Andrew Koji is the lead role in 'Warrior,' the Bruce Lee-inspired action series.
ASAM NEWS After just three episodes, Cinemax has given the green light to Warrior for a second season, Deadline reported The show from director Justin Lin and Banshee co-creator Jonathan Tropper is inspired by the late Bruce Lee, whose dream for the program died when his life was cut short.
The story is based on writings of the martial arts legend and pushed forward by his daughter, Shannon Lee.
“Bruce Lee’s vision is alive and well,” said Len Amato, president of HBO Films. “Warrior combines high-energy martial arts with wit and brains. We’re thrilled to renew such a great show for a second season on Cinemax.”
According to The Hollywood Reporter, a renewal after just three episodes is extremely quick.
Warrior is set around the tong wars in Chinatown in the late 1800s. It's cast is dominated by Asian actors, that include Andrew Koji, Jason Tobin, Olivia Cheng and Dianne Doan.
Actor Andrew Koji plays lead character Ah Sahm in the upcoming television series 'Warrior/'
Little known fact: I once auditioned for Kung Fu, the TV series starring David Carradine. In 1975, I still had dreams of becoming a screenwriter. I had a writing agent and submitted several ideas for Streets of San Francisco, which was also filming in the city at the time, and other projects -- all with Asian themes. I didn't consider myself an actor and I make not claims to having any acting talent. I had no formal training (although I did attend the first class conducted by actor Rene Auberjunois which I promptly dropped at Cal) and only appeared in one movie because I was a friend of the director. Kung Fu was in its third season and apparently, had used up all the known Asian American actors in Hollywood and was in search for new faces. My writing agent suggested to the Kung Fu talent scout that he see me. He knew I had some martial arts training and had an 8X10 headshot of me, just in case I sold a script and hit it big. Yeah, we both had high hopes back then. The auditions were being held in my agent's agency's office, so I trekked my way into San Francisco. I let the secretary know I was there for the audition. Mind you I had never auditioned for anything in my life. I fancied myself a writer. Being young and naive, I said to myself, "What the hell."
The search for new faces, apparently wasn't going too well, I surmised since I was the only "actor" there for the audition.
Finally, I went in and met the talent scout. He was friendly enough: broad smile, firm handshake and with the upbeat air you'd expect from Hollywood He handed me a page of a script and asked me to read some lines with him reading the other parts. I did the best I could, but I knew I was not "feeling" it. The scout said, "Great, great. That was very good," in an attempt to get me over my nervousness and put me at ease. I thank him for that. But then, he said, "Can you say the ilnes again with an accent?" What? The only accent I knew how to imitate was a Filipino accent since I grew up with a community of Filipino American elders, mostly World War II veterans. I knew what he wanted though. He wanted me to either use a sing-song accent, or a strong, clipped accent like the one used by the Asian American actors that appeared in the Kung Fu series that took place in the American West in the late 1800s. I opted to imitate the strange accent used by David Carradine, the star of the Bruce Lee-inspired series. I closed my eyes, imagining myself as the Shaolin monkKwai Chang Caine. I went for it. I knew I had blown the audition despite the enthusiastic scout's encouraging words ending with the dreaded, "You'll hear from us." As expected, I wasn't surprised I never again heard from the scout or the series. The TV series. Kung Fu was cancelled two months later. David Carradine claimed he had sustained too many bruises and injuries to continue. But the real reason was the ratings were down. I write all this because Warrior, a new series inspired by martial arts legend Bruce Lee will debut this April 5 on the Cinemax network. It is about a martial arts-trained warrior who arrives in during the Tong Wars of 1800's San Francisco and will feature a predominantly Asian cast who have the acting talent that I lacked. The story behind the story, says that Lee, who had starred as Kato, the martial artist/chauffeur of the Green Arrow, submitted a script about a Shaolin monk wandering the old West doing good deeds and kicking the hell out of bad guys. The networks rejected his idea, but lo and behold, a year later, Kung Fu was developed starring a white guy doing Yellow Face. Warrior, is based on the notes of Bruce Lee. His daughter Shannon Lee and Asian American director Justin Lin are among the executive producers. Ironically, while the white actors in the new series will speak English appropriate to the time period, the Asian actors will speak English with a contemporary tone -- an apparent nod to the show's producers and the #NoWhiteWashing and #NoYellowface movements. I harbor no resentment towards anyone associated with the old Kung Fu show, including that talent scout who auditioned me, but to them all, I can only say: "Accent? My ass!"
Andrew Koji will play the lead character in 'Warrior.'
IT LOOKS like another Asian-themed TV series with Asian/Asian American characters is going to be a hit based on its pedigree and a 'teaser' trailer released last week. Cinemax just released a "Teaser" of Warrior series that will hit the small screen in 2019 and it looks powerful.
