Lionsgate has acquired worldwide rights to the martial arts action film “The Furious,” excluding the Chinese mainland, Hong Kong, and Macau, from XYZ Films, the studio announced on Tuesday. Lionsgate plans to release the movie in theaters in 2026.
Per Lionsgate, the movie “revives the golden age of Hong Kong action filmmaking, emphasizing authentic martial arts, hand-to-hand combat, and real-world intensity from an international ensemble of elite fighters.” The story follows a tradesman named Wang Wei who is “thrust into a deadly world of corruption and violence” and his daughter is abducted. He teams with a relentless journalist to fight their way through an international criminal network.
The film had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival in September as part of the Midnight Madness section of programming.
“The Furious” is the feature debut from veteran action choreographer Kenji Tanigaki (“Rurouni Kenshin”). The film was written by Mak Tin Shu, Lei Zhilong, Shum Kwan Sin, and Frank Hui, and produced by Bill Kong of Edko Films Ltd., alongside Hui and Shan Tam. Executive producers include Nate Bolotin, Todd Brown, Maxime Cottray, Nick Spicer, and Aram Tertzakian of XYZ Films, with Michael J. Werner and Xu Tianfu.
The international cast features Xie Miao, Joe Taslim (“The Raid”), Yang Enyou, Brian Le, Yayan Ruhian (“John Wick: Chapter 3—Parabellum”), Jija Yanin (“Chocolate”), Joey Iwanaga, Sahajak Boonthanakit and Manatsanun Phanlerdwongsakul.
The deal was negotiated by Brandon Hill for Lionsgate and Pip Ngo for XYZ Films, and Michael J. Werner on behalf of Edko Films and the producers. The film was financed by Edko Films Ltd., which will release day and date with Lionsgate in Chinese mainland, Hong Kong, and Macao in 2026.
“I am thrilled that Lionsgate has embraced ‘The Furious,’” said Kong in a statement. “I believe they are the best company to handle this picture. I am looking forward to working closely with them.”
“We have had tremendous success with several films from the TIFF Midnight Madness programming—including ‘Sisu’ and ‘The Blackening’—in recent years, and we were similarly blown away by ‘The Furious,’” said Lauren Bixby, EVP & Co-Head, Acquisitions & Co-Productions for the Lionsgate Motion Picture Group. “This movie redefines martial arts action—it’s incredibly entertaining and engrossing, and we can’t wait to share it with audiences next year.”
