UPDATED: Stephen Chow drops Kato role in ‘Green Hornet’

MTV has spotted an interesting item on SpoilerTV regarding a casting call for the role of Kato in Seth Rogen’s THE GREEN HORNET. It says producers are looking for a male in his 20s to early 40s and that martial arts experience isn’t required.

The last I heard, Stephen Chow was still planning to fill the role while Seth Rogen would play crime-fighting partner Britt Reid. The only significant change had been that Chow had stepped down from directing and the responsibility had fallen to arty filmmaker Michel Gondry. Although no official statement has been made it now it appears that Chow will not be playing Kato either.

Considering that Chow’s involvement was the best thing this project had going for it, this can’t be considered a good thing for anyone except aspiring Kato’s out there. There are rumors that other big-name Hollywood actors may be appearing in the film including Adam Sandler and Cameron Diaz. Call me biased but you could put in a dozen of Hollywood’s top comic actors together and they wouldn’t measure up to Stephen Chow at his best.

Comic actor Seth Rogen (PINEAPPLE EXPRESS) has been trying to get a big-screen adaptation of ’60s-era TV series THE GREEN HORNET made with himself in the lead as masked superhero Britt Reid and KUNG FU HUSTLE director and star Stephen Chow as his sidekick Kato, a role originally played with flair by Bruce Lee.

With Chow out of the picture, this could significantly alter the direction the film takes given the loss of Chow’s masterful comic instincts, physical skills and ability to mimic Bruce Lee in a respectful way. I’m certain the role would have been tailored for Chow so I expect rewrites to be in the works.

This news will hardly be seen as a loss for Chow as he is still at the top of his game in Hong Kong and mainland China. He’s currently at work on an animated sequel to the family-friendly sci-fi drama CJ7 and is planning a new adaptation of the Chinese literary classic “Journey to the West.” (As a commenter below mentioned, he is also attached to a KUNG FU HUSTLE sequel but it was announced back in 2005 and there is nothing to suggest it has moved beyond the development stage since.)

Update: In a statement, a spokesman for Columbia Pictures has come forward to confirm that Stephen Chow will not be playing Kato. “There was a mutual and amicable decision by both sides to move on. We are out now to cast a new Kato and remain fully committed to Michel Gondry’s exciting vision for the film, which will begin production this September.” (Source: Entertainment Weekly)

Tags: Bruce Lee, Stephen Chow, The Green Hornet (2010), upcoming