''Kung Fu'' is an American martial arts action-adventure television series that premiered on

The CW ''The'' () is a grammatical Article (grammar), article in English language, English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite ...

on April 7, 2021. Set in the present, it is an adaptation of the 1970s series of the same title. It is produced by

Warner Bros. Television Warner Bros. Television Studios (operating under the name Warner Bros. Television; formerly known as Warner Bros. Television Division) is an American television production and distribution studio of the Warner Bros. Television Group division of ...

, as was the original series and '' Kung Fu: The Legend Continues''. Executive producers include

Christina M. Kim Christina M. Kim ( ko, 김수진) is an American television writer. In the 2005-06 television season, she joined the writing staff of ''Lost'' for the series' second season. The staff won the Writers Guild of America (WGA) Award for Best Drama ...

(developer of The CW series),

Ed Spielman Ed Spielman (born in Brooklyn, New York City, US) is a writer and producer. He is one of the creators of the TV series ''Kung Fu''. Spielman wrote the story and teleplay for the series pilot, which has been credited as "the first American Martia ...

(creator of the original series),

Greg Berlanti Gregory Berlanti (born May 24, 1972) is an American screenwriter, producer and director of film and television. He is known for his work on the television series ''Dawson's Creek'', '' Brothers & Sisters'', '' Everwood'', '' Political Animals'', ...

Martin Gero Martin Gero (born July 6, 1977 in Geneva, Switzerland) is a Canadian screenwriter and co- executive producer for ''Stargate Atlantis'' and the creator of '' Blindspot''. Born in Switzerland, Gero spent much of his childhood in Ottawa, Ontar ...

, Robert Berens, and Sarah Schechter. It is one of a few American network dramas to feature a predominantly Asian American cast, including veteran actor

Tzi Ma Tzi Ma (;) is a Hong Kong-American actor. He is well known for his roles in television shows, such as '' The Man in the High Castle'' and '' 24'', and films, such as ''Dante's Peak'', ''Rush Hour'', ''Rush Hour 3'', '' Arrival'', '' The Farewel ...

. In May 2021, the series was renewed for a second season which premiered on March 9, 2022. In March 2022, the series was renewed for a third season which premiered on October 5, 2022.

Premise

Set in the present day, the series follows a young Chinese American woman whose personal issues force her to leave college and make a life-changing journey to an isolated monastery in China. On her return to America three years later, she starts using her martial arts skills and Shaolin values to protect her community when her hometown of

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...

is plagued by ongoing crime and corruption, especially those being threatened by the Triad, all while dealing with her estranged family and searching for the assassin who killed her Shaolin mentor and is now targeting her. This version is a re-imagining, rather than a

reboot In computing, rebooting is the process by which a running computer system is restarted, either intentionally or unintentionally. Reboots can be either a cold reboot (alternatively known as a hard reboot) in which the power to the system is physi ...

, of the 1972 television series starring

David Carradine David Carradine ( ; born John Arthur Carradine Jr.; December 8, 1936 – June 3, 2009) was an American actor best known for playing martial arts roles. He is perhaps best known as the star of the 1970s television series '' Kung Fu'', playi ...

Kwai Chang Caine Kwai Chang Caine () is a fictional character and the protagonist of the ABC 1972–1975 action-adventure western television series ''Kung Fu''. He has been portrayed by David Carradine as an adult, Keith Carradine as a younger Caine, Radames ...

, the fugitive monk traveling the American Old West.

