"City Hunter" is having another live action movie and this time Huang Xiaoming plays the role Ryo Saeba, previously played by Lee Min Ho in its Korean adaptation. The new adaptation is reported to reach the big screen in December 2018 and possibly at a later date in China. Cheng Jiake from "Detective Chinatown" will be writing the script and Stanley Tong will be the executive producer.
"City Hunter" is originally a Japanese manga by Tsukasa Hojo, who was not only the writer but also the illustrator. It was published in Weekly Shonen Jump for six years and compiled into 35 tankobon volumes by Shueisha. It is considered to be one of Weekly Shonen Jump's best-selling series of all time with more than 35 million copies sold in Japan alone. It has also been voted as the 19th "Most Powerful" manga series featured in the same magazine. And in 2005, it ranked number 66 of 100 most popular animated television series in TV Asahi's poll.
The manga has a total of four anime series adaptation, an anime film, and numerous video and TV specials. Even actor Jackie Chan starred in its Hong Kong movie adaptation in 1993 and as mentioned Lee Min Ho in its Korean TV series adaptation in 2011. Lee Min Ho was able to bag numerous awards for his portrayal of Ryo Saeba, including Best Actor and Star Award in the 4th Korean Drama Awards and the Top Excellence Award: Actor in Drama Special, Top 10 Stars and Popularity Award at the SBS Drama Awards. His co-star Goo Ha-ra won the New Star Award for the series "City Hunter"
The original manga centers on the life of Ryo Saeba who is a private eye and a sniper. He is based in Tokyo and known for his excellent marksmanship and excessive obsession with the opposite sex. He is hired as a bodyguard for his clients.
