Only Chang Chen is Returning for ‘Brotherhood of Blades II’

The 2014 movie “Brotherhood of Blades” will have a sequel that would be shown in China in summer. But among the major cast of the martial arts movie genre, which is struggling, only Taiwanese actor Chang Chen would be part of the upcoming film.

Reprises Role

Chang Chan will play again the character of Shen Lian, a low-ranking warrior in Imperial’s Assassins. The group is the royal secret police organization in the 17th-century Ming court in the upcoming film “Brotherhood of Blades II,” China Daily reported. The other major actors are new, including Yang Mi, a rising actress who plays a mysterious painter in the film.

Because it is a period film, the costumes and weapons used by the actors were based on real objects in the Ming Dynasty that ran from 1368 through 1644. The blade props that the actors used were inspired by swords used by the soldiers of Qi Jiguang, the court general of the Ming Dynasty, said Lu Yang, director of the franchise.

Chang said the script of the film, which opens on Aug. 11, is a deeper exploration of humanity and would relive the turbulence of conspiracies among the Chinese monarchs.

Chang’s Movie Career

Chang’s portfolio includes playing the role of Dark Cloud who captivated the heart of Zhang Ziyi in “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon,” Variety noted. His first role was in the 1991 movie “A Brighter Summer Day” when he was only 14. In the same movie was his father, Chang Kuo-chu, and brother, Chang Han, who are also actors.

When Chang got married in 2013, Taiwanese director Wong Kai Wai promised the actor he would not cut again Chang’s role in a film which happened when the actor played the role of Razor in “The Grandmaster.”