After "The Warlords", it has been two years since Peter Chan personally directed a movie. Earlier this year, rumors spread that he would remake the 1969 film "The One-Armed Swordsman" directed by Chang Cheh. Later, Peter Chan responded saying it wasn't exactly a remake, but indeed he planned to direct a period martial arts film about a one-armed swordsman. On June 29th, Hong Kong media confirmed that this film would officially begin shooting in August. Besides Donnie Yen who was confirmed in April, Takeshi Kaneshiro, who has been busy filming movies in Japan these past two years, will also join the cast.
In recent years, Donnie Yen has portrayed righteous characters on screen, either as national heroes or ancient warriors. This time, he will break from his usual roles and play an utterly evil killer, who has committed countless atrocities and spent most of his life being hunted by the authorities, forcing him into exile. During his exile, he forms a bond with the constable played by Takeshi Kaneshiro who is pursuing him. Eventually, he is moved by the constable and returns to the path of righteousness. For Donnie Yen, this kind of role is certainly a big challenge, as he has never played such a character before. Takeshi Kaneshiro plays the noble constable, whom Peter Chan believes is the only one suited for the role, hence inviting him back to act. This is also after Zhang Yimou's "House of Flying Daggers," another time Takeshi Kaneshiro plays a constable. Although Kaneshiro resides mostly in Japan, he has been filming in mainland China and Hong Kong recently. Peter Chan is a director he trusts, and they have collaborated multiple times. This time, Takeshi Kaneshiro accepted the role due to his interest in the character and the chance to collaborate with Donnie Yen for the first time in a martial arts film, which he found quite challenging. Additionally, the film’s action choreographer is Donnie Yen. Before filming begins, Takeshi Kaneshiro may need to undergo some martial arts training.
Director Derek Yee made a fortune through Peter Chan's production supervision in "Bodyguards and Assassins" and won the Best Director Award at the Hong Kong Film Awards. Originally, the two could have continued their collaboration following the method used in "Bodyguards and Assassins" to shoot "The One-Armed Swordsman". However, according to Hong Kong media reports, there was a major argument between Peter Chan and Derek Yee at the celebration banquet after "Bodyguards and Assassins" won big at the Hong Kong Film Awards, resulting in an unpleasant parting, so further collaboration was out of the question. It is said that Derek Yee will also remake "The One-Armed Swordsman", but currently, nothing is set in stone. Afterwards, Peter Chan stated that he had never considered remaking it and it was even less likely that he would use such an old-fashioned title. He only mentioned making a film related to the one-armed swordsman, drawing inspiration from "The One-Armed Swordsman" but creating a new story, producing a bloody modern martial arts film.
Inspiration drawn from "The One-Armed Swordsman"
The original "The One-Armed Swordsman" directed by Chang Cheh made Ti Lung famous and also sparked a trend of robust and passionate martial arts films in the 1970s, which remains popular among many viewers even today. After "The Warlords", it was widely rumored that Peter Chan would remake a Shaw Brothers classic. According to Hong Kong media reports, Peter Chan did consider remaking "The One-Armed Swordsman" earlier, but later learned that the overseas rights of the film were sold to Hollywood director Quentin Tarantino, while the Chinese language rights were obtained by Hong Kong's Emperor Entertainment Group. Emperor Entertainment announced early on that they would collaborate with director Derek Yee to remake "The One-Armed Swordsman".
Donnie Yen and Takeshi Kaneshiro's first collaboration