'Into the Badlands' Star Daniel Wu on Difficulty of Bringing Hong Kong-Style Stunts to TV

“Into the Badlands” premieres Sunday on AMC, bringing with it a level of martial arts action seldom seen on American television screens.

Series star Daniel Wu was curious as to why such shows were not more popular in this country, at first.

“We wondered that until we started making the show,” Wu told TheWrap. “It’s so hard to do that level of action on a TV schedule. We’re basically working on eight days per episode. There’s two pretty big fights per episode and it takes a lot of time to get those fights put together.”

Also Read: Why 'Into the Badlands' Could Kick Ass After Long Line of Kung Fu TV Flops

Wu plays Sunny, the top soldier for a ruthless tyrant named Quinn (Marton Csokas) in a post-apocalyptic world. Quinn is the most powerful of seven Barons who rule this new world, with each Baron controlling an army of martial artists called clippers.

Wu said that Quinn and Sunny have a bizarre father-son relationship, which causes friction with Quinn’s real son, Ryder (Oliver Stark).

“Quinn has raised [Sunny] to be the son he always wanted, whereas Ryder became kind of the loser son,” he said. “I think Quinn transferred all of his love and affection to Sunny, which obviously built up a lot of anger and resentment in Ryder.”

Also Read: 'Into the Badlands' Review: AMC Martial-Arts Drama Is Slick, Dumb Fun

Series creators, writers, executive producers and showrunners Alfred Gough and Miles Millar said they are eager to explore Quinn’s backstory.

“Quinn is sort of the fucked up Horatio Alger of this world,” Gough told TheWrap. “He started off as a slave, or what we call cogs, in this world. And pulled himself up to become a Baron.”

“He’s incredibly likable,” Millar told TheWrap. “There’s a reason why he’s a Baron. He’s incredibly charismatic, he’s incredibly powerful. So how does someone like that gain power and keep power? These are all things we’ll explore in the first season.”

Also Read: 'Avatar's' Stephen Lang Joins AMC's 'Into the Badlands,' Returns to 'Salem' (Exclusive)

Gough and Millar also said they are lifelong fans of the Kung Fu genre and were excited to bring it to a television audience.

“Miles and I always loved martial arts films,” Gough said. “One of the first things we did when we were in film school together was go to a Jackie Chan movie marathon. We wanted to do a show that we would be the first fans of.”

Ironically, Gough and Millar would get the chance to work with Chan when they co-wrote the screenplay for the 2000 film “Shanghai Noon” and the 2003 sequel “Shanghai Knights.” But “Into the Badlands” represents something completely different, especially from a visual standpoint.

Also Read: 'Into the Badlands' Star Daniel Wu Talks 'Walking Dead'-Size Ambitions

“It’s a very distressed future,” Millar said. “It’s a sweaty, dirty world. But actually it’s all very beautiful in the sense that nature is sort of preeminent. So you see that power of nature and the physical beauty of nature as well.”

“Into the Badlands” premieres Sunday, Nov. 15 at 10 p.m./9c on AMC.

AMC's 'Turn: Washington Spies' Stars Strike a Stately Pose in Season 2 Character Portraits (Exclusive Photos)

Abe Woodhull (Jamie Bell) - A reluctant member of the Culper spy ring, Woodhull lives among the occupying redcoats on his family's farm, gleaning useful information and passing it on to his friend Ben Tallmadge. Though married, he began an affair with his childhood sweetheart and was forced to kill a friendly British soldier in order to maintain his cover.
James Minchin III/AMC
Anna Strong (Heather Lind) - After believing her husband to have been unjustly killed, Anna joined the Culper spy ring and began an affair with Abe. After finding out her husband was still alive, Anna chose to stay with Abe.
James Minchin III/AMC
Ben Tallmadge (Seth Numrich) - A captain in Washington's army, Ben cajoled his childhood friend Abe into becoming a vital component of the Culper spy ring. His brother died while being held captive, motivating him even further to do everything in his power to defeat the British.
James Minchin III/AMC
Caleb Brewster (Daniel Henshall) - A courier for his friends Abe and Ben, Caleb is known for his sense of humor. His father was murdered by Captain John Simcoe during a standoff between the British and the Continental Army.
James Minchin III/AMC
Robert Rogers (Angus Macfadyen) - Former member of the Queen's Rangers, Rogers was stripped of his command near the end of the first season, despite edging closer and closer to sniffing out the leaders of the Culper ring.
James Minchin III/AMC
Judge Richard Woodhull (Kevin R. McNally) - Abe's father, Richard is a fervent supporter of the British and a civilian liaison for Major Hewlett. Though at times suspicious of his son's beliefs, he is unaware of Abe's involvement with the rebels.
James Minchin III/AMC
Captain John Simcoe (Samuel Roukin) - A captain in the British Army, Simcoe is obsessed with Anna Strong and fervently believes Abe to be involved with the rebels. He was arrested after he murdered Caleb's innocent father during an intense standoff.
James Minchin III/AMC
Major Hewlett (Burn Gorman) - A gentleman soldier through and through, Hewlett strongly believes in keeping cordial relations with the colonists and will not tolerate brutality or insubordination within his command.
James Minchin III/AMC
General George Washington (Ian Kahn) - Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army, Washington is one of the few people to know the identities of all members in the Culper ring. His successful crossing of the Delaware and surprise attack on a Hessian garrison was due largely to Abe's skills as a spy.
James Minchin III/AMC
Benedict Arnold (Owain Yeoman) - A new character on Season 2, Arnold is a general in the Continental Army and one of Washington's most trusted soldiers.
James Minchin III/AMC
Mary Woodhull (Meegan Warner) - Young in features but middle-aged in temperament, Mary comes from a Tory family based out of Suffolk County. Originally, she was betrothed to marry Abe’s brother Thomas, but he died soon after their first and only meeting. A new arrangement was proposed by Richard Woodhull and after some careful coaxing, Abe married her in his brother’s stead. Her life revolves around Abe and their son, Thomas. She counts on Abe to provide for and protect them.
James Minchin III/AMC
Major John André (JJ Feild) - André is the head of British Intelligence and bases his operations out of New York. Far more versed in counter espionage tactics than his counterpart, Ben Tallmadge, he is experienced and cunning in his ability to take down targets. Known for his keen eye for human weakness, André employs a variety of methods to turn sources and isn’t above using sex, money and the promise of power to get his man.
James Minchin III/AMC

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The sophomore season of the period spy series premieres Monday, April 13 at 9 p.m.

Abe Woodhull (Jamie Bell) - A reluctant member of the Culper spy ring, Woodhull lives among the occupying redcoats on his family's farm, gleaning useful information and passing it on to his friend Ben Tallmadge. Though married, he began an affair with his childhood sweetheart and was forced to kill a friendly British soldier in order to maintain his cover.

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AMC's 'Turn: Washington Spies' Stars Strike a Stately Pose in Season 2 Character Portraits (Exclusive Photos)

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