Action director/icon John Woo to tackle Flying Tigers in next World War II epic

Hong Kong action icon John Woo will direct a China-U.S. co-production about the Flying Tigers, according to the community website GoKunming. The film, titled Flying Tiger Heroes, will start shooting this year, and is expected to cost $100 million, making it the most expensive Chinese film made to date, according to the report.

A signing ceremony for the film was held in Beijing on July 3rd, with Lion Rock Productions, Fengde Dadi Culture and the Propaganda Bureau of the Standing Committee of the Yunnan provincial government all signing off on a cooperation agreement for the project.

Woo said the movie will feature the most spectacular aerial battle scenes ever seen in Chinese cinema, adding that the film would highlight the spirit of Yunnan culture as well as Chinese heroes from World War II and the special U.S.-China relationship that led to the founding of the Flying Tigers. Officially known as the American Volunteer Group, the Yunnan-based Flying Tigers flew missions against Japanese bombers and fighters from December 1941 to July 1942 in southern China and Myanmar, then known as Burma.