Jackie Chan Kong-sang vs Jet Li, the kung fu movie fan’s fantasy has become reality.
Chan and Li are currently in China shooting their first movie together, the Hollywood production The Forbidden Kingdom, and Chan said in his Chinese-language blog Thursday they recently shot their first on-screen duel.
“I finally `fought’ with Jet Li today. We’ve never fought before having known each other for so many years,” he said.
The fight scene went smoothly and the two actors finished what was expected to be a daylong shoot in a few hours.
“The short sparring that lasted a few moves went very smoothly. It was like fighting with a brother from the same school of martial arts. We blended easily on every move, be it in terms of timing or rhythm,” he said.
“The feeling was like shooting with Sammo Hung or Yuen Biao. Whether it’s a look, an expression or a turn, we were well coordinated. It feels great,” Chan wrote, referring to two fellow action stars.
He added he and Li also worked well with choreographer Yuen Woo-ping, who designed action sequences for The Matrix trilogy.
“We worked together seamlessly,” Chan said.
The Forbidden Kingdom is about an American teenager’s fantasy journey to ancient China to rescue a mythological monkey king.
The idea for the film originates with the classic Chinese novel Journey to the West, in which a monkey king, a pig and a friar help guard a Buddhist monk searching for religious texts.
Li will play the monkey king and a silent monk, while Chan will play another monk called T’sa-Ho.
Chan and Li offer a contrast in martial arts styles. Chan, trained in Peking Opera, is known for his defensive, dance-like moves while Li, a former national kung fu champion in China, tends to dominate his on-screen opponents.
Chan said in his English blog the crew had finished shooting in the Gobi Desert and moved on to Wuyi mountains in Fujian province. He enjoyed shooting in the desert.
“Seeing the vast expanses of sand, blue sky, and white clouds combined with no traffic congestion and no gossip from Hong Kong newspapers, made me feel completely relaxed,” Chan wrote.
