The 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami killed 230,000–280,000 people in 14 countries
Jet Li is set to star in a film about the tsunami in Aceh that killed 230,000–280,000 people in 14 countries.
Netral News reports that Jet Li will star in a film about the Boxing Day tsunami in Aceh. Indonesia’s Nation Pictures will partner with a production house from China, Shine Work, to work on the film titled Tsunami.
The 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake occurred on 26 December with a moment magnitude of 9.1–9.3 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of IX (Violent). The earthquake triggered a series of devastating tsunamis that killed 230,000–280,000 people in 14 countries,
It was one of the deadliest natural disasters in recorded history. The tsunami went by different names including the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, South Asian tsunami, Indonesian tsunami, the Christmas tsunami, and the Boxing Day tsunami.
Delon Tio from the Nation Pictures announced the news in a press conference in Jakarta. “This is one of the ambitious projects for China, and it will most likely be starring Jet Li,” Tio said.
Tio added that Li’s experience related to the tsunami made him an appropriate casting choice. “[Li] has memories there, he went to Aceh during the tsunami, so it’s likely that Jet Li will star in the movie,” he said.
Tsunami will begin filming in December 2018 and should be released in December 2019, to mark the disaster’s December date.
The project was planned by the Chinese government and the President of the Republic of Indonesia, Joko Widodo.
“This is also an initiative from the President of China when he met Jokowi, and there are many producers who want to make a movie about this Tsunami. And the development of the film industry in China is very rapid,” Tio said.
In other news, Jet Li recently starred in Gong Shou Dao, a film with Alibaba CEO Jack Ma and Donnie Yen.