Two years ago, Vince brought us the news that Mickey Rourke had signed on to play Genghis Khan in a biopic of the Mongol leader written by Red Dawn scribe John Milius. While the Rourke version would have showcased Kahn as a Humane Society spokesman, looking out for his favorite killer pooches, it has sadly long since fizzled out. But now Milius’ dream project has been resuscitated with the RZA signed on to direct, hot off the buzz surrounding this week’s big release and his directorial debut, The Man with the Iron Fists.
As much as it would have been awesome to see a grizzled old white guy with a Chihuahua playing an Asian warrior, I have to imagine that the RZA may be better suited to build with Genghis Khan, the red suede Wally Don.
The Khan biopic has been in the works for years, with Milius (Apocalypse Now, Red Dawn), who wrote the script and is exec producing, originally on board to direct. One incarnation even had Mickey Rourke starring.
Khan, one of the great military figures in world history, is the ruler who united the Mongol tribes and conquered great parts of Asia and Eastern Europe in the early 13th century. The story will be told from the point of view of Khan’s son and grandson. (Via THR)
Sadly, Genghis won’t start filming in China until next year, but the RZA already has a project to keep him busy in the meantime. He’ll be directing the film No Man’s Land, which is about a thief who steals a mobster’s diamond, but it turns out that the diamond has magical powers or something. While I’m going to wait to actually see Man with the Iron Fists before I get my hopes up about RZA’s directorial future, I’m pulling for his success, because I’m praying it will open the doors to new possibilities for other legendary rappers like MC Serch and Aaron Carter.