Fans of the Monkey King will soon get to see the hero in another 3D film starring one of the most renowned Monkey King performers in a new project.

"Xiyouji," or "Journey to the West," one of the greatest classic novels of Chinese literature, will be adapted into an entertaining movie at the end of the year. It will star Zhang Jinlai, better known as Liu Xiao Ling Tong, Zhang confirmed to Yangtse Evening News in a Monday interview. Zhang has become a household name in China for playing the role of Monkey King in the TV series Journey to the West in 1986.

He said that making a 3D version of the novel was the unfulfilled wish of his late father Zhang Zongyi, one of China's most famed Monkey King performers, who died earlier this year at the age of 90.

Monkey King is one of the main characters in Xiyouji, which tells the story of a Chinese Buddhist monk's quest to the west to obtain sacred Buddhist texts. The Monkey King is one of the monk's protectors.

Journey to the West starring Zhang Jinlai has been rebroadcasted for more than 3,000 times so far, making it the most played TV series in the world, according to Zhang. Zhang has just applied for a Guinness World Record for its rebroadcast rate.

Filmmakers have attempted to recreate the story by employing the latest technology, with Hong Kong stars Chow Yun Fat, Donnie Yen and Aaron Kwok starring in a 3D blockbuster, which was screened earlier this year.

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