Bruce Lee had always put up a fight and a good one each time. He only lost twice, first to complications from a swollen brain that ended his life in 1973 and in December 2023 with the cancellation of the story based on his own works that we know as WARRIOR.
In 1971, Bruce Lee developed a concept for a television series titled Ah Sahm, about a martial artist in the American Old West. He pitched it to Warner Bros, but they didn’t bite though David Carridine starred in Warner’s Kung Fu a year later. Coincidence? It wasn’t until 2015 that Lee’s daughter, Shannon Lee, brought her father’s story to Cinemax. HBOWatch had four posts about the series:
Cinemax Developing Bruce Lee Concept Named WARRIOR – May 31, 2015
Bruce Lee’s WARRIOR Comes To Cinemax – June 21, 2017
Cinemax’ “WARRIOR” Packs A Punch & Renews for Second Season – May 27, 2019
Cinemax’ WARRIOR Moves to HBO Max with Season Three – April 24, 2021
But the show will get additional life of sorts. Not only will the three existing seasons remain curated on WBD’s Max but Netflix will also carry the show. It has a co-exclusive deal and is said to have the show available as early as February 2024. Who knows, if the show gets enough hits on Netflix, it might broker a deal to keep the show alive and Max lets go of yet another property. As series creator Jonathan Tropper shared with Deadline, “Warrior is a show that simply refuses to die. Through platform and regime changes, the writers, producers, cast, crew, and our stunt team continued to make something powerful, relevant, and wildly unique. And now, thanks to Netflix, we’ve been given yet another lease on life, and I’m thrilled for everyone involved that millions more viewers around the world will discover it.”
Shannon Lee added, “If anything can be said about Warrior, with Bruce Lee in our corner, our indomitable spirit is REAL! And so, my wish is that the huge global Netflix audience LOVES Warrior and from that Love more goodness flows – in the form of greater recognition for our talented cast and crew who deserve all the things, in the form of passionate fandom for this relevant kick ass show and, if I dare to dream, in the form of an opportunity to continue our story for our amazing fans who, thanks to Netflix, will have grown in number and enthusiasm!”
So fans, Ah Sahm could once again say ‘Bring it on’ but the chances of the original cast continuing the Tong Wars tale seem slim. Around here, all we can say is – thanks for fucking up again, Zaslav.
6 comments
The fools running studios is crystal clear in Warrior Season 4 and even 5 not already greenlighted and in the pipeline of what otherwise is a shitty, boring and monopolized with tedious, dull, mind-numbing cop shows. Wake up corporate studio morons! I have faith someone up there at maybe one of the big companies has a clue and will scoop Warrior right up.
We suspect WBD’s blunder will be Netflix’s gain with this one. We hope also that it stays alive.
We love the show it was filled with surprise and suspense, and actually can’t wait. If you make another movie about it. It’s an amazing series. Totally enjoyed it with my family.
It is indeed an adreniline rush to keep up with WARRIOR. Cross your fingers.
Warrior is the best television show I have seen in my lifetime. Hope the show stays the same as it moves to Netflix.
Yes, we hope it trends well over there and another season or two is the result.