Alibaba founder and chairman Jack Ma has just dropped a poster for his upcoming film GSD 功守道 where he stars alongside a formidable ensemble of action heavyweights. The eleven martial artists that are featured include legends like Jet Li, Donnie Yen, Wu Jing, Sammo Hung and Thai actor Tony Jaa, choreographer and filmmakers Yuen Woo-ping and Tony Ching Siu-tung, professional boxer Zou Shiming, former sumo-wrestler Asashōryū Akinori as well as actors Jacky Heung and Natasha Liu Bordizzo.
It’s an incredible mix of talent and who better to make this happen than the unconventional businessman philanthropist who has a track record for pushing the envelope. It’s honestly a bit surreal to see Jack Ma foraying into a martial arts movie, but he’s actually a long-time practitioner of taichi.
He posted on weibo, “That one night….. that one dream!” The film is meant to pay tribute to Chinese martial artists and to promulgate the sport. I’m not sure whether there’s going to be an actual storyline or whether it’ll end up being purely a showcase of badassery (I’d be happy with either). According to reports, none of the actors accepted a fee to participate in the project. It is expected to be released on November 11 12, 2017 exclusively on Youku.
