Is Stephen Chow's Movie With Jack Black And Anne Hathaway A Bruce Lee Remake?

Is Stephen Chow’s Movie With Jack Black And Anne Hathaway A Bruce Lee Remake?

It’s a slow news day, and that means rumor time! You might remember that, over a year ago,Stephen Chowstepped away from the director’s chairforThe Green Hornet, supposedly to work on his own big Hollywood movie.Shortly afterward, it was said to be a vehicle forJack BlackandAnne Hathaway, and that it would be a big action-packed spectacle, with the CGI and humor that characterizes Chow’s films, just made with a bigger budget.

Now there’s a report that the film might be calledTai Chi, and that it is really a remake ofBruce Lee’s filmWay of the Dragon, released in the US asReturn of the Dragon.

Twitchnoticed the report atChannel News Asia, which in turn cites unnamed “Hong Kong media reports”. I wonder about the collection of info in the piece, based in part on the fact that the synopsis ofTai Chisounds only partially like that ofWay of the Dragon. Here’s what CNA says:

In Lee’s film, the plot kicks off when he’s travels from Hong Kong to Rome, where he ends up helping a woman whose establishment is being targeted by the Mafia.

So did this report get a few facts mixed up? Maybe the ‘Hong Kong media’ sources mentioned Chow having once been cast inThe Green Hornet, where he would have played Bruce Lee’s character Kato? Were the similarities toWay of the Dragonbrought up, leading to the supposition that this is a remake?

And where the hell would Black and Hathaway fit in? She’d be the girl that the lead character (presumably Chow) would be protecting. Who would Black play? Since this is Chow the picture will have a comic aspect, so he could be one of the antagonists. Maybe the Chuck Norrris role? Given that the Norris/Lee fight is considered one of the best in martial arts film, that won’t be taken well by Bruce Lee fans.

Too many questions. Perhaps the report is correct, but take it with a grain of salt. I hope that Chow’s planned picture with the two actors is going forward, at least — I’m curious to see what he can do as hisShaolin Soccerstyle collides with US filmmaking.