WATCH: Warrior - A Bruce Lee inspired series
Imagine being transported to a time where you get to see Bruce Lee's vision come to life, where he gets to be the Asian leading man.
Bruce Lee was an American-Chinese martial artist and actor, who made his mark in the martial arts film industry in the 70s. We've heard about his infamous pitch to Warner Bros executives that was blatantly rejected.
The reason why was revealed in an article in Screenrant.com, "Lee attributed this decision to the studio’s unease at casting an Asian lead, a notion which Lee claimed to understand, as he said might share the same hesitation about casting a white lead in a Hong Kong project."
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"The following year, Warner Bros. created Kung Fu a TV series about a Shaolin monk in a Western setting. The basic premise matched what Lee came up with for The Warrior, with one of the biggest differences being that the main character was played by a white actor, David Carradine." Screenrant.com
The similarities were almost too similar, however, the Warner Bros studio denied that they had stolen the concept from Lee's pitch.
Years later, Shannon Lee, Bruce Lee's daughter takes on the role of trying to fulfill her father's dream. Enter, Warrior, an American Marital Arts Crime Drama series that debuted in 2019.
Watch the season 1 trailer of Warrior below.
Courtesy of YouTube
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The plot of the series is "Set during the Tong Wars in late 1870s San Francisco, the series follows Ah Sahm, a martial arts prodigy who emigrates from China in search of his sister, only to be sold to one of the most powerful tongs (gangs) in Chinatown."
The series was shot at Cape Town Film Studios with Moonlighting, relied on South Africa’s world-class crews and of course our homegrown names like "Diana Cilliers (Roots, The Girl, District 9), SAFTA-nominated makeup supervisor Marli Kruger (The Watch); and special effects supervisor Mickey Kirsten (Tenet, Spider-Man: Far From Home, Unknown)" featured in the making of this (100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes) underrated action series. (GoodThingsGuy.com)
Shannon Lee partners with Justin Lin (from the Fast and Furious franchise) and series creator, Jonathan Tropper. They come together to create a unique and action filled series that leaves us with chills, firstly because it was filmed in our country and also because we see Bruce Lee's vision come to life.
Watch the season 2 trailer of Warrior below:
Courtesy of YouTube
Image Courtesy of YouTube
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