Baz Luhrmann Charts The Film Version Of "Kung Fu"????

In a rather odd director to film match, "Moulin Rouge" and "The Great Gatsby" helmer Baz Luhrmann is reportedly in talks to direct the film adaptation of the 1970s martial arts TV series "Kung Fu" for Legendary Pictures says Heat Vision.

The series, created by Ed Spielman, ran on ABC from 1972-1975 and tells the story of Kane (David Carradine)-a Shaolin Monk-who finds himself traveling the American West with only his skill in Kung Fu to guide him. The late great character actor Keye Luke as Master Po was my favorite second banana on the show and did some amazing work during its run.

The current script reportedly switches the action to China and sees the character go in search of his father - at one point ending up in a prison where he must fight to survive.

Rich Wilkes ("xXx") wrote that script --Luhrmann would do a rewrite on if the deal goes forward.

The project would mark a major departure for the Australian director Luhrmann is known for his lavish productions and highly stylized filmmaking--tackling a fairly stripped down and gritty genre feature could almost be considered a career risk