Can it be? Is Hollywood finally making a big-budget film about martial arts and casting honest to goodness Asian actors? Well wonders never cease because the Wachowskis seem to be making all the right casting decisions for their top secret action flick, Ninja Assassin. The Hollywood Reporter announced that Rick Yune (Die Another Day) has joined the martial arts thriller, and he'll star alongside Naomi Harris and Korean pop star Rain).

The news first broke on the martial arts flick when a casting notice appeared for the film that had some similarities to the much-beloved anime, Ninja Scroll. So far, all we know about Ninja Assassin is that it will revolve around an orphanage that operates as a 'ninja factory'. When one of their star pupils (Rain) decides to leave the old world behind, he is put into conflict with the other ninjas who have stayed a little closer to their 'roots'.

Considering how most of the details were being kept under wraps, it was a bit of a surprise to see Yune giving up info on his character. He told THR, "Not to give too much away, (but) my character stays within what he was brought up with, and they go up against each other, I'm not a heavy. The characters are ninjas, they are assassins, and there's this mix of morality the Wachowskis are exploring." Ninja Assassin re-unites the brothers with V for Vendetta director James McTeigue in a Joel Silver production and filming has just begun. McTeigue is expected to be on location in Berlin until at least June, and Ninja Assassin is scheduled to arrive in theaters in 2010.

A few months ago, Kristin Kreuk was said to be Chun-Li in the upcoming Street Fighter film. Variety has now confirmed it and listed off some of the rest of the cast, and you might be just a little surprised. Aside from the Smallville star, there's Michael Clark Duncan, Chris Klein, and Rick Yune. Yes, I'm talking about the Klein from Election and American Pie. Surprised? Filling out the rest of the cast is Moon Bloodgood, Taboo from Black Eyed Peas, Edmund Chen, and Cheng Pei Pei.

While Kreuk plays Chun-Li, Duncan will take on the role of Balrog, Yune, is the mystical Gen, and Klein will be Nash. As it breaks down in the game... Balrog* is M. Bison in Japan, and Vega outside. Since we're talking Duncan, that means M. Bison/Balrog -- a dude who holds a lot of similarities to a certain ear-biter. (This re-naming is ridiculous...) Gen, meanwhile, is an old, master assassin and friend of Chun-Li's father, who blames himself for the violent path the girl followed. And lastly, Klein's Nash -- also known as Charlie. This guy is a first lieutenant in the US Air Force who died in earlier games, but shows up in later ones, and is a friend of Guile.

I guess if Ryan Reynolds can take on Blade, anything is possible. But every time I try to think of Klein in this role, I hear him in his do-gooder voice saying: "Dear God, thank you for all your blessings. You've given me so many things, like good health, nice parents, a nice truck, and what I'm told is a large penis, and I'm very grateful, but I sure am worried about Tammy." And we can't forget -- Klein headed Rollerball.

*Post Edited: Variety says Bison, the villain, is still being cast, presumably that's this Bison/Vega. Stay tuned for more name confusion!

Depending on your personal religious beliefs, the Biblical fifth commandment is either "Honor thy Father and Mother" or "Thou shall not murder" -- at least, according to Wikipedia. Either way, Rick Yune has made a movie about it. His take on the subject, appropriately titled The Fifth Commandment, is a martial arts flick and Freestyle Releasing has just picked up distribution rights to it, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Yune qualified for the Olympic trials in Tae Kwon Do when he was 19 and later graduated from the Wharton School of Business, according to IMDb, so he has brains and brawn. He's appeared in several TV shows as well as The Fast and the Furious and Die Another Day, in which he played a North Korean general (for which he was named one of Cinematical's "Very Weirdest Bond Villains"). But I would imagine that, as with nearly all Asian-Americans in Hollywood, opportunities have been few for him, so he wrote himself a lead role in The Fifth Commandment and then got it made, serving as one of the producers.

In the film, Yune "plays a trained assassin who turns down an assignment to kill a pop singer (Dania Ramirez) because her bodyguard is his half brother (Bokeem Woodbine). The siblings soon find themselves targeted in Bangkok by every top assassin in the world, forcing them to rely on the training of their tough father (Keith David)." First-timer John Z. Lee directed; he's not to be confused with the John H. Lee who's attached to remake John Woo's The Killer.

Freestyle co-president Susan Jackson says that the fight scenes "are the real thing, not staged." The premise, the promise of realistic fight scenes, and the presence of Keith David (a longtime personal fave) and Dania Ramirez (a sexy and talented actress) make this a must-see for me. The Fifth Commandment will kick its way into more than 1,000 theaters nationwide in March 2008 -- just in time for Easter? You can watch the trailer to get a peek at the action.