A magnificent waterfront property in Surfers Paradise has long been the subject of rumours – particularly that it belongs to a Hollywood actor.
For years, Queensland tour guides have proudly told tourists that the grand mansion with the distinctly curved roof is none other than Jackie Chan’s holiday home.
But now, an anonymous Aussie claiming to be the Gold Coast resident has attempted to set the record straight and dispel the rumours behind the stunning property.
The person shared a post claiming that their mother was in fact the long-term resident and owner of the stunning abode – not the famous action movie star.
The local person shared the alleged confession about the family property in a lengthy post titled ‘Jackie Chan’s House’.
They claimed that, despite persistent rumours about the luxurious home, it wasn’t owned by anyone famous – it was built by their ‘brilliant builder’ dad 35 years ago.
‘My mum has people ringing the doorbell or slipping notes into the letterbox all the time, wanting to meet Jackie Chan,’ the Queensland local said in a Reddit thread on September 8.
They claimed that the ‘rumour started decades ago’ by a creative-thinking tour guide.
The distinct and magnificent Surfers Paradise property located at 87 Commodore Drive has long been rumoured to be owned by Hollywood movie star Jackie Chan
Jackie Chan is a Hollywood movie legend renowned for films including the Rush Hour franchise. He’s pictured in the original 1998 movie (left) and in 2007 release Rush Hour 3 alongside co-star Chris Tucker (right)
‘One of the Gold Coast riverboat tour guides decided to spice up their commentary by pointing to my parents’ place and declaring, “That’s Jackie Chan’s house”.’
The urban legend grew as the rumour was repeated by both tourists and tour guides. Eventually, it became accepted as fact.
‘It was never corrected, so the myth has just kept rolling on,’ the person claimed.
It’s reported that neighbouring residents as well as boat tour guests have indeed heard the rumour and believed it all these years. It’s even been the subject of an old YouTube video.
The whispers are given further credence by the fact that Jackie Chan and his family have confirmed ties to Australia. The martial arts star has previously publicly acknowledged that his parents resided in Canberra for many years and he’s even understood to have spent part of his upbringing there.
The Reddit post shared by the local claimed that over the years it had become commonplace for their family to be sitting on the back deck as ‘boatloads of tourists go past and line up the perfect shot’.
‘Once, in the middle of nowhere in Malaysia, I even opened a family’s photo album and there it was: a giant glossy print of my parents’ home, proudly displayed,’ they recalled with a laugh.
Property records show that the stunning home was purchased in 1983 for $275,000.
Records show that 87 Commodore Drive, Surfers Paradise was purchased in 1983 for $275,000
The person claimed the standout property was built on the waterfront location by their dad, who ‘was a brilliant builder’.
‘His final build before retirement, 35 years ago, was this house,’ they claimed, adding that it was ‘ahead of its time (in terms of) building materials and practices.’
‘He lived there right up until he passed away last year.’
The online post concluded: ‘So, while dad never had Jackie Chan’s fame, he ended up with something else – hundreds of thousands of people around the world have snapped pictures of his final masterpiece, all under the wrong name.’
The local added that they’d even taken friends out on tourist boat tours that operate along the Nerang River and enjoyed a giggle as tour guides pointed to the house and repeated the rumour about it belonging to the famous movie star.
‘We don’t even bother correcting the tour guide,’ they claimed.
‘At the end of the day, it adds to the Gold Coast’s charm, so we’re happy to let the myth roll on.’
The unexpected confession about the long-standing rumour delighted Reddit readers, with hundreds joining the comments section.
It even caught the attention of the TODAY show, with TV hosts Karl Stefanovic, Jayne Azzopardi and Danika Mason discussing the so-called debunking of the myth in a segment.
Jackie Chan has a confirmed connection to Australia, previously acknowledging that his parents lived in Canberra for many years. The actor is pictured here recently in January 2025 attending a dragon dance event during the Australian Open
But Karl echoed the sentiments of many people in the Reddit comments who didn’t necessarily ‘believe’ that the Reddit post was truthful.
Co-host Jayne theorised: ‘I think Jackie’s too clever and he’s just kind of put this out there so people stop ringing his doorbell.’
Sports reporter Danika chimed in to say that she had previously met Jackie when he attended last year’s Australian Open in Melbourne – jokingly speculating that perhaps the Rush Hour star ‘had a house in every state’ of Australia.
The TV hosts weren’t alone in their skepticism about the Reddit post being a red herring.
One highly-upvoted reply read: ‘This post sounds exactly like something Jackie Chan would say to stop people coming to his house.’
‘Plot twist: OP is actually Jackie Chan and is trying to divert tourists away from his house with an elaborate story,’ another agreed.
However, other Redditors took the original poster at their word.
One person jokingly suggested that the Surfers Paradise homeowners should invest in a life-sized Jackie Chan cut-out and leave it sitting inside a balcony window.
A Redditor who claimed that their family owned the Gold Coast home good-naturedly explained that their family has embraced the long-running rumours that their distinctive house is owned by the Hollywood star. Jackie Chan is pictured here at the 2025 Critics Choice Awards in California
‘I’d charge $100 a head for tours of the grounds,’ another joked.
Many commenters chimed in to confirm that they too had heard the same rumour repeated over the years.
‘The story I heard riding [on a boat cruise tour] 20 years ago was that he’d rented it when he was here filming First Strike in ’96,’ one person claimed.
‘We went on that [boat ride] tourist attraction a while ago and they made quite a big deal about it being Jackie Chan’s house,’ another added.
‘I’ve been on a boat tour and they pointed out Jackie Chan’s house too, curved roof near the Southport bridge.’
The original poster offered good-natured replies to these remarks.
‘Because that’s what people have been told, it’s impossible to correct, even after showing photos of me and my family inside over the years! We just find it funny now,’ said the person who claimed to be the child of the property owners.
Whether or not the home is owned by Jackie Chan remains up for debate.
But one thing many commenters agreed on in the Reddit thread was that it was a spectacularly designed home that ‘deserves recognition’.
‘What a beautiful house. And how wonderful that people get to relish it… albeit for the wrong reasons.’