If you cast your mind back to last September, you might recall that Matt Damon was considering starring in China-set epic **The Great Wall. The film, which has had some development difficulties, has now caught a break as Damon is on board alongside Willem Dafoe, Pedro Pascal, Andy Lau, Jing Tian, Zhang Hanyu, Eddie Peng, Lu Han, Lin Gengxin, Zheng Kai, Chen Xuedong, Huang Xuan and Wang Junkai{
Zhang Yimou is directing this one, which finds soldiers in 15th century China searching for gunpowder and discovering much more. But though they initially think that the wall, still under construction, is the most amazing thing they’ll encounter, that’s only the start of it – as the structure is being put in place not to just keep out invaders, but also mystical creatures.
Legendary boss Thomas Tull conceived the initial idea as part of a plan to push into global co-productions with his Legendary East arm. But after delays and director/cast swaps (both Ed Zwick and Henry Cavill were attached for a while), he’s had to wait for the details to come together. Max Brooks wrote the current draft of the script, and Yimou should be kicking off shooting at the end of the month. Universal, under its deal with Legendary, will put the movie out on November 23 next year in the States and January 13, 2017 here.