Iconic Chinese director John Woo will be returning to North America to direct his first picture outside of Asia since 2003. Silent Night, an action film starring Joel Kinnaman (The Suicide Squad) without a single word of dialogue, marks his return to the States where he developed several iconic films such as Face/Off, Hard Target, and the divisive Mission: Impossible 2. Some recently released photos to Instagram have revealed that filming on the project has officially begun.
Kinnaman is the only actor attached to the project that has been announced, though that's sure to change shortly as filming is now underway. The basic plot of the film will have a father (Kinnaman) seeking revenge for the death of his son. This is a simple enough premise, with the marketing sure to lean heavily on the aspect that the film will contain no dialogue. Basil Iwanyk (Sicario), Christian Mercuri (Out of the Furnace), Erica Lee (The Informer), and Lori Tilkin (Red Cliff) are all on board as producers. Woo certainly has a solid action team surrounding him, as all four producers have ties to the John Wick franchise.
Silent Night marks Woo's first film since 2017, in which he directed the Chinese film Manhunt, which brought together a cast of Chinese, Japanese, and Korean descent. This will be his 37th directorial effort, and his credits go all the way back to 1968 with Dead Knot and Ouran. Hard Target marked his first feature for North America, and the film starred action legend Jean-Claude Van Damme. For that film, he was nominated for a Saturn Award for Best Director. Most audiences will recognize his work from Face/Off and Tom Cruise's Mission: Impossible 2, and he's sure to be welcomed back with open arms as he hasn't made a film in the country since 2003's Paycheck.
One of several action films slated for 2022, Silent Night will find itself amongst good company in the genre if it does release this year. 2022 already has seen the release of The 355, Liam Neeson's Blacklight, and Roland Emmerich's sci-fi disaster film Moonfall. Yet there is undoubtedly a distinct style to Woo's work that differentiates it from these films and any others that will be released. Here's hoping his return to American filmmaking is well-received and fully embraced by audiences.
Silent Night has no release date at this time. Check out the image below which announced the start of production: