Xie Miao to Lead U.S.-Set Martial Arts Thriller for Stars Collective

Chinese martial arts star Xie Miao will headline an English-language action crime thriller set in the United States, Los Angeles-based Stars Collective confirmed on the sidelines of the Busan International Film Festival's Asian Contents & Film Market.

The company did not announce a title, a director, a start date or a budget. What it did announce is a bet: that a performer who built his career in Mandarin-language film and television can carry a U.S.-set genre picture built on physical performance.

Stars Collective co-CEO Nancy Xu, whose credits include "The Rip," "The Monkey" and "The Garfield Movie," will produce alongside Peter Luo ("Malignant," "Umma," "The Garfield Movie"), Wayne Wei Jiang ("The Meg") and Wei Junzi ("Eye for an Eye," "The Furious").

Who is Xie Miao?

Born in Beijing, Xie began as a child actor and won multiple wushu championship titles before breaking through opposite Jet Li. The two were cast as father and son in "The New Legend of Shaolin" and "My Father Is a Hero."

Xie holds a degree in ethnic sports and spent years working on martial arts television shows alongside his film career. That screen work led to the lead role in the "Eye for an Eye" franchise and, most recently, the action hit "The Furious" — the film Stars Collective now cites as the template for the new project.

The company says the untitled thriller will pursue the bruising, realistic martial arts style of "The Furious." The goal, according to the announcement, is to serve genre fans while raising Xie's profile as an international action lead.

What the producers say

Xu framed the casting in terms of physical capability rather than name recognition. "Xie Miao is the perfect artist to lead this fast-paced, adrenaline-fueled movie, with real physical requirements only a professional of his caliber can perform," she said.

Wei Junzi, who worked with Xie on both "Eye for an Eye" and "The Furious," promised a broader canvas. "Xie Miao is a powerful and distinctive action star. 'The Furious' showcased his appeal in hard-hitting action, and this new project will broaden the scope of the story and give his character more room, letting audiences around the world see even more of what he can do," Wei said.

Jiang said the film would keep the strongest elements of classic martial arts cinema while taking a more global approach to storytelling and production. "We hope to make an action film that transcends language and geography and resonates with audiences everywhere," he said.

What does this change for Stars Collective?

The Xie project is one piece of a slate the company has been filling through rights deals. Recent moves include:

• Mandarin-language remake rights to "Thelma," the 2024 Sundance breakout that became Magnolia Pictures' top-grossing release ever, now in development with the working title "Grandma, Please."
• An option on the nonfiction book "Fortunate Sons: The 120 Chinese Boys Who Came to America, Went to School, and Revolutionized an Ancient Civilization," being adapted with Oscar winner Donna Gigliotti ("Silver Linings Playbook," "Hidden Figures," "Shakespeare in Love").

Launched in 2020 and based in Los Angeles, Stars Collective runs operations in China and Japan. It lists more than 60 original properties in development, spanning film, animation, games, merchandise and immersive experiences. Its incubator counts 15 industry mentors — among them directors Sam Raimi, Jon M. Chu, Alan Taylor and Lu Chuan, screenwriter Anthony McCarten, actor-producer Huang Xiaoming and producers Donna Gigliotti, Paula Wagner, Patrick Wachsberger and Rob Minkoff. The company says over 320 filmmakers and artists from 45 countries count among its members.

Those are large numbers for a five-year-old company, and the announcement offers no evidence yet of how many of the 60-plus properties have reached production. The Xie Miao thriller, still in development with no director or timetable attached, will test whether the company can convert slate ambition into finished English-language product.