I know it's a very odd turn of events, but the young actor has been facing some troubles in his life lately.  During the production of Ong Bak 2 the film ran into some serious turbulence, and Jaa actually disappeared off into the Jungle for a while in order to work out his problems.  Then Ong Bak 3 was released and bombed incredibly at the box office, and many critics felt the movie was 'contractual obligated'.

His heart has really gone out of performing.  Friday (May 28th) Tony Jaa ceremoniously rode atop an Elephant to a Buddhist temple in Surin, Thailand, where he then shaved his head, took vows, and was officially ordained as a Buddhist monk.  So what does this mean for his many fans?  Not much really, as the move is probably only temporary.  In Thailand it's actually a fairly common practice for men to join a monastery for a brief period of time.  It's normally done when the individual is facing turmoil and seeks to center himself; kind of like a spiritual vacation.

Jaa has not stated how long he will remain a monk so it could be weeks, months, or even years before we hear any more news from him.  More than likely he'll come out the day after his 10 year contract with the movie studio Sahamongkol expires.  Looking at the problems he's been having (his production studio technically kidnapped him, because he wasn't making the movie like they wanted) I feel the man needs his rest.  With the fire clearly having gone out of his life for filmmaking this could actually be a great thing for his fans.  Once he comes back and is centered and feeling better, we'll be able to see even better work out of him.

-Jordan