Cast

Main

* Olivia Liang as Nicky Shen, a Harvard dropout and an outsider to her family who is an expert in martial arts, which she uses to stop a growing criminal problem that has overtaken her community. She acts as a vigilante for those who need help while discovering her potential and unlocking her destiny, as well as trying to reconnect with everyone around her. It was later revealed that she is a descendant of Liang Daiyu. * Kheng Hua Tan as Mei-Li Shen, Nicky's strict mother, who helped her husband in the restaurant business and is not happy with Nicky for abandoning the family and was the reason for Nicky and Evan's breakup. She is keeping secrets that could threaten the family and was unaware of Nicky's mission to help others until she told Nicky the truth about being a descendant of Liang Daiyu. * Eddie Liu as Henry Yan, a martial arts practitioner, expert on traditional Chinese art and mythology, and Nicky's love interest. He has a criminal past that he has regretted but has vowed to go straight while helping Nicky. * Shannon Dang as Althea Shen-Soong (née Shen), Nicky's larger-than-life older tech-savvy sister who is newly engaged with plans of having the perfect life, despite dealing with a painful past involving sexual abuse by her former employer. An expert in cyber-hacking, she assists Nicky in her mission to stop the criminal elements. * Jon Prasida as Ryan Shen, Nicky's estranged younger brother who is a quick-witted medical student, runs a free community clinic, and is openly gay, as they try to repair their relationship while assisting her * Gavin Stenhouse as Evan Hartley, a highly successful assistant district attorney who still has feelings for Nicky, despite having a new girlfriend and Mei-Li's disapproval of him dating Nicky in the past. He acts as a go-to for Nicky while watching out for her, especially with knowing about Henry's criminal past. * Vanessa Kai as Pei-Ling Zhang, Nicky's ''shifu'' (mentor) at the

Shaolin Monastery Shaolin Monastery (少林寺 ''Shàolínsì''), also known as Shaolin Temple, is a renowned monastic institution recognized as the birthplace of Chan Buddhism and the cradle of Shaolin Kung Fu. It is located at the foot of Wuru Peak of the So ...

in Yunnan Province, China. She was killed by her sister Zhilan while trying to defend the monastery from her gang of raiders and appears as a ghost to help guide Nicky. It was later revealed that she accidentally killed her own father and Zhilan blamed her. ** Kai also portrays Xiao / The Alchemist, the creator of the warrior and guardian bloodlines who aimed to create a more powerful human * Tony Chung as Dennis Soong, Althea's husband and a wealthy investor from a rich family *

as Jin Shen, Nicky's father, a restaurant owner who is upset over his daughter's choices despite his love for her, while at the same time keeping secrets that could destroy their family due to the Triad's grip on the local community, as well as concerns over his health problems. He was initially unaware of Nicky's actions and her family lineage to Liang Daiyu, finding out shortly after Nicky. * Yvonne Chapman as Zhilan Zhang (season 2–present; recurring season 1), Pei-Ling's sister with deep criminal ties and a mysterious connection to the Shaolin monastery where Nicky trained. She seeks to collect 8 sacred weapons (which includes The Sword of Liang Daiyu, a pair of Shuang Gou, a

dagger A dagger is a fighting knife with a very sharp point and usually two sharp edges, typically designed or capable of being used as a thrusting or stabbing weapon.State v. Martin, 633 S.W.2d 80 (Mo. 1982): This is the dictionary or popular-use de ...

, an

axe An axe ( sometimes ax in American English; see spelling differences) is an implement that has been used for millennia to shape, split and cut wood, to harvest timber, as a weapon, and as a ceremonial or heraldic symbol. The axe has ma ...

, a pair of crescent moon knives, another sword, a

crossbow A crossbow is a ranged weapon using an elastic launching device consisting of a bow-like assembly called a ''prod'', mounted horizontally on a main frame called a ''tiller'', which is hand-held in a similar fashion to the stock of a long fire ...

, and a

Meteor Hammer The meteor hammer (), often referred to simply as meteor (), is an ancient Chinese weapon, consisting at its most basic level of two weights connected by a rope or chain. One of the flexible or "soft" weapons, it is referred to by many differen ...

) and unlock their powers, unaware that Nicky came into contact with the Sword of Liang Daiyu that revealed her untapped destiny (she is unaware of Nicky being a direct descendant of Liang Daiyu). After killing Pei-Ling, Nicky's mentor, she becomes her archenemy. * JB Tadena as Sebastian Cailao (season 3; recurring season 2), Harmony Dumplings' new chef and Ryan's love interest

