Four years since its announcement, the new "Journey to the West" movie, starring actor Zhang Jinlai, has finally started production under the helm of Chinese director Han Yan.

Zhang, better known by his stage name Liu Xiao Ling Tong (meaning "Little Six-Year Old Child"), is most famous for his role as the Monkey King in the 1986 television phenomenon "Journey to the West." The series has enjoyed over 3,000 reruns on Chinese TV and has received 6 billion views in the three decades since it aired.

Zhang announced the film back in April 2015. But the film has not materialized. Fans have repeatedly asked Zhang for updates, while others have even mocked him for his unkept promises.

But on Dec. 2, the actor wrote on his Weibo account that after years of careful preparations, production had finally started thanks to director Han Yan and his team. He even posted an image of him in his classic Monkey King appearance, while also advertising for actors to audition for roles.

Ma Dehua, who played the pig demon Zhu Bajie in the TV series, has also been confirmed to reprise his role in the new film with help of motion capture technology. There have been no other actors confirmed yet, though fans are eager to see other actors from TV series reprise their roles.

"We have prepared for this for more than a year," director Han Yan wrote on his social network account. "I grew up with 'Journey to the West', and the Monkey King was my earliest perception of what a hero is. So, making this film is a new experience and sacred journey for me."

Han started his directorial career in 2002. In 2015, his film "Go Away Mr. Tumor," based on the life of the late comic book artist Xiong Dun, received critical acclaim, grossed 511 million yuan, and was the Chinese entry for Best Foreign Language Film at the 88th Academy Awards. However, despite his directorial prowess, his involvement in the Monkey King project had been kept secret and the revelation has come as a surprise to many. 

There have been several other adaptations of the novel in recent years including the wildly successful blockbusters "Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons" by Stephen Chow and "Monkey King" by Cheang Pou-Soi. Zhang has not hidden his contempt for these adaptations and has repeatedly hurled criticism towards them. However, in 2018, Zhang faced a backlash after he made a series of self-righteous remarks and bizarrely attempted to promote his own film at the funeral of Yang Jie, the original TV series director.

The new information also indicates that the film's American producers at Paramount Pictures are no longer involved in the project. Although Ruyi Films, a Chinese film company, have stayed in the project, Paramount Pictures have not appeared in any new updates. China.org.cn has approached Paramount Pictures for more clarification, but a spokesperson for the company said they don't have available information to provide for now.

When the project was announced in 2015, Paramount Pictures were in agreement to co-produce, provide special effects support and manage international distribution of the film. Rob Moore, former vice chairman of Paramount Pictures, publicly voiced support for the project, but he stepped down and exited the studio in September 2016. Prior to Han's inclusion, Ke Liming, a producer of the film, hoped that Joe and Anthony Russo, who directed "Avengers: Infinity War" and "Avengers: Endgame" could direct the new Monkey King movie. 

The film's release date has not yet been set. 

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