Justin Lin (Fast & Furious), who is co-executive producer with Bruce Lee's daughter Shannon Lee, will be directing some of the episodes (but, not the pilot) Here's the official synopsis:
“Inspired by an idea from martial-arts legend Bruce Lee, this gritty, action- packed crime drama is set during the brutal Tong Wars of San Francisco’s Chinatown in the second half of the 19th century. Filming in Cape Town, South Africa, it follows a martial arts prodigy who immigrates from China to San Francisco under mysterious circumstances, and becomes a hatchet man for one of Chinatown’s most powerful organized crime families. Produced for CINEMAX by Perfect Storm Entertainment, Tropper Ink Productions and Bruce Lee Entertainment; created and executive produced by Jonathan Tropper under Tropper Ink Productions; Justin Lin and Danielle Woodrow executive produce on behalf of Perfect Storm Entertainment; Shannon Lee executive produces for Bruce Lee Entertainment.”
The late martial arts icon, Bruce Lee, had created the project for Warner Bros. but the studio, saddled with a lack of imagination, rejected it. He kept the rejected project in the family garage and the treatment was considered lost. The project was meant to serve as a precursor to a the 1970s Warner Bros. television series “Kung Fu,” which was also Bruce Lee's idea but, we know how that racist miscasting went.
“As Warrior comes together, I can’t help but feel the pride of correcting a wrong and helping bring Bruce Lee’s dream project to life,” Lin told Deadline. “We have assembled a cast of incredible actors from all over the world including our talented lead, Andrew Koji, an exciting discovery out of the UK."
“The martial arts genre a lot of times has been relegated to B-level action," addied Lin. "And that’s not something we wanted to do. Going off of Bruce Lee’s original material, we wanted to build something that is character-driven, that has important themes and that also takes place in a part of American history that rarely gets talked about. That to me makes it something you haven’t seen before.”
According to Deadline, the cast includes Andrew Koji as Ah Sahm, a martial arts prodigy who travels from China to San Francisco and ends up becoming a hatchet man for the most powerful tong in Chinatown; Olivia Cheng as Ah Toy, Chinatown’s most accomplished courtesan and madame; Jason Tobin as Young Jun, the hard-partying son of a powerful tong boss; Dianne Doan as Mai Ling, a beautiful and ruthless Chinese woman who, through sheer force of will, has achieved a position of power in one of the tongs; Kieran Bew as Officer “Big Bill” O’Hara, a hard-drinking Irish cop charged with forming a Chinatown squad; and Dean Jagger as Dan Leary, the unofficial godfather of the Irish community of San Francisco and leader of the Workingmen’s party.
Shannon Lee told the Los Angeles Times that she was excited to see where the show was headed. “Season 1 is just the beginning. We’ll hopefully get the opportunity to play the long game here and really get into some extremely interesting stuff, which we already have planned.”
FANS OF BRUCE LEE are celebrating the new permanent home of the Bruce Lee statue in Chinatown in Los Angeles.
A new installed pedestal for the 7-foot tall statue was formally dedicated Friday with Lee’s daughter Shannon and other VIPs looking on.
” It warms my heart to know that this first ever statue of my father in the United States will stand here in my home town. I am grateful to the LA Chinatown Corporation, Pedro Chan, and everyone who supported this project and helped make this a reality,” Shannon Lee wrote on Facebook.
The statue marks the 80th anniversary of the city’s New Chinatown, according to State Senator Kevin de Leon.
“The Bruce Lee Statue will be a towering site to admire, especially when it’s the only one in the USA,” he said according to Xinhuanet.com.
The LA Weekly reports that Lee opened a martial arts studio near the Central Plaza in Los Angeles - thus his connection to the city.
Andrew Koji and Olivia Cheng will head the Warrior cast
THE LATE BRUCE LEE's idea for about a martial arts expert in the Old West is on its way to becoming a TV series thanks to Justin Lin, who has been working on the project for four years.
“As Warrior comes together, I can’t help but feel the pride of correcting a wrong and helping bring Bruce Lee’s dream project to life,” Lin said. “We have assembled a cast of incredible actors from all over the world including our talented lead, Andrew Koji, an exciting discovery out of the UK.
Cinemax has given a 10-episode straight-to-series order to 19th century crime drama titled Warrior, according to Deadline. Inspired by the writings and work of martial arts icon Bruce Lee, the series is slated to begin production on Oct. 22 in Cape Town, South Africa.
Warrior is described as "a gritty, action-packed crime drama set during the brutal Tong Wars of San Francisco’s Chinatown in the second half of the 19th century. The series follows Ah Sahm, a martial arts prodigy who immigrates from China to San Francisco under mysterious circumstances, and becomes a hatchet man for one of Chinatown’s most powerful tongs (Chinese organized crime family)."
The cast includes Koji as Ah Sahm, a martial arts prodigy who travels from China to San Francisco and ends up becoming a hatchet man for the most powerful tong in Chinatown; Olivia Cheng as Ah Toy, Chinatown’s most accomplished courtesan and madame; Jason Tobin as Young Jun, the hard-partying son of a powerful tong boss; Dianne Doan as Mai Ling, a beautiful and ruthless Chinese woman who, through sheer force of will, has achieved a position of power in one of the tongs.
