Patrick Frater Asia Bureau ChiefTV series adaptations of “Fearless” and “Cold War,” two of the highest-profile Hong Kong action movies of the 21st century, are now in development.The shift into TV represents a major expansion and diversification for Edko Films, the studio headed by legendary producer-financier-executive Bill Kong (“Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon,” “Monster Hunt,” “Mulan”).The original 2006 “Fearless” was an iconic portrait of martial arts ace Huo Yianjia that was directed by Ronny Tong and starred Jet Li. It received studio-level distribution in many territories through Buena Vista, UIP and Sony Pictures Releasing.“Cold War” is a 2012 crime action film involving a mole inside the Hong Kong police.
It was written and co-directed by Longman Leung and Sunny Luk and had Aaron Kwok, Tony Leung Ka-fai and Charlie Young in lead roles. It spawned a sequel movie in 2016 with an even higher profile cast that included Chow Yun-fat and Eddie Peng.
“We have often received inquiries from abroad about buying the rights to develop these [films] into series. But I’ve never made a deal with anybody.
So, since I didn’t make any deal, those rights are all available for myself and Edko to produce,” Kong told Variety.Kong says that streaming platforms have changed the opportunities for rights owners and producers like Edko.“We look around the world and see that way that people have tuned in. Not only are there enormous numbers of subscribers, it is changing audience customs and viewing habits.
As a company we cannot limit ourselves only to the theatrical world, video, DVD and cable,” said Kong.Through the pandemic years, Edko has quietly expanded its in-house production development staff. But Kong has not yet allied the
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