JCVD
Jean-Claude Van Damme has never stopped working. The action legend continues to do films and some voiceover work as recently as last year, with films like The Gardener and his special DLC character in the video game Mortal Kombat 1. However, soon he will be returning to the world of martial arts movies. Deadline is reporting that the famous Muscles from Brussels will be attached to an upcoming action film that is about to hit the sales rounds at the American Film Market by The Veterans. Van Damme is set to star in a Yakuza-based film called Katana.
Katana
Katana will be coming from French writer, director and producer Jeremy Zag. Zag is known for creating the French animated Miraculous World franchise. Per Variety, Katana “centers on a former world champion fighter, now a father, who has left behind a dark past. He is forced to make one more journey into combat when his daughter is taken by the yakuza in Japan.” This takes Van Damme back to the fight tournament sub-genre that he broke out with in 1988’s Bloodsport. Joining Van Damme in the film will be other fighters, such as Armenian MMA fighter Melsik Baghdasaryan and French Muay Thai and kickboxing world champion Cyril Benzaquen.
The movie will be produced by the company Division Z, in partnership with Japan-based Wowow Bridge, who supports international productions that film in Japan. Their credits include the HBO Max series Tokyo Vice. The production is scheduled to begin next spring. The Veterans, which is handling the sales at the AFM, will have a script on hand for buyers, as well as a sizzle reel.
Zag is a longtime fan of martial arts and stated, “Jean-Claude Van Damme made me want to walk into a dojo. After thirty years of practicing Kyokushin karate at an elite level, directing him in Katana is a lifelong dream come true. I want to bring together the power of Bloodsport, the urgency of Taken and the energy of John Wick in a deeply human story: a father entering Japan’s criminal underworld to save his daughter. His experience is his strength. I want audiences to feel every impact, every breath, and the love that keeps him fighting.”
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