Monkey Peaches landed two scoops today on possible upcoming projects for two of Hollywood's biggest directors:
"American producer Peter Loehr is making preparation for "Judge Dee", based on the same name novel series. Written by Dutch diplomat Robert Hans van Gulik, Judge Dee is a series of fictions about the real person, Dee, or Di Renjie, from China's Tang Dynasty. John McTiernan is set to direct the big screen adaptation, which will be shot at Hengdian World Studios.
Peter Loehr told Shanghai based newspaper Jiefang Daily that he had three criteria to whoever would play Judge Dee - Chinese, young and speaking fluent English. Since 1998, Peter Lowhr and his Imar Film have produced a series of films with Chinese director Zhang Yang, including Xizao and Quitting. Their latest work is Sunflower, starring Joan Chen and Sun Haiying, currently under production in Beijing
Meanwhile, according to Chinese paper Chengdu Economic Daily, writer producer and director Anthony Minghella went to Hengdian World Studios to scout locations for his upcoming project The Firework-Maker's Daughter. Based on the same name children's book by Aussie writer Philip Pullman, it tells a fairytale set "in a country far to the east", where "Chulak and his talking white elephant Hamlet help Lila seek the Royal Sulphur from the sacred volcano so that she can become a master maker of fireworks like her father".
It is still unknown which role he would play in the project, director or producer. Along with Renee Zellweger, Anthony Minghella attended the Beijing première of Cold Mountain on Monday, and at Hengdian World Studios, he visited director Chen Kaige and his wife actress Chen Hong on the set of Wu Ji / The Promise which is currently under filming"
Thanks to 'Antoine'
