Jackie Chan and Johnny Knoxville will star in an upcoming movie titled "Skiptrace," and the franchise notably represents what could be the future of collaboration between Hollywood and China.
The evidence lies in the way the film has pieced the parts of the movie and the roles of the characters. Chan takes the role of a Hong Kong detective on the screen, while Knoxville assumes a brash American gambler Connor Watts.
However, Chan, who remains a massive draw in mainland China employed a different tactic this time. In "Skiptrace" as well as other latest installations, he has been casting American stars in Chinese productions so as to help them cross over to the west, Inverse reported.
In the past as well, Chan has tried to break into the Hollywood mainstream for years with fickling results. The best efforts seemed to come when he partnered with American co-stars like Chris Tucker and Owen Wilson in "Rush Hour" and "Shanghai" movies respectively.
Apparently, the "Rush Hour" actor has now taken the tactic to another new level. Last year, Adrien Brody and John Cusack starred in the period adventure "Dragon Blade," and currently, director Renny Harlin and actor Knoxville are trying their chance with "Skiptrace."
Knoxville plays the role of an innocent gambler who takes on a trip to Macau witnessing a murder thereafter that puts Chinese gangsters on his tail. It becomes the responsibility of a Hong Kong detective (Chan) to save Knoxville. The development fixes the pair together only for them to end up travelling across all of China to save their lives.
According to Film Stage, Chan has reduced in his output in the entertainment arena as he nears the age of 62. Nevertheless, he seems to be jumping head-first into action genre while at the same time breaking cultural differences. Noticeably, Chan's movies like "Rush hour" sought every joke from cultural differences which is not the case with his latest installments.
Also starring in the movie are Eric Tsang, Bingbing Fan, Eve Torres and Winston Chao. The film will open in Chinese theatres in February. No release date, however, is in place for North America and the general western markets.
"Skiptrace's" trailer is available online. Watch it here;
