By Back in 2017 came the news that a film adaptation of the acclaimed Hong Kong-set 2012 open world action-adventure video game “Sleeping Dogs” was in the works, with Asian action legend Donnie Yen set for the lead.
In the game, Will Yun Lee voiced the lead role of Wei Shen, an undercover cop in Hong Kong on a mission to take down a powerful criminal organization – the Sun On Yee Triad.
The game was essentially “Grand Theft Auto”-lite but with the open world setting being the city of Hong Kong – a rarity at the time as almost all modern day-set open world games were set in U.S. cities and locations.
At last report back in 2021, Yen indicated the film had been stuck in development hell for a few years but he was still hopeful it would happen. Now though, he’s changed his tune.
Speaking with Polygon this week, he says the film adaptation of “Sleeping Dogs” is dead:
“I spent a lot of time and did a lot of work with these producers, and I even invested some of my own money into obtaining the drafts and some of the rights. I waited for years. Years. And I really want to do it. I have all these visions in my head, and unfortunately… I don’t know, you know how Hollywood goes, right? I spent many, many years on it. It was an unfortunate thing.”
The game was acclaimed for its story, characters, city recreation and combat elements though some of the animation was subject to criticism. Sadly a remake or remaster of the title is unlikely as the developer, Vancouver studio United Front Games, has been shuttered.
The post Donnie Yen: “Sleeping Dogs” Film Is Dead appeared first on Dark Horizons.
