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[harSon]

http://www.slashfilm.com/crouching-tiger-hidden-dragon-sequel-to-shoot-in-may/

A dozen years after the release of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, The Weinstein Co. is getting ready to make a sequel. Though it’s been a while since we heard about any potential follow-up to Ang Lee‘s international hit, it looks like the Weinsteins have quietly been making preparations behind the scenes. Production is on track to begin in May, with a script by John Fusco (The Forbidden Kingdom). Ronny Yu (Fearless) is in talks to direct. More details after the jump.

The Weinsteins started making plans for a Crouching Tiger sequel several years ago. However, progress stalled when Sony and the Weinsteins got ensnared in a legal battle over the source material, the Crane-Iron pentalogy of books by Wang Du Lu. Now that that’s been cleared up, though, they’re moving full steam ahead.

Crouching Tiger was primarily based on the fourth installment of the series, though it also drew from some of the other novels. The sequel will be based on the fifth, titled Iron Knight, Silver Vase. The plot picks up once again with Yu Shu Lien, who was played by Michelle Yeoh in the last film. But it’ll bring in plenty of new characters as well, as Fusco explains.

While we’re on the subject of characters, it’s not clear at this point whether Yeoh or any of her Crouching Tiger co-stars will reprise their roles. We’ll know more once casting gets underway, which won’t happen until Yu’s deal is closed. Fusco says that we can expect a return from Woo-ping Yuen, who choreographed the thrilling fight scenes in the original film. Fusco and Yuen previously collaborated on Forbidden Kingdom. However — and this one’s a bummer — Lee will not be involved in the new film.

Lee’s Crouching Tiger exceeded expectations when it became a global sensation, raking in $213.5 million worldwide on a budget of just $17 million. That it’s getting a sequel isn’t really a surprise, even if it took a while. The new film could have a slightly bigger budget, but not by much; Deadline says only that it’s north of $20 million. A release date hasn’t been announced yet, but assuming everything goes according to plan we might see it in theaters by 2014.

I'm not sure what to think. Not a fan of Fusco as a screenwriter, and to be honest, I'd much rather have someone who spoke the native language of the novel instead of someone who has to rely on a translation and cultural filter. I'm actually a pretty big fan of Ronny Yu. Fearless was probably one of the best Wu Xia films in recent memory, and his American output has been above average IMO, and a lot different than most Asian director's who've made the same jump from their home country's industry to Hollywood.

I wasn't a fan of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon when I first watched it, but it has since grown on me. I'm not sure if the original's success was the result of good direction, writing and a great source material, or whether the direction and good writing was able to make the source material better than it actually was. Someone who's actually read it can expand on that.

Can't say that I'm hopeful about the project though. It seems a bit forced, and while I'm a fan of Yu, Fusco's been middling to bad for the duration of his career.

 

[Korey]

nice!

 

[Escape Goat]

Yeoh or no sale.

Or get the girl from Shanghai Knights

 

[Switters]

It will never recapture the magic of the first one, no matter how good it turns out to be.

 

[Can Crusher]

I hated when Chow Yun Fat died.

 

[Joel Was Right]

Wow. I remember seeing a poster of this film in a school class when it came out

 

[way more]

I hated when Chow Yun Fat died.

Same. I was really hoping for a prequel to watch Mu Liu Bai/Tequila tearing shit up as a sword master.

 

[faceless007]

From the director of Freddy vs. Jason?

 

[TUSR]

Real talk

How much power do the weinsteins actually have?

 

[meltingparappa]

Yeoh or no sale.

100% this.

Also no Ang Lee?

Uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuh so many mixed feelings since the original felt so beautifully self-contained, but might as well give it a shot.

 

[Duress]

This doesn't sound like a good idea.

 

[harSon]

From the director of Freddy vs. Jason?

To be fair, his Hong Kong output is considerably better than his Hollywood output. He seems at home with films that are culturally in line with his own sensibilities if Fearless is any indication.

 

[Damon Bennet]

i like those movies with ridicolous wire-fights. hero <3

 

[Aesius]

I hated when Chow Yun Fat died.

Motherfucker, I thought you meant the actor died.

 

[umop_3pisdn]

Without Ang Lee I don't think I will watch this. I've seen Crouching Tiger so many times throughout the years just because every time it's on tv I have to watch it, for a while it was one of my favorite movies and I think there's something about the movie I've always found really affecting for some reason, but I don't have much faith in a sequel.

 

[Cheesemeister]

Freaking finally. Get Zhang Ziyi on the line.

 

[ElectricBlue187]

Freaking finally. Get Zhang Ziyi on the line.

she should be able to fit it in between turning tricks

 

[Maninthemirror]

I just lost my head after I realized Crouching Tiger is more than 12 years old. Man I feel old now.

 

[shuri]

I never got the hype for this movie. To me, it felt like a very overproduced but typical wuxia like all the other ones..

 

[DrSlek]

i like those movies with ridicolous wire-fights. hero <3

Hero was advertised in a really weird way here. In such a way that made me not want to see it at all. Heavy metal soundtrack for all the adverts, only showing the fights, deep voiced narrator who made sure you know that Jet Li was the star.

