Donnie Yen confirms Sleeping Dogs live-action movie has been cancelled

In 2017, the open-world crime game Sleeping Dogs announced that it would be adapted into a live-action movie, starring martial arts star Donnie Yen. Director Timo Tjahjanto (The Killers, Headshot, Little Shots 2) was also invited to direct, giving this movie a real bloodline for those who love Asian hardcore action movies.

Unfortunately, however, the film has not been mentioned since 2018, and now the lead actor Donnie Yen told foreign media Polygon that the film is no longer under development.

He said: "I invested a lot of time and work with these producers, and I even invested my own money to get the script and some of the rights. I waited for many years and I really wanted to make this movie. However, unfortunately... I don't know, you also know how Hollywood is, right?"

He then called the Sleeping Dogs live-action movie "a shame," but said he was ready to move on and "pursue better things."

Released in 2012, Sleeping Dogs was developed by the now-defunct United Front Games and published by Square Enix. This open-world action game was effectively Hong Kong’s answer to Grand Theft Auto, drawing influences from Hong Kong crime films like Infernal Affairs and Hard Boiled. Starring undercover cop Shen Wei as he infiltrates the local underworld, Sleeping Dogs was a sensation at the time for its action, world design, and star-studded voice cast (including Emma Stone and Lucy Liu).

A sequel and planned spin-off Triad Wars never made it into production before United Front Games folded, and now the stillborn live-action film has joined the dormant game series.