'Monster Hunt' reshoots after dropping actor Kai Ko

By Zhang Rui China.org.cn, February 3, 2015

Jing Boran [Photo/Xinhua] 

 

"Tiny Times 4," directed by Guo Jingming, also had to re-shoot after scenes featuring Ko were deleted following his Beijing drug arrest. Ko has already lost endorsement deals with Canon, KFC and Quaker Oats, among others.

Taiwan producer and manager Angie Chai, who headed Kai Ko's management agency, said she understands the studio's choice and thanked the studio leadership, the movie's director and the film's lead actress Bai Baihe for their understanding and tolerance. "We hope 'Monster Hunt' can be a great success, and thank you again for giving Ko an opportunity to play such a great role, but we let you all down."

Kai Ko recently appeared on a Taiwan TV show where he talked about his experience being detained for drug use. "I feel a lot of pain over this, and I will never allow myself to make that mistake again, otherwise I'll go to hell."

Zhang Han, general manager of Edko Films Ltd.'s Beijing film distribution branch, said that reshooting will be difficult and costly, but it will be the best choice for all parties involved. "Other relevant actors will be summoned back to rework it all over again," he said. The reshooting will start after China's Lunar New Year and will last for about one and a half months.

According to Zhang, the studio is seriously considering the possibility of including Ko's scenes in the film's future DVD release as an alternate cut. He also said that the studio may collaborate with Ko in future projects if there are any appropriate roles and opportunities for him.

"Monster Hunt" was originally scheduled to be released during the Spring Festival season in February, but the film has been rescheduled for a summer release to allow time for the reshooting.

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