'Kung Fu Panda' writers to pen 'Karate Kid' sequel (exclusive) By Borys Kit and Matthew Belloni
Cyrus Voris and Ethan Reiff are moving from kung fu to karate.
The duo, who wrote 2008's "Kung Fu Panda," have been tapped to pen the sequel to "The Karate Kid," Sony's surprise summer hit that Will Smith produced and starred his son Jaden Smith.
Budgeted in the $40 million range, "Karate Kid" has grossed nearly $300 million worldwide. A sequel was put in motion immediately, with the writing gig becoming one of the hottest assignments in town.
The update deviated from the 1984 original in that the latest story was set in China; a 1986 sequel saw the action go from the U.S. to Japan. The new sequel could try to keep the reversal going and seek to bring its cast to the U.S. Columbia would not reveal the setting or the plot for the new movie.
Smith is producing with Overbrook Entertainment partners James Lassiter and Ken Stovitz.
Voris and Reiff created Showtime's "Sleeper Cell" and made a big splash in features with "Nottingham," their upending of the Robin Hood myth that, after going through the Hollywood meat grinder, eventually was turned into this year's "Robin Hood."
The duo also wrote "Gil's All Fright Diner," which Barry Sonnenfeld and Kirk De Micco are co-directing for DreamWorks Animation.
The writers are repped by UTA, Field Entertainment and attorney Dave Feldman. http://heatvision.hollywoodreporter.com/2010/08/kung-fu-panda-karate-kid-sequel-jaden-smith-sony-will-smith.html