 The first Charlie Chan film was The House Without a Key ( 1926 ) , a ten @-@ chapter serial produced by Pathé Studios , starring George Kuwa , a Japanese actor , as Chan . A year later Universal Pictures followed with The Chinese Parrot , starring Japanese actor , Kamiyama Sojin , in the starring role . In both productions , Charlie Chan 's role was minimized . Contemporary reviews were unfavorable ; in the words of one reviewer , speaking of The Chinese Parrot , Sojin plays " the Chink sleuth as a Lon Chaney cook @-@ waiter … because Chaney can 't stoop that low . " 
