Of all the flimsy posts I’ve written about in the past, this is by far the flimsiest, but I just can’t resist. I came across a rumour that Jackie Chan was being considered for Ong Bak 4, and after digging a little further I found that Sahamongkol Films’ head honcho Somsak Techaratanaprasert had indeed expressed an interest in making this a reality a few months back.

While the odds of something like this actually happening are slim, both Jackie Chan and Tony Jaa are great admirers of each others’ work. Jaa spent his childhood emulating Chan’s performances, and Chan requested that Jaa be cast in Rush Hour 3. That said, I’m torn on this idea. One of the things that I enjoyed about Ong Bak 2 was the fidelity to its vision. Jackie Chan is so popular that having him in a sequel could be distracting. On the other hand, I can see this kind of move being exactly the kind of thing that can force Chan into delivering the goods. Is this confrontation between the old school and the new just what action cinema needs, or would this dream project just reflect badly on all involved?