Lin To Direct Cinemax Bruce Lee-Inspired Crime Series, WARRIOR

Well this is fancy!

Cinemax is reportedly beefing up efforts toward developing a Bruce Lee-inspired serial crime drama titled Warrior. Fast And Furious franchise helmer Justin Lin is  poised to executive produce and potentially direct the pilot from a script by executive producer, Banshee co-creator Jonathan Tropper which centers on an anti-heroic, gifted fighter who is thrown into a crisis that undermines his quest for revenge.

The series was the first of several projects that began conception early on as Lin pacted with Chinese media magnate Bruno Wu for the launch of TV enterprise, Perfect Storm Entertainment a few years ago. The project is based on Lee's earlier writings which never saw the light of day after his death in 1973, until they were discovered by Shannon Lee, daughter of the iconic film legend and CEO of Bruce Lee Enterprises, prior to jumping aboard with Lin and Wu and introducing it to Cinemax.

The series is another meaty add-on to the forthcoming roster for Cinemax with its currently successful line-up of action-heavy shows with Banshee getting ready for new season and Strike Back premiering its forth and final season soon. The series also serves as a reminder of the prospects that await as Lee herself is getting ready to assemble what she deems as the "definitive" Bruce Lee biopic.

It's busy times indeed. There's plenty of Bruce Lee-releated material in development other than the aforementioned, so fans of the late film legend should be quite excited. In the meantime, Lin's latest producer credit on the June 26 release of American/Asian cross over road comedy, Hollywood Adventures, while his pilot for the second season of True Detective airs on June 21.

Lin is also directing Star Trek 3 which has a July 8, 2016 release.

In seperate TV-related news, NBC has reportedly dropped the pilot for its own series similarly-titled Warrior, which may see its new home at Fox instead.

Stay tuned.

IP MAN 3D Production In Trouble With Bruce Lee's Estate

Production is only in its ninth day for director Wilson Yip's fifth outing with actor and action star Donnie Yen with the new film, Ip Man 3D after years of sitting in development limbo. The news was joyful, to say the least, as filming commenced well over a week ago with Pegasus Motion Pictures announcing plans to star former world heavyweight champion boxer-cum-actor Mike Tyson with Yen in addition to a CG-enhanced young rendition of martial icon, Bruce Lee, as reportedly approved by his brother, Robert Lee.

Well, it turns out we've hit our first snag, and it can't be good either. THR has news that Bruce Lee Enterprises is reportedly trying to stop what it claims is the completely unauthorized use of the late Jeet Kune Do founder's face and voice. BLE, of which daughter Shannon Lee is the CEO, has stated it has "undisputed ownership of all intellectual property rights" to the late film star and solely owns all global rights to his likeness in any capacity (i.e. name,image, likeness, persona, signature, voice, attributes, marks, logos, symbols, works, photographs and writings), despite the other Lee claiming to have intellectual rights as well.

What could be an interesting factor is that Bruce Lee's estate is also simultaneously helping developing what it aims will be "the definitive Bruce Lee biographical film", although that hasn't been made clear just yet if this is related in anyway. At any rate, hopefully things go smoother from here on out between both parties, lest Ip Man 3D become a much more unceremonious exit from the genre for its leading man.

Stay tuned for more info.

Shannon Lee & Co. To Produce The 'Definitive' Bruce Lee Biopic

It will be forty three years this July since the untimely death of martial arts legend and superstar Bruce Lee, the man whose short-lived career in film and television spawned a legacy that cultivated generations of martial arts sports and entertainment fans alike. Lee's life and legacy has always been an intriguing subject embraced through television and film via documentaries and fictional action packed dramas, and all these are subject to debate regarding whether or not how we all should feel about them.

That said, several more films have been in development for some time now, including actor and Hong Kong action star Donnie Yen's upcoming return to the fray as Lee's Wing Chun Grandmaster in Ip Man 3D, and in a new movie titled Birth Of The Dragon with George Nolfi tapped to direct. Updates on either of these projects are still pending so its best not to hold out too long as these things always take time. As such, we can now add at least one more biopic to that list courtesy from the late legend's daughter herself, Shannon Lee.

Deadline reports the new film from Lee's own Bruce Lee Entertainment which launched in 2014, will joined by Grey Matter Productions's own Lawrence Grey and Ben Everard, and veteran producer Janet Yang to produce and self-finance the film in an effort to construct the definitive biographical film about Lee's late father. The film will aim its focus on many of the uncovered areas of her father's life that Lee feels has yet to be observed in order to obtain a complete understanding of Lee's philosophies and artistry.

The film is just one of several in-house projects that have been underway at BLE for sometime now, including a TV show based on Bruce Lee's original ideas with Fast & Furious 6 helmer Justin Lin, a reality show to be produced by Keanu Reeves and Stephen Hamel, and a slate of novels, comic books and a mobile game. There's no word yet on who will direct the new film although the production is seeking a world-class filmmaker to take the lead and spearhead this ambitious production to its full realization.

Not that there's anything wrong with one more Bruce Lee-releated movie in the works - the man principally catapulted the martial arts action genre into the phenomenon it has since been. So, it'll be refreshing to see what Lee's own daughter and her team does with this immersive new venture.

Stay frosty.