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A
Man Called Sanjuro 4
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"Ghost
of the Dragon: Bruce Lee's Unmade Projects"*
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| As
a child, I always thought of Bruce Lee's film career as
a straight line from The Big Boss (known to me
then under its American title, Fists of Fury) to
The Game of Death. I never even considered the
possibility that Lee would have been offered other roles
during his prime. In today's world, a big name star can
be attached to a film one day, only to drop out the next
due to script problems, money issues, or good old-fashioned
creative differences. As my familiarity with the Hollywood
rumor mill increased, I began to consider that these sorts
of things might have occurred with a superstar like Bruce
Lee. So, after a little digging, I came up with the following
list of actual film and television projects that were
tied to Bruce Lee at some point in his career, but for
one reason or another, were never made with "The
Little Dragon." Enjoy and ponder what might have
been. - Sanjuro 11/17/03 |
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| "Number
One Son" (USA 1965) |
"Don't call me inscrutable."
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After
viewing footage of Lee giving a kung fu demonstration
at a karate tournament, television producer William Dozier
cast the future superstar in this update of the "Charlie
Chan" series with Lee playing the titular role of
Chan's son. Lee himself referred to the character as a
sort of Chinese James Bond, and considered it a possibly
revolutionary role despite its stereotypical origins.
But when the "Batman" TV show became a hit,
the Charlie Chan spinoff was scrapped in favor of recasting
Lee as Kato in the short-lived series known as "The
Green Hornet." The rest, as they say, is history. |
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| "Charlie
and Chan" (USA 1967) |
"Uh...what was my line?" |
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The
bizarre fixation with Charlie Chan continues! After the
network cancelled "The Green Hornet," Lee was
being considered for "Charlie and Chan," a variation
on "I Spy" which was to star Lee as Charlie,
a kung fu master, who would team up on occasion with Chan
(or Chandler, presumably) a Caucasian ski instructor.
For obvious reasons, the series never materialized. |
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| The
Silent Flute (USA 1969-70) |
"Roman Polanski is a great man; he loves children." |
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Bruce
Lee was extremely excited about doing this feature film
with screenwriter Sterling Silliphant. James Coburn was
set to costar, and filming was ready to begin in Japan
and India at various points in time. Lee even hoped to
have Roman Polanski helm the project after visiting the
director in Switzerland for a private marital arts lesson.
It is unclear why the film never came to pass with Lee
in the starring role, but The Silent Flute was
eventually made without him in 1979 under the title Circle
of Iron. It starred David Carradine, who was no stranger
to replacing Lee… |
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| "The
Warrior" (USA 1971) |
"I will kick your ass after dinner." |
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One
project that Lee was keen on doing was "The Warrior,"
a one-hour television drama that he had helped develop
for a network. The show's premise involved a disgraced
Shaolin disciple who leaves China for the American West,
encountering plenty of cowboys and Indians along the way.
Bruce Lee jokingly referred to his character as "Hopalong
Wong," but was dead set on obliterating Asian stereotypes
with this unique, cross-cultural show. In modern features
like Shanghai Noon and Once Upon a Time in China
and America, the subject matter may seem quaint, but
in Lee's time, it was quite daring. In fact, for some
people it was too daring: producers ultimately balked
at the idea of casting Lee because he was considered "too
Chinese" for the role of a Chinese man! The project
eventually came to fruition under a different title with
a Caucasian actor in the lead role—you might know
it as the popular television show "Kung Fu,"
starring David Carradine. In 1986, a sequel project, "Kung
Fu: The Movie" was released direct to television,
and featured Lee's own son, Brandon, in a supporting role!
Ah, irony. |
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| Yellow
Faced Tiger (HK 1972) |
"Chuck Norris? Yeah, I owned him." |
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Alternatively
referred to as Stern-Faced Tiger, this film was
to be the third collaboration between Lo Wei and Bruce
Lee. However, Lo Wei's unprofessional behavior on and
off the set of their previous films (among other things,
Lo told the press that he taught Lee how to fight) caused
the relationship to fall apart. With plenty of hurt feelings
and bruised egos to go around, the two parted ways, and
Lo Wei eventually made the film with Chuck Norris, Sylvia
Chang, and Don Wong Tao. In some markets, the film is
known as Slaughter in San Francisco or Karate
Cop. |
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| Untitled
Shaw Brothers Film and Untitled Golden Harvest Film (HK
1973) |
"Take this, Carradine!" |
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Everyone
knows that Lee had his unfinished opus The Game of
Death waiting in the wings at the time of his death.
However, little is known about the other two films Lee
considered appearing in after Enter the Dragon.
The Shaw Brothers movie was to be directed by Chor Yuen
and was presumably a period piece since Lee sported numerous
kung fu style garments and weaponry for the costume fittings
(see photo). The premise of the Golden Harvest film is
even more obscure, but it reportedly would have co-starred
Fong Sai-Yuk's Josephine Siao Fong-Fong, who was
at the time just graduating from Seton Hall! Sadly, Lee
never got the chance to make either film. |
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*DISCLAIMER:
The writer would like to reiterate the fact that these were
REAL projects and not a wish list or early April Fool's joke.
This list was cobbled together from a variety of reliable
sources, but if you would like to quibble with the writer
about the accuracy of this piece (or just say hi), you may
reach him here.
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All photos
courtesy of Warner Bros and 20th Century Fox
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