Tony Leung and Shu Qi to Star in 潜伏 (Lurk)'s Big Screen Version?

I briefly mentioned this series in my 风声 (The Message) review, but it has curiously come back into the spotlight today, as the incredibly popular (and influential) 2009 TV drama 潜伏 (Lurk) is heading for the big screen, continuing the trend of period spy thrillers which is quickly becoming one of the most important in recent Mainland cinema. The original story - adapted from a Long Yi novel - was set in mid-1940s Tientsin (right in the midst of the Chinese Civil War), as unassuming Kuomintang officer Yu Zecheng (Sun Honglei) - in truth a Communist spy - uses his charms to climb up the KMT ladder while exploiting all his colleagues, not to mention marrying a snarky guerrilla fighter to keep his cover intact. While the characters will remain the same, the film - tentatively entitled 深藏 (roughly translated as Deep Cover) - will go in another direction, sort of suggesting that more than the sequel people were expecting, it will be a sort of spin-off.

The interesting tidbit is the cast, which is still not confirmed, but we're nonetheless dealing with big names. Gao Xixi - who's also producing the humongously epic historical drama 三国 (Three Kingdoms), set to become the most expensive Chinese TV series of all time - said that Sun Honglei will indeed star in the film version, but not as lead Yu Zecheng, role which is likely to be played by Tony Leung Chiu-Wai. Leung already received the script, and through his manager let him know of his interest in the film, so it might just be a matter of details. His co-lead, if Gao's wishes are fulfilled, will be Shu Qi - who, again, received the script, and if schedule doesn't get in the way should indeed sign. The film will start shooting in January.

[Hunan Tv]