Justin Lin
The show was developed based on handwritten notes from Bruce Lee that were brought to light by his daughter, Shannon Lee.
“As a show that proudly bears the imprimatur of Bruce Lee, it’s our intention to deliver not only explosive martial arts action – which we will – but also a powerful and complex immigration drama that is as relevant today as it was in the 1870s,” Jonathan Tropper told Deadline in a statement.
“I’ve always admired Bruce Lee for his trailblazing efforts opening doors for Asians in entertainment and beyond,” said Lin.
Growing up as a Bruce Lee fan, I've heard the stories that the martial artist had a concept for TV that would have starred Lee. As I heard the story, Hollywood decision makers didn't think U.S. audiences would accept an Asian leading man. As the story goes, Lee's concept was intriguing enough that someone "thought up" a show starring a white actor pretending to be Asian. The result was Kung Fu starring David Carradine.
“When Shannon shared with us her father’s writings: rich with Lee’s unique philosophies on life, and through a point of view rarely depicted on screen – Danielle and I knew that Perfect Storm had to make it," said Lin.
“The martial arts genre a lot of times has been relegated to B-level action," said Lin, who is best known for his work the Fast and Furious franchise and Star Trek Beyond movie. "And that’s not something we wanted to do. Going off of Bruce Lee’s original material, we wanted to build something that is character-driven, that has important themes and that also takes place in a part of American history that rarely gets talked about. That to me makes it something you haven’t seen before.” A premiere date for Warrior has not been announced, but it’s expected to launch in late 2018/early 2019. ________________________________________________________________________________
NOT ONE, but two film projects are apparently underway about the late legendary Bruce Lee. One of the new movies about Lee, perhaps the most famous martial artists in history, has the stamp of approval from his family and involves his daughter Shannon.
Shannon Lee wrote the screenplay with filmmaker Shekhar Kapur, who will also act as executive producer and director. Kapur, one of India's best known direcors, who directed Elizabeth: The Golden Age about Queen Elizabeth of Great Britain.
“I always thought that a film about how my father’s life was shaped in his early years in Hong Kong would be a worthwhile story to share so we could better understand him as a human being and a warrior,” said Shannon Lee. “I’m really excited that Shekhar will breathe life into the first film from Bruce Lee Entertainment.”
Khekhar Kapur
“It is important that audiences today can relate their own lives to the journey of Bruce Lee, who manages to tap into his inner wisdom and harness his true destiny before it was too late,” said Kapur in a prepared statement. He picks up after completing duties on TNT’s highly anticipated 10-part television series “Will,” on which he is executive producer and co-director. According to a press release, the movie, with the working title of Little Dragon, is a "contemporary dramatization of the 1950s Hong Kong social and political forces that shaped Bruce Lee into both the most famous martial arts star of all time and a significant modern day philosopher. Themes include family disappointment, young love, true friendship, betrayal, racism, deep poverty and an inner fire that threatened to unravel his destiny."
Casting director Mary Vernieu is on hunt for suitable actors for various characters in the film for which regular shooting is expected to begin from July in Malaysia. Her biggest challenge will to find the actor who could command the charisma of the cult figure Bruce Lee. Financing for the film is from Chinese production companies.
Lee's death at the age of 32 before his greatest movie, Enter The Dragon premiered, magnified the tragedy and propelled his life story into the stuff of legend because of the unfulfilled promise it represented.
The second film project is headed by a super fan from India, movie director Ram Gopal Verma, who may be as controversial as some of his popular Bollywood productions. He's known for making movies on time and under budget.
Ram Gopal Verma
Verma announced that he will also do a Bruce Lee biopic on late legendry actor Bruce Lee and release it on the same date of his film Little Dragon.
Verma claimed that only he can do justice to Lee’s biopic as he knows tremendously more about Bruce Lee than Lee's daughter, his wife Linda Lee and Shekhar Kapur.
Ram Gopal Varma took to his Twitter account on Monday to share the news about his biopic of Bruce Lee. The filmmaker tweeted: “Just because of my devotional worship of Bruce Lee I am going to make his biopic and release it same time as Shekar kapur’s authorised one.” Verma, however, made clear to the Indian Express that he had nothing against “Shekar Kapur who I admire immensely but it’s just my obsessive fascination for Bruce Lee.” “In spite of the closeness of family and brilliance of @shekharkapur I believe only I can do justice to do his biopic.”
When he released a trailer (See below.) for his Bruce Lee in 2015, he said that he had joined a martial arts school when Enter The Dragon had released. “I used to cycle nearly seven kilometres to a theatre to watch this film. I saw it 17 times and Return Of The Dragon 23 times,” said RGV, adding, “I always wanted to make a film on my understanding of what made Bruce Lee such an influence and I finally wrote a script to justify this ambition of mine.”
