Chinese action star Jet Li could get 100 million yuan (US$13.47
million) for starring in the battle epic The Warlords,
breaking the record for an actor in a Chinese-language film,
according to the movie's director.
Movie star Jet Li speaks during a news
conference for the movie The Forbidden Kingdom, in
Hengdian, eastern China's Zhejiang province, June 14, 2007. Li is
set to rake in 100 million yuan (US$13.47 million) for his latest
movie "The Warlords," a record for an actor in a Chinese-language
film, Xinhua news agency reported on Sunday.
Nearly half the budget for the US$40 million Chinese epic went
to the cast, with 100 million yuan to Jet Li, 16 million yuan to
Hong Kong star Andy Lau, 12 million yuan to Takeshi Kaneshiro, and
2 million yuan to Xu Jinglei.
"Without Jet Li, we would not dare to invest 40 million U.S.
dollars in a Chinese-language film," said director Peter Chan.
Chan stressed that Li was the "guarantee" for global sales.
According to Chan, lead actors in contemporary Hollywood
blockbusters usually get the equivalent of 120 million yuan, but Li
agreed to accept less because of his friendship with Chan.
But the 100-million-yuan payday still broke the record for a
star in a Chinese film -- one that was held by Li himself, Chan
said. Li previously got 70 million yuan for starring in Zhang
Yimou's Hero.
The Warlords is an epic about three blood brothers and
their struggle amid war and political upheaval. It is based on
The Assassination of Ma, a Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) story
about the killing of General Ma Xinyi.
The story was previously filmed under the title of The Blood
Brothers by Zhang Che in 1973.
A release of the new film on December 13, 2007 is listed for the
Chinese mainland, Hong Kong and southeast Asia. It is scheduled to
be released from next March in North America.
Posters of The
Warlords
(CRI.cn November 26, 2007)
