Hong Kong director John Woo helped kick off the Hong Kong action movie revolution before heading stateside to make movies like Face/Off, Mission: Impossible II, and Paycheck. Now, 18 years later, he’s set to return, directing Joel Kinnaman in a new project called Silent Night, Deadline reports.
The film will star Joel Kinnaman (The Suicide Squad, The Killing), as a father avenging the death of his son. The film will reportedly feature no dialogue at all–hence the title, Silent Night.
Woo is best known for stylish Hong Kong action films like Hard Boiled, The Killer, and A Better Tomorrow, many of which star Chow Yun-Fat. These influential movies made heavy use of slow-motion and repeating cuts, and cemented hallmarks of Woo’s style, including heroes wielding dual pistols, and lots and lots of doves. So many doves. After making his mark in Hong Kong, Woo spent about a decade directing American action movies like those above, before returning to Chinese cinema.
Joel Kinnaman recently starred in The Suicide Squad, and is currently starring in the AppleTV+ series For All Mankind. The Suicide Squad hit theaters and HBO Max this summer. In our review, we called it “one of the most fun, heartfelt, and surprising modern DC movies we’ve seen yet.”
Silent Night is in the early stages, so other casting information and the movie’s release window have not yet been announced.
