Why The Rush Hour Timeline Makes No Sense

It's now more than 20 years since Rush Hour first made its giant splash in theaters. The buddy cop film, which grossed over $240 million worldwide, launched two subsequent sequels and turned its leads, Chris Tucker and Jackie Chan, into highly sought-after and expensive stars.

But, like in any major film franchise with a massive fan base, there's bound to be some mistakes and continuity errors found. The Rush Hour trilogy is no exception. Since the action comedy series is grounded in the real world and in real-life locations like Los Angeles, Hong Kong, and Paris, it doesn't have the same fantastical liberties as settings like the wizarding world in Harry Potter or Middle-earth in The Lord Of The Rings. 

So, in addition to various continuity mistakes throughout the movies, the series makes one very confusing timeline error in regards to the age of one of its characters in the first and third films.

The first Rush Hour film is set in 1997, opening with the final day of British rule over Hong Kong. At the Los Angeles Chinese Consulate, the Chinese consul, Solon Han (Tzi Ma), sends his 11-year-old daughter, Soo-Yung (Julia Hsu) to school, but she is soon abducted by a crime syndicate seeking a large ransom. In Rush Hour 3, Soo-Yung, now portrayed by actress Zhang Jingchu, is 21 years old when she returns to have Lee (Chan) and Carter (Tucker) promise her they will track down who is behind father's attempted assassination.

If one tracks the chronology of the films' release dates, the math checks out. Rush Hour 3 was released ten years after the first Rush Hour. Soo-Yung was 11 years old in the first film and 21 years old in the third film. But Rush Hour 2 takes place only a few days after the events of the first film, and Rush Hour 3 is set three years after the end of the second film. If you're following the timeline the franchise set up, then Soo-Yung would actually be 14 years old in Rush Hour 3 and not 21.

But, with the potential release of Rush Hour 4 coming, most fans likely won't be turned away by the inconsequential mismatched timeline. Instead, they'll be waiting for another one of those memorable blooper reels.