When Todd pose the question "Will The Next Great Screen Fighter Please Stand Up?" for his ScreenAnarchy-O-Meter column, the guy that immediately pops into my mind is British actor Scott Adkins. For those not in the know, Scott is an awesome martial artist as well as a capable actor who made a name for himself in the direct-to-DVD market. He has traded punches with Jackie Chan and Jet Li before in bit parts but he's slowing climbing up the ranks in Hollywood with a sizable role in the upcoming X-Men Origins: Wolverine. Among his other projects is Ninja where Scott gets a crack at his first major lead role and I wouldn't be surprise if this is his breakthrough to action stardom. Ninja is directed by Isaac Florentine, who has work with Scott before in Special Forces, Undisputed 2 and most recently, The Shepherd: Border Patrol with Jean-Claude Van Damme. A poster and some stills has been posted by the folks at Scott Adkins Fanz. Heres a brief synopsis from IMDB:
A westerner named Casey, studying Ninjutsu in Japan, is asked by the Sensei to return to New York to protect the legendary Yoroi Bitsu, an armored chest that contains the weapons of the last Koga Ninja.
The martial arts film is currently in post-production and its set for a 2009 release.