John Woo's historical epic "Red Cliff" is to be released in North American movie theaters later this year, marking the director's first US release in six years.

Magnet Releasing says it has bought the American rights and will release it this fall. The film will be released in Canada at the same time.

"Red Cliff," about an ancient Chinese battle of the same name, was Hong Kong native Woo's first Chinese-language film since the 1992 action thriller "Hard-Boiled." The $80 million movie starring Cannes best actor winner Tony Leung and Japanese-Taiwanese heartthrob Takeshi Kaneshiro, was a massive hit in Asia, earning more than $100 million in Japan alone, according to Magnet Releasing.

The two-part film will be released in North America as a single instalment for Western audiences but both Asian instalments will be issued on DVD and video-on-demand services.

The US deal is Woo's first release in the US since "Paycheck," the 2003 sci-fi thriller starring Ben Affleck and Uma Thurman. While "Mission: Impossible II" was Woo's big US hit in 2000, earning $215 million, his two Hollywood follow-ups were less successful, the 2002 war film "Windtalkers" raking in $41 million and "Paycheck" $54 million.

(China Daily/AP May 20, 2009)