Kung fu star Jet Li may have to appear in a court next month
after his name was added to the list of those being sued over his
latest movie Fearless.
The film is a biography of real Chinese kung fu hero, Huo
Yuanjia, which is the Chinese name of the movie. Huo who died 96
years ago is still revered in China and the rest of Asia.
The movie has annoyed descendants of Huo's family, who are upset
that the film's plot sullies the reputation of the revered kung fu
master and his offspring. Huo Shoujin, the grandson of Huo Yuanjia,
wants Fearless removed from theatres and a public apology
from the producers.
Lawyer Yang Zhonghai, hired by Huo's family in Tianjin, said Jet
Li's name was added to the suit as the action star not only played
the lead role but participated in the making and production of the
movie.
Li said Fearless would be his last fight-movie, ending a
25-year long martial arts career. The film is poised for wide
release in North America later this year.
Li has been widely quoted in the Chinese media as saying his
role as Huo Yuanjia (1869-1910) was meant to pay homage to the
martial arts master. Huo was the founder and spiritual leader of
the Jing Wu Federation, a kung fu organization in the early 1900s
in China.
The movie attempts to express his views on martial arts, Chinese
culture and life. The movie was a hit blockbuster when released in
January in Asia, Li said.
Huo, grandson of Huo Yuanjia, said he believes the film is
completely inaccurate. It portrays his ancestor as a man who killed
many innocent people just for the sport of it. It also shows Huo's
redemption and eventual self-fulfilment comes through his
unrequited love for a blind girl.
The film shows Huo's family being murdered and Huo dying without
any heirs, which could make people suspicious of his family's claim
to be direct descendants, says the family's lawyer.
The family was also unhappy that Huo was portrayed as a wealthy
man with servants, when he actually had a working-class
background.
Huo Shoujin sued Fearless producers, Beijing Film
Studio and Anle Film Co Ltd on March 7 in Beijing's Haidian
District Court, for maligning the reputation of his family.
The film has already been released in the Chinese mainland,
Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore, the Philippines, Malaysia and
Thailand, according to Li's official website. It is scheduled to
debut later this year in France, Germany, Japan, South Korea and
the United States.
(China Daily March 27, 2006)
