More Casting News On The Pang Brothers Remake of Bangkok Dangerous

The more I hear about the Pang Brothers' Time To Kill, the upcoming remake of their own Bangkok Dangerous - far and away my favorite of their films - the more confused I become.

That Nicholas Cage was slated to play the lead came in the original announcement, and that was baffling enough as they had opted to take a film about a mute Thai hitman and replace the central character with a white star despite leaving it set in Bangkok - where, you know, a tall white hit man would blend right in - and also removing the mute angle because you can't cast Nicholas Cage and then ask him not to speak. Though based on his recent work I'd say that may not be such a bad idea.

Anyway, that the time the decision to make Cage speak was countered with the stated plan to make the hitman's girlfreind mute instead, meaning the central character would change but the mute / non-mute aspect of the central relationship would stay intact, which was at least something.

But now they've announced that Hong Kong star Charlie Yeung - most recently seen in Tsui Hark's Seven Swords - has been selected to play the female lead, which of course now means that neither of the two leads in this Thai set story will actually be Thai. Which would be odd, but doable if Yeung were playing the part mute, as initially announced, but apparently she has flown to Bangkok to start learning Thai, which means that neither is now mute and neither is Thai, though one is apparently going to pretend that she is.

I think this is going to sting a little.

Thanks to Richard at Filmstalker for the news.