Where Is Chad Power Now? The 3 Ninjas Star Who Became a Coach

By CelebPaid Research · Updated October 7, 2026 · 8 min read

Thematic illustration: football field, evoking Power's coaching career. This is a generic image, not a photo of the subject.Image via Wikimedia Commons

He was the scene-stealer — the youngest brother, the one obsessed with snacks, the comic relief who could still throw a punch. Chad Power played Michael “Tum Tum” Douglas in 3 Ninjas (1992), the perpetually hungry kid ninja who became the franchise's most quotable character. Then he traded the dojo for the gridiron. This is the verified story of where Chad Power is now.

The Peak: Tum Tum and the 3 Ninjas Years (1992-1995)

Born Chad Thomas Power on January 30, 1984, in Ventura County, California, he came from a martial arts family — his mother is a high-ranking black belt. He started training at a very young age, which is why he was chosen for the 3 Ninjas films. He was eight when the first film was released.

As Michael “Tum Tum” Douglas, Power was the youngest of the three brothers, nicknamed for his love of food (and his tum-tum). He appeared in 3 Ninjas (1992) and 3 Ninjas: Knuckle Up (1995), bringing a natural comedic timing that made him the breakout of the trio. His “I love the..." energy and snack-obsessed antics were the films' comic engine.

Beyond the franchise, he popped up on television: Baywatch, ER, and Step by Step. But the big screen was his home, and Tum Tum was his signature.

The Martial Arts Family: A Black Belt Household

Power didn't just play a martial artist — he was raised in the discipline. His mother is a high-ranking black belt, and he started training as a small child. The casting directors for 3 Ninjas specifically sought kids with real skills, and Power's background made him a natural for Tum Tum.

He was a young martial arts black belt when cast, one of the reasons the film's fight choreography looks authentic. The three leads — Treanor, Slade, and Power — all had genuine training, which set 3 Ninjas apart from other kids' action films of the era. They weren't just acting; they were performing.

The family athleticism ran deep. His younger brother Troy played ice hockey (for the Tri-Storm and later the Omaha Lancers), and his younger sister Amanda was also athletic. The Powers were a sports family, and Chad's path — from martial arts to football to coaching — followed that thread.

The TV Years: Baywatch, ER, Step by Step

While the 3 Ninjas films were his signature, Power also built a small television resume in the mid-'90s. He appeared on Baywatch — the global phenomenon starring David Hasselhoff — in a kid role that leveraged his all-American look. He popped up on ER, the NBC medical drama that was the biggest show on television, and on Step by Step, the ABC family sitcom.

These weren't starring roles — they were the guest spots and one-offs that working child actors accumulate. But they show that Power was a professional, not just a movie kid. He could do television, he could do film, and he could do comedy and drama.

When 3 Ninjas Kick Back (1994) went into production, Power was unavailable — busy with a television movie at the time — and the role of Tum Tum was recast with J. Evan Bonifant. It was a scheduling conflict, not a rejection. But it meant Power's Tum Tum bookended the original trio's run: the first and third films (release order), the two that fans remember most fondly.

The Transition: From Acting to Athletics (1995-2000s)

Power hasn't acted since 1995. He was eleven when he walked away — not with drama, but with a pivot toward the other thing he'd always loved: sports.

He played football, basketball, and golf throughout high school, then played four years of varsity football at California Lutheran University. The kid who'd done martial arts on camera spent his teens and twenties doing athletics for real. The discipline was the same; the arena changed.

The Coach: Camarillo High School

Today, Power is an assistant football coach at Camarillo High School in California — his alma mater — where he works with young athletes as a coach and strength-and-conditioning mentor. He's been coaching for over a decade, guiding the next generation the way his on-screen grandfather guided the Douglas brothers.

It's a fitting second act. The youngest brother, the team player, the kid who understood that the brothers were stronger together — grew up to coach actual teams. The leadership was always there; it just needed a field.

Coaching high school football is a specific calling — early mornings, late nights, shaping teenagers. Power, who played four years of varsity ball at California Lutheran University, knows the grind. He brings not just the X's and O's, but the perspective of someone who performed under pressure at eight years old on a film set. The poise that made Tum Tum funny makes Coach Power steady.

He's also a decorated martial arts competitor in his own right, coming from that black-belt household. The disciplines overlap: footwork, timing, reading an opponent. Whether it's a dojo, a field, or a poker table (that 26th-place WSOP finish in 2015), Power competes. The kid who played the comic relief grew into the most well-rounded athlete of the three ninjas.

Power's story is the quietest of the three — no finance career, no yoga studio, just a coach showing up for kids. But it's also the most consistent: the boy who played on a team became the man who builds them. The Tum Tum who loved snacks became the coach who loves the game. And the eight-year-old who made millions laugh now makes teenagers better.

He was born January 30, 1984, in Ventura County. He is 42. He coaches at Camarillo High. The rest is the work.

The Competitor: Poker and Martial Arts

Power never lost his competitive streak. He comes from a martial arts family and remains connected to that world. And in 2015, he finished 26th in the World Series of Poker main event — a remarkable showing that proved the kid who played for laughs could play for keeps.

He has a younger brother, Troy, who played ice hockey, and a younger sister, Amanda. The athletic family stayed athletic.

Where Is Chad Power Now?

As of 2026, Chad Power is a high school football coach in Camarillo, California, where he mentors young athletes. He retired from acting in 1995 at age eleven, played college football at California Lutheran University, and has built a quiet life in coaching. He is 42.

Tum Tum loved snacks. Chad Power loves the game — and teaching it.

The Legacy: 3 Ninjas (1992)

Tum Tum was the heart of 3 Ninjas. While Rocky was responsible and Colt was cool, Tum Tum was the kid — the one who reminded the audience that these were children, not just fighters. Power's performance, at eight years old, carried the film's comedy and its warmth.

He appeared in the first and third films (release order), the two that featured the original trio. When he was unavailable for Kick Back (busy with a TV movie), the recasting was felt — Tum Tum was irreplaceable because Power made him so.

The 3 Ninjas films remain '90s cult classics, and Tum Tum's snack-obsessed antics are among the most remembered. Power may have left at eleven, but the character never left the culture.

Then vs Now: Two Chapters

Chad Power played the youngest brother who loved snacks and grew into the coach who loves the game. The dojo became a field, the punchlines became play calls, and the kid ninja became the mentor. Tum Tum grew up — and he grew up right.

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