KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 19 — Taiwanese stars Joseph Chang and Alyssa Chia were spotted filming a mystery project in Kuala Lumpur earlier this month.
A source has now revealed to Malay Mail that the project is a modern wuxia crime film titled Saving Brother Ryan, directed by Hong Kong filmmaker Wong Ching-Po, whose credits include Once Upon a Time in Shanghai and The Pig, the Snake and the Pigeon.
Four other established names in Chinese-language cinema — Nick Cheung Ka Fai, Ethan Juan, Vivian Sung and Troy Liu — are also attached to the project.
On August 15 and 16, Cheung, Juan, Sung and Liu were spotted filming scenes at Kuala Lumpur Railway Station, where a sizeable production crew had set up for an evening shoot.
Large-scale filming equipment was brought to the location, with water trucks stationed nearby and around 50 to 60 crew members seen preparing for filming.
Saving Brother Ryan will mark Cheung and Juan’s third collaboration — and judging from the scenes filmed in Kuala Lumpur, their characters appear headed for an explosive confrontation.
Juan was among the first of the main cast to arrive on set, taking time to check his marks and movements before filming began.
Cheung later arrived in a white suit, black trousers and long hair, with his jacket splattered with blood — suggesting his character had just emerged from a violent encounter.
Several men believed to be playing his associates accompanied him, hinting at his character’s possible ties to the film’s criminal underworld.
The scene began with Cheung walking towards the car park before Juan appeared from the opposite direction.
The pair exchanged heated words before facing off, with the sequence taking several hours and requiring multiple takes.
Although the context of the confrontation remains unknown, the sequence offered one of the clearest indications yet of the film’s darker, action-driven tone.
Sung, meanwhile, arrived later in the evening in a striking punk-inspired look.
The Taiwanese actress was seen rehearsing around a yellow car parked by the roadside, with Wong repeatedly approaching her to discuss details of the scene.
The shoot, staged along a busy main road with a sizeable crew and production setup, drew the attention of passers-by, some of whom stopped to watch filming continue into the evening.
Sung later entered the railway station with Wong, where they were joined by Taiwanese actor Troy Liu.
For Sung and Liu, the production marks another return to Malaysia. The pair previously travelled to the country to film the Malaysia-Taiwan co-production The Age of Goodbyes and have now reunited on another locally shot project.
Despite its starry cast and large-scale Kuala Lumpur shoot, Saving Brother Ryan is still keeping much of its story under wraps.
An official synopsis, release date, additional cast and further production details have yet to be announced.
For now, Cheung’s bloodied appearance and his confrontation with Juan provide the strongest clues yet about the crime film taking shape on the streets of Kuala Lumpur.
