Jet Li and Jackie Chan's "The Forbidden Kingdom" coming

Jet Li and Jackie Chan's "The Forbidden Kingdom" coming

CHINA June 16, 2007 (Credits to varietyasia & jackiechan.com)

"Forbidden Kingdom," the $70 million movie that brings Jackie Chan and Jet Li together on the big screen for the first time, is midway through its China shoot and "on schedule," according to producer Casey Silver. Currently filming on Asia's biggest film set in Zhejiang Province's Hengdian Studios.

The movie tells the story of an American teenager, played by Michael Angarano ("Almost Famous"), who finds an antique Chinese staff in a pawn shop and is transported back to ancient China. There he meets kung-fu master Lu Yan (Jackie Chan) and a deadly silent monk (Jet Li) on his journey to return the staff to its owner, the Monkey King, imprisoned by an evil warlord (Collin Chou).

Movie, which also stars local actresses Li Bingbing ("The Knot") and Liu Yifei ("Love of May"), is helmed by Rob Minkoff ("The Lion King," "Stuart Little"), with d.p. and action director roles taken, respectively, by "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" alumni Peter Pau and Yuen Woo-ping.

Jackie injures Jet Li in fight

Jackie Chan was called upon to pretend to fight Jet Li for a scene in a Robert Minkoff movie yesterday but he ended up really hitting and injuring Li during the shooting, Chan said in his blog on Sina.com.

Chan said he noticed Li's face was bruised after several shots were completed. "It was my knapsack which hit Li during the performance," Chan said on his blog. However, it was still lucky because the knapsack used yesterday was made of linen instead of the bamboo one he carried earlier, otherwise Li's face might have suffered a much more severe injury, Chan said. "It might have given him a bloody face," Chan added.

Chan also said he really enjoyed his "fighting" with Li, a feeling he had not experienced for a very long time. The feeling reminded him of the enjoyable moments he used to have when filming with Sammo Hung Kam-Bo and Biao Yuen. He said their speed were so quick that the cameramen had to ratchet up the shooting speed of their cameras. But when he was acting with others the camera speed was always slower.

The movie, in which Chan and Li are expected to show off their kung fu skills will include several traditional Chinese mythical figures, such as the Monkey King and Sha Monk, two figures from "Record of a Journey to the West" — one of China's four classic novels.

Both Chan and Li will play two roles in the movie. Li, the Monkey King, and Lan Cai He — one of China's Eight Fairies. Chan will mainly play Sha Monk in the movie.

Though it will be categorized as a comedy, 60 percent of the film is supposed to consist of fight scenes. Mainland actress

The movie title was changed from "Kings of Kung Fu" to "The Forbidden Kingdom."

Forbidden Kingdom Cast