Despite a 2011 film starring Seth Rogen that proved a commercial and critical disappointment, Hollywood is trying to bring old school superhero The Green Hornet back to the big screen one more time.
Universal Pictures and Amasia Entertainment have teamed to develop a new feature film project titled The Green Hornet and Kato. Kato, you may recall, began as Green Hornet’s sidekick before later incarnations of the story gave the martial artist the respect he deserved and made him a true crime-fighting equal of Green Hornet.
“The Green Hornet is one of the most iconic and beloved superhero tales ever created, and it has entertained generations of fans in every form of storytelling,” Universal announced Thursday, saying they are “thrilled” to “launch an exciting new cinematic world for Britt Reid, Kato, and the Black Beauty, and we can’t wait to share it with global audiences soon.”
[ignvideo width=610 height=374 url=https://www.ign.com/videos/2010/11/24/the-green-hornet-trailer-2]
“Universal will be a great home for our new Green Hornet and Kato. The team at Universal shares our passion & enthusiasm for the property and will devote the resources to launch a truly global franchise,” said Amasia co-founder Michael Helfant. “And, it’s very cool that Universal was the original distributor of the 1940’s movie serials. Our goal is to make a film that existing fans will love, and new fans will love to discover. With Universal, it feels like we are merging the past and the future, creating a contemporary version of the franchise that is fresh and exciting while respecting its long legacy and history. I can’t wait!”
The Green Hornet, aka publisher Britt Reid, is a classic hero of pulp fiction, radio, film serials, and TV. Alongside Kato, he patrolled the streets in his tricked-out car, the Black Beauty.
Bruce Lee portrayed Kato in the 1960s Green Hornet TV series opposite Van Williams, which famously saw them cross-over with Adam West’s Batman. (Kato and Burt Ward’s Robin fought to a draw because the martial arts master Lee refused to lose to the Boy Wonder.)
[widget path=”global/article/imagegallery” parameters=”albumSlug=stars-who-were-almost-superheroes&captions=true”]
Michel Gondry directed the 2011 film, which starred Rogen, Jay Chou as Kato, Cameron Diaz, and Christoph Waltz. That project, released by Sony, had a very long gestation in development hell, going through numerous studios (including Universal), filmmakers (Kevin Smith), and actors (George Clooney, Jet Li, Jake Gyllenhaal) before Gondry brought it to the screen as an action-comedy.
In our review of Gondry’s film, we wrote: “While it may not ultimately prove memorable enough to launch a new film franchise, The Green Hornet is still a fun action-comedy and clever superhero satire that’s about as close to a cool summer movie as you’re going to get in the dead of winter.”
Source: IGN.com New Green Hornet and Kato Movie in Development