 

[Ultima_5]

Wire Kung fu movies do nothing for me :/

 

[Imm0rt4l]

omg



edit: just read the article. Do not want.

 

[walei]

Wait I thought the first movie was technically a Taiwanese production, so the sequel is now handled by Hollywood?

Has that ever happened before? (Not remakes but...takeover?)

Also, Do Not Want!

 

[tino]

That's retarded

Why don't they make sequels for The English Patient and Shakespeare in Love while they are at it.

 

[umop_3pisdn]

That's retarded

Why don't they make sequels for The English Patient and Shakespeare in Love while they are at it.

Oh man, The English Patient 2. I've only read the novel, but lol.

 

[see5harp]

No Ang Lee? New scriptwriter? If you actually can speak mandarin the entire movie was almost written as poetry. This would certainly diminish the first movie.

 

[harSon]

That's retarded

Why don't they make sequels for The English Patient and Shakespeare in Love while they are at it.

Well, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is an adaptation of the 4th novel of a Pentalogy, so that's not exactly an apt comparison.

 

[Kazerei]

omg



edit: just read the article. Do not want.

This is exactly my reaction

 

[injurai]

no Ang Lee...

i will pass...

 

[tino]

Well, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is an adaptation of the 4th novel of a Pentalogy, so that's not exactly an apt comparison.

It doesn't matter. Its not based on a famous WuXia novel. No Chinese has ever read it. Who cares about the book the sequel is not even being made by Chinese.

 

[Akira]

I loved CTHD and I was following the development of the sequel back in 2001. It unfortunately it didn't happen then, but it was a good thing that we got Hero and a series of other high fantasy wuxia films after CTHD. I'm not optimistic this will turn out good however.

 

[harSon]

It doesn't matter. Its not based on a famous WuXia novel. No Chinese has ever read it. Who cares about the book the sequel is not even being made by Chinese.

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon was an American-Chinese-Hong Kong-Taiwanese co-production and the screenplay was co-written by a screenwriter out of Detroit, Michigan. The director is Taiwanese, which was the case for the original, and it's still probably going to be a foreign language film with a Chinese cast from what I can tell. And I'm not sure how it being a famous Wu Xia novel is relevant. It's not like they're pulling the story out of their ass, seeing as the sequel will be based on the 5th novel of the Pentalogy, and sure it's only being made because the original film was successful, but that's true of all sequels.

 

[tino]

CTHD is 95% an Ang Lee movie. Without Ang Lee, thats no point.

Zero.

This movie will be worse than Showgirls 2: Penny From Heaven. Mark my words.

Also, how does a white guy write a Chinese lanuage movie, humor me. CTHD's writing credit has 3 Chinese speakers and one non-Chinese speaker (probably worked on story board or whatever).

 

[Qvoth]

i have never heard of wang du lu and his crane iron series
and i've read all of jin yong's work (except lu ding ji)
anybody read that series? were they good?

 

[neoism]

I hated when Chow Yun Fat died.

.... movie is a masterpiece..... so they naturally make a sequel.... (((

 

[Chuckie]

Freaking finally. Get Zhang Ziyi on the line.

Didn't she kill herself in the end?

 

[Imm0rt4l]

Didn't she kill herself in the end?

Yea

 

[Cheesemeister]

Didn't she kill herself in the end?

Or did she?

 

[EviLore]

So, Hollywood production, Ang Lee not involved, white guy who likes horses to an uncomfortable degree on the screenplay.

Tiger III: The Domination

 

[Chuckie]

Or did she?

Well I guess for a sequel they could say she bounced of some rocks flew over some trees and survived that fall.

 

[Lakitu]

No.

Stop making sequels to every damn film. Crouching Tigger is a classic and really doesn't ned a sequel.

 

[DominoKid]

why?

 

[colt45joe]

No.

Stop making sequels to every damn film. Crouching Tigger is a classic and really doesn't ned a sequel.

if its based on novels that have the story established, it could be good, ya?

 

[beat]

http://www.slashfilm.com/crouching-tiger-hidden-dragon-sequel-to-shoot-in-may/


I'm not sure what to think. Not a fan of Fusco as a screenwriter, and to be honest, I'd much rather have someone who spoke the native language of the novel instead of someone who has to rely on a translation and cultural filter.

Didn't CTHD have a script from James Schamus via translation of the books, and then translated back to Chinese?

 

[i_am_ben]

No Ang Lee, no interest.

 

[Kaako]

I never asked for this.

 

[duckroll]

Ronny Yu eh? I guess the expectation should be that it's going to be more of an action movie, and it's going to cash in on the "Crouching Tiger" name by adapting from the same source material series. Without Ang Lee, there's really no point calling it a Crouching Tiger sequel other than the technicality that it kinda is. The meaning that has to most people is completely lost.

 

[zoukka]

No Ang Lee, no interest.

Yep.

 

[tino]

Or did she?

It would be a travesty if they explain the ending of CTHD. 2010: The Year We Make Contact

 

[ElectricBlue187]

Didn't she kill herself in the end?

No. The legend her boyfriend told her

Spoiler

was of a boy that jumped from a mountain and was not harmed, the ending was her doing just that. You can tell because the boy shows no grief whatsoever.