was your creative input on this film?
Action directors like Yuen Wo-ping, Corey Yuen and Tony Ching are better than me. At the same time, I have a lot of ideas, which I discuss with directors. What also is important to me is the choreographer. Usually I will sign a contract once I know who that is.

Will you work with Luc Besson again?
Yes. I'm tied to a contract with a studio. And Besson's a friend of mine. I could make a film without any action and Luc would be the guy who'd help me do it.

Why, is action boring you to death?
I've become Buddhist. I don't want violence to solve things.

How come you've succeeded in the United States when Chow Yun-fat didn't do so well?
Yun-fat is a talented guy, but his action movies didn't have audiences remembering him. Perhaps that's because he's an actor first; he didn't start off doing martial arts, unlike Jackie Chan and myself. I still don't know how an Asian actor breaks into Hollywood. If the market needs you, you go there. If they don't, you pack your bags.

You've become a commercial man, haven't you? Is that from living in the U.S.?
Perhaps. I produce movies for television in America. I felt it would be nice to do something else and producing is a way of doing that. Money isn't that important right now, especially in Buddhist culture. You can't take the money with you, or the house, or anything. I feel like I have responsibility. I don't want little kids watching films like "Kiss of the Dragon." I don't want five-year-olds walking around saying, "I'm going to kick your ass." I want to broadcast a positive message that there are solutions other than violence. Of course one needs to make money for a studio first, then you can do what you want.