He never did anything halfway. As a teenager, he opened and ran a successful health club. As a young actor, he took hits in the gut to make fight scenes more realistic. And as a star, ambitious action star Jean-Claude Van Damme rose fast and fell hard.

His True Hollywood Story tells of a young man who left Belgium for Hollywood and did the impossible: He became a global action hero and, literally, married a magazine cover girl. The story tells, too, of his drug addiction, his fall from the box-office mantle and the battle with his own intense personality.

Born in Agathe, Belgium, a skinny Jean-Claude Van Varenberg joined martial-arts classes at the age of 11, changing his life forever. He soon found his talent in combat and competition, and all his energy went into making his body stronger, faster and more graceful, taking it from scrawny to muscular. He dropped out of school and took ballet lessons. He married his teenage sweetheart and, at the age of 19, opened his own health club. All was good, it seemed--except for his nagging dream of becoming a movie star.

With his fists aimed at Hollywood, he ditched his wife and business, and he headed to California. After years toiling as a bouncer and limo driver, acting under the name Frank Cujo, Van Varenberg changed his name to Van Damme and landed the lead in a low-budget kick flick called Bloodsport. His intense onscreen presence and self-promotion campaign launched a career like few others. A string of hits (Universal Soldier, Hard Target), a cool nickname (the Muscles from Brussels) and a pile of problems followed.

Van Damme tackled drugs like his career, with vigor and energy, and they tore apart two marriages and cost him career momentum. But through it all, he kept kicking and continues today making movies more personal and complex than ever.

You'll see the full story of a young man who conquered Hollywood only to nearly knock himself out, a self-styled star who made a name for himself few can forget. But first, get a taste of the True Hollywood Story with our photo gallery.