Early last month, China’s CCTV reported that Oscar © winning director Ang Lee had multiple projects in parallel development.
Director Ang Lee holds his Oscar for 'Achievement in Directing' for the film 'Brokeback Mountain' at the 78th annual Academy Awards. EPA/PAUL BUCK
It is said he will reteam with cinematographer Peter Pau, designer Tim Yip and screenwriter Wang Hui-Ling, who he worked with in ‘Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon’.
Now Monkey Peaches is reporting that Lee's next film will tell the story of ‘The Seven Sages of Bamboo Grove’ which evolved from China's Three Kingdoms Period (AD 220 - 265) and the Jin Dynasty (AD 265 - 420).
The Seven Sages were scholars and poets who regularly gathered in a bamboo grove to escape the troubles of the outside world and to lose themselves in pure thoughts and conversations.
No additional information is available on this project which is in very early stages of development.
However, add this to 'The Hands of Shang-Chi' now in active development, to be produced by Lee AND news that Lee is interested in doing a prequel/sequel to ‘Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon’ and one wonders where he will get all the time.
Lee may not be able to make real his ambition for a pre/post CTHD as Bob and Harvey (Weinstein) have acquired worldwide rights for all five books by the late Wang Du Lu – of which ‘Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon’ was the fourth.
The other books are ‘Crane Fighters Kun Lun’, ‘Precious Sword Golden Hairpin’, ‘Sword Spirit Pearl Light’, and ‘Iron Knight Silver Vase’.
The books document the struggles of four generations of men and women during China’s Qing dynasty.
Although loosely based on the fourth story, Ang Lee's award winning 2001 film “cherry-picked’ elements from Wang's other books.
Early in March 2006, Reuters and The Hollywood Reporter quoted Harvey Weinstein on purchase of the rights saying: “"I think this an opportunity to create something revolutionary," he said. They will in effects serve as prequels and sequels to "Crouching Tiger," which will not itself be remade for the screen.”
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