Martial Law is an American action-crime-adventure-comedy television series created by Carlton Cuse that aired on CBS from September 26, 1998, to May 13, 2000. The title character, Sammo Law (Sammo Hung), is a Chinese law officer and martial arts expert who comes to Los Angeles in search of a colleague and remains in the United States.The show was a surprise hit, making Hung the only East Asian headlining a primetime network series in the United States. At the time, Hung was not fluent in English and worried about the audience's ability to understand him. In many scenes, Hung does not speak at all, making Martial Law one of the few United States television series to feature little dialogue from the lead character. The show lasted two seasons, before being cancelled due to high production costs and Hung being unhappy with the writing of season two.