News and Pics From Forbidden Kingdom Press Conference in Hong Kong – announce second Chan/Li project! *UPDATED*

The stars and filmmakers of The Forbidden Kingdom held a press conference in Hong Kong, with a bunch of young martial artists. Here are some great pics of the event!

Click for more… (warning: photo heavy post!)

From Hollywood.com.

HOLLYWOOD – Martial-arts giants Jackie Chan and Jet Li formed such a close bond on new film The Forbidden Kingdom, they’re already planning a second movie collaboration.

Chan admits he was reluctant to sign up to the $75 million Hollywood production, but didn’t hesitate when he found out Li was on board–because he’s always dreamed of teaming up with his pal on screen.He says, “The first day we started filming, it felt like we had worked together for many years. After filming this movie, we didn’t have enough fun.”

An equally enthusiastic Li adds, “In four months (of filming), we went from friends to becoming brothers.”

And now that they’ve sampled life on-set together, they’re eager to bring a script they’ve been working on for 15 years to the big screen–although neither actor is prepared to divulge any plot details.

Update:

From Hollywood Reporter:

Chan, Li continue ‘Forbidden’ affair

By Karen Chu

March 18, 2008

FILMART: Jackie Chan and Jet Li are using their $75 million new production The Forbidden Kingdom as a continuation of a 1980’s ‘affair,’ the Asian action superstars said at a press conference Tuesday.

The Forbidden Kingdom marks the first time the two stars, who have had parallel careers breaking from Chinese into English-language films finally worked together. Chan and Li met in the 1980s, after Li made his mark in The Shaolin Temple (1982) and Chan was already a household name in Asia with Drunken Master (1978).

“It was as if we were having a secret affair,” Li joked. “I’d drive him around Hong Kong. It was before the handover of Hong Kong to China,” Chan elaborated.

Joking aside, it took the stars 15 years to finally duke it out onscreen. In The Forbidden Kingdom, is financed by China’s Huayi Brothers. It will be released in the U.S. by Lionsgate and by Emperor Motion Pictures in Hong Kong.

As well as casting the two biggest names in Asian action, the film was ‘a sampling’ of references from icons and elements from Chinese mythology and legend, director Rob Minkoff (The Lion King; Stuart Little) told The Hollywood Reporter. He was brought in to add texture to the film, he said, but not necessarily to cater to Western audiences’ tastes.
No matter the nationalities involved, the biggest draw of The Forbidden Kingdom will be the fight scenes, which Chan was particularly happy to recall. “Our director of cinematography, Peter Pau, kept telling us to slow down,” the 53 year-old Chan said. Yuen Woo-ping (The Matrix series) acted as action cinematographer.

The film will be released April 24 in Hong Kong by EMP. Release date for China is not yet confirmed.

Here are Li Bingbing, Jet Li, Jackie Chan and Yifei Liu…

And with director Rob Minkoff…

See them all ONTD.