…Thanks to LB’s old friend co-worker Avi Arad. (Yeah, there’s a story there, but we can’t tell it. Gotta wait for the boss to regale us instead.)
by Meredith Woerner
Hollywood is hot for China. Both Looper and Iron Man 3 courted the Chinese audience by setting chunks of their movies in the far East. Now, Sony big wig and The Amazing Spider-Manproducer, Avi Arad, is cashing in and starting up a whole new movie franchise based around Chinese lore.
Variety is reporting that Arad is teaming up with Bruno Wu’s Seven Stars Entertainment to develop multiple properties based on Chinese folklore. The collaboration is attacking the genre with hopes to release multiple live-action tentpole movies, animated TV series and more, all opening up heaps of merchandising opportunities.
Their first project centers around the the Rise of the Terracotta Warriors. There’s no telling how Arad and friends will be using this lore, but fingers crossed they don’t put the whole army in tights. Only time will tell if Chinese audiences are receptive to this bold Hollywood initiative, but there’s a lot of beautiful Chinese fairy tales we wouldn’t mind seeing on the big screen.
Speaking of beautiful Chinese fairy tales, does anybody out there remember the Hong Kong kung fu fairy tales of the ’60s? Especially the ones directed by/starring Ti Lung? #!@% awesome!