Anyone who is familiar with the Romance of The Three Kingdoms, would define the Battle and Red Cliff the watershed of the epic novel. Historically, the battle is claimed to be have involved over half a million men. It is the aftermath of this battle that moulded the great empire of China into the 3 kingdoms of shu, wei and wu.

I have nothing to write further about this film because it has not been made. YET, I am compelled to write. Because today, I read in some internet that Chinese filmaker John Woo is poised to be sign as the director for the film, starring Chow Yun Fatt and Tony Leung, slated to be release in 2008.

I will try to keep this updated to any news I hear about it.

- 29 April 2007 -

Chow Yun-Fat was originally selected for the role of Zhou Yu. However, he pulled out on 13 April 2007, just as shooting began. Chow explained that he received a revised script a week earlier and was not given sufficient time to prepare, but producer Terence Chang disputed this, saying that he could not work with Chow because the film’s Hollywood insurer opposed 73 clauses in Chow’s contract. Chow was replaced by Tony Leung Chiu Wai, who had previously rejected the role of Zhuge Liang.

- 17 May 2007 -

There’s been another twist in the casting for John Woo’s historical epic. A publicist for one of the film’s investors claims Chow Yun-Fat has agreed to rejoin his old friend’s star-studded cast. He is likely to play one of the smaller roles and has yet to sign the contract. The Hong Kong star generated negative headlines after quitting the cast of the high profile epic. Previous reports say he was dropped from the cast because he put forward “nearly one hundred unreasonable demands.”