Recurring

* Bradley Gibson as Joe Harper (season 1), a Bay Area LGBTQ/social activist and Ryan's former romantic interest * Ludi Lin as Kerwin Tan (season 1-2), a vengeful playboy and heir to a family fortune who has personal history and aids Zhilan in gathering the eight weapons **Lin also plays the part of Russell Tan after he has his soul transferred into Kerwin's body. * Janet Kidder as District Attorney Hughes, Evan's boss * Kee Chan as Russell Tan, Kerwin and Juliette's father * Marissa Cuevas as Nadia, Evan's secretary who helps him assist Nicky * Vanessa Yao as Mia Yang (season 2), the Shen siblings' cousin and their Aunt Mei-Xue's daughter *

Annie Q. Annie Q. is an American actress, known professionally as Annie Q. Riegel as of 2022. She is best known for her portrayal of Christine in the HBO television series '' The Leftovers'' and Sophie Hicks in the Netflix comedy-drama ''Alex Strangelove ...

as Juliette Tan (season 2), Russell Tan's ruthless daughter * Andrew Tinpo Lee as Frank (season 2), Jin's friend who helps in the community *

Terry Chen Terry Chen (born February 3, 1975) is a Canadian film and television actor. Early life Chen was born in Edmonton, Alberta, to Taiwanese and Chinese parents originating from Taiwan (father) and mainland China (mother). After primary and secondary ...

as Daniel Yan (season 2), Henry's estranged father * Ben Levin as Bo (season 3) *

Kim Rhodes Kimberly Rhodes (born June 7, 1969) is an American actress who is known for portraying Cindy Harrison on the soap operas '' Another World'' (1996–1999) and ''As the World Turns'' (2000–2001), Carey Martin on the Disney Channel sitcoms ''The ...

as Carrie (season 3) * Donald Heng as Anthony Chan (season 3)

Episodes

Series overview

Season 1 (2021)

Season 2 (2022)

Season 3 (2022)

Production

Development

In September 2017, it was reported that

and Wendy Mericle were developing a female-led reboot of the series for

Fox Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush''). Twelve sp ...

. In October 2018, it was announced that '' Sleepy Hollow'' executive producer Albert Kim was redeveloping the series and that Fox had given the project a put pilot commitment. In November 2019, it was announced that the reboot had moved to

which is home to the majority of the

Arrowverse The Arrowverse is an American superhero media franchise and a shared universe that is centered on various interconnected television series based on DC Comics superhero characters, primarily airing on The CW as well as web series on CW See ...

shows, all of which are produced by Berlantiand would be written by

and

. The series received a pilot order by the network. It was announced on May 12, 2020, that The CW had given ''Kung Fu'' a series order; a poster featuring Liang and social media accounts was set up the same day. This is the third attempt of a ''Kung Fu'' reboot. According to PrimeTimer, "two different incarnations of this project have been set up in recent years at Fox, both featuring a female protagonist. Mega producers Berlanti Productions and Warner Bros. Television were behind both projects, but neither went to pilot." The first reboot attempt had a main character named Lucy Chang, a Buddhist monk and kung fu master who traveled through America in the 1950s in search of the man who stole her child years before. The second reboot attempt was about a young Chinese-American woman who inherits her father's kung fu studio, only to find out it's a secret center dedicated to helping members of the Chinatown community who have nowhere else to turn. On May 3, 2021, The CW renewed the series for a second season. On March 22, 2022, The CW renewed the series for a third season.

Casting

In January and February 2020, Deadline reported the casting of the reboot with

and Kheng Hua Tan as Jin Shen and Mei-Li, Jon Prasida as Ryan Shen, Shannon Dang as Althea Shen, Eddie Liu as Henry Yan, and Olivia Liang as the character Nicky. In March 2020, Gavin Stenhouse and

Gwendoline Yeo Gwendoline See-Hian Yeo (; born 10 July 1977) is a Singaporean actress, musician and writer best known for her roles as Dr. Kelly Lee on '' General Hospital'', Xiao-Mei on '' Desperate Housewives'' and Sun Fu in ''Broken Trail''. She is also kno ...

were cast as Evan Hartley and Zhilan. Tony Chung was cast as Dennis Soong on October 6, 2020. On November 18, 2020, Yvonne Chapman was cast as Zhilan in a recurring capacity. In February 2021, Ludi Lin and Bradley Gibson were cast as Kerwin and Joe Harper in recurring roles. On August 26, 2021, Chapman was promoted to series regular for the second season. On January 6, 2022, Vanessa Yao,

and JB Tadena joined the cast in recurring roles for the second season. On July 7, 2022, it was announced that Chapman is set to return as series regular while Tadena was promoted to a series regular for the third season. On July 27, 2022, Ben Levin and

were cast in recurring capacities for the third season.

