This is some bizarro news. It appears Will Smith may have a production role in an upcoming remake of The Karate Kid. Jackie Chan is rumored to be up for the role of Mr. Miyagi and instead of Karate they will use Kung Fu as the martial art. To reflect this change, the picture will be named The Kung Fu Kid. We get the saucy news from the moviehole:
Speaking to Monkey Peaches, Han Sanping, president of China Film, mentioned that he’s involved in the remake of “The Karate Kid” that Will Smith’s shingle is producing.
According to Sanping, the new film will be titled “The Kung Fu Kid” and could possibly feature Jackie Chan as Mr Myigai. Um, what? (is this guy fucking with us??!). And if Chan’s not available? Stephen Chow (“Kung Fu Hustle”) will doing his best Pat Morita impersonation down a lens.
The Karate Kid is an iconic 80’s movie that should not be remade in my opinion. I am pleased that this film is being re-imagined with Kung-Fu, my hope is that the movie will have no semblance to the original. If they want to say that this film is based on The Karate Kid, that is fine….and call me a stickler, but you would need Karate to do that.
Jackie Chan is always kick-ass, and I could easily picture this humble man as a martial arts teacher. I would like to see him have his own character rather than inhabit Myiagi, and I certainly hope he is not given the Myiagi name. I want Chinese Kung Fu Teachers and Japanese Karate Teachers. You can’t have your cake and eat it too.
I do not know how this came about. I am guessing Will Smith rented the original, watched it drunk in a hotel room and then made some calls before sobering up. This remake seems crazy… so I will be there opening day. If this project becomes a success, we could see throngs of children pouring into Kung-Fu temples across the land. I am all for more Kung Fu, and if that is the case, perhaps the ends will justify the means.