Pre-production

The main actress Olivia Liang mentioned she avoided martial arts prior to this role due to stereotypes and would only learn when she got paid. She later embraced the sport after being cast and supported bringing depth to Asian characters with a martial arts background.

Filming

Principal photography Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production. Personnel Besides the main film personnel, such as a ...

for the first season began on October 16, 2020 and concluded on April 27, 2021, in Langley, British Columbia. Filming for the second season began on September 20, 2021 and concluded on March 15, 2022. Filming for the third season began on July 18, 2022 and concluded on December 20.

Broadcast

''Kung Fu'' premiered on April 7, 2021, on

. In Canada, the series airs on

CTV 2 CTV 2 is a Canadian English-language television system owned by the Bell Media subsidiary of BCE Inc. The system consists of four terrestrial owned-and-operated television stations (O&Os) in Ontario, one in British Columbia and two regional cab ...

, simulcast with The CW. The second season premiered on March 9, 2022. The third season premiered on October 5, 2022.

Reception

Critical response

On the

review aggregator A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews of products and services (such as films, books, video games, software, hardware, and cars). This system stores the reviews and uses them for purposes such as supporting a website where users ...

website

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

, the series has an approval rating of 86% based on 21 critic reviews, with an average rating of 6.9/10. The website's critic consensus states, "''Kung Fu'' early episodes could use a little more focus, but beautifully choreographed fight scenes and a likable cast—led by Olivia Liang's star-making performance—inspire hope for a bright future." On

Metacritic Metacritic is a website that aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created by Jason Dietz, Marc ...

, it has a weighted average score of 65 out of 100 based on 10 critic reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Sam Stone of ''

Comic Book Resources ''Comic Book Resources'', also known by the initialism CBR, is a website dedicated to the coverage of comic book–related news and discussion. History Comic Book Resources was founded by Jonah Weiland in 1995 as a development of the Kingdom Co ...

'' reviewed the series and stated that "nuances of each character relationship are explicitly laid out in conversation rather than hinted at or more organically woven into the show as if the characters aren't aware of their own backstories." While the fight choreography was well received, it relied on too much slow motion. CBR saw potential in the show with the cast as long it could overcome "bad habits" as the show progresses. Jennifer Griffin of TV Pulse Magazine was more critical and also agreed that there was too much exposition in the first episode. It relied on the predictable formulaic superhero format that Greg Berlanti has incorporated in previous CW shows. While having a mainly Asian-American cast was praised, the review goes on to say "Like America herself, the series needs to show its characters a little more love, and demonstrate a determination to look beyond formula, cliches, and stereotypes for that which truly connects us, as TV viewers, as superhero fans, but mostly as human beings." Robert Lloyd of '' LA Times'' wrote that the pilot was very busy with a messy exposition, which also reinforced Asian stereotypes. Max Gao of ''

Vulture A vulture is a bird of prey that scavenges on carrion. There are 23 extant species of vulture (including Condors). Old World vultures include 16 living species native to Europe, Africa, and Asia; New World vultures are restricted to North and ...

'' rated the first episode 4 out of 5 and said, "It wouldn't be a CW show without a classic love triangle—and ''Kung Fu'' has set up a brilliant one."

Ratings

Season 1

Season 2

Season 3

Home media

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kung Fu (2021 TV series) 2021 American television series debuts 2020s American crime drama television series 2020s American LGBT-related drama television series 2020s American mystery television series American action adventure television series Chinese American television Cultural depictions of businesspeople The CW original programming English-language television shows Filicide in fiction Kung Fu (1972 TV series) Martial arts television series Mass media portrayals of the working class Nonlinear narrative television series Television series about families Television series by Warner Bros. Television Studios Television series reboots Television series set in the 2020s Television shows filmed in British Columbia Television shows set in San Francisco Television shows set in California Television productions postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic Vigilante television series Works about sexual abuse