With Indonesian filmmaker Timo Tjahjanto allegedly set to take over as director and Marvel star Simu Liu signed on to play the lead role of undercover police officer Wei Shen, the long-awaited live-action version of the cult classic computer game Sleeping Dogs is finally beginning to take shape.
Sleeping Dogs, a popular open-world action game set in a colorful reproduction of Hong Kong, was first released in 2012 by United Front Games and published by Square Enix. Players took control of Wei Shen, a San Francisco police officer who was part of the Sun On Yee Triad. The game combined driving, intense martial arts fighting, and an engrossing undercover story that drew inspiration from John Woo’s action epics and legendary Hong Kong crime flicks, such as Infernal Affairs.
The project’s development history has been tumultuous. Despite action star Donnie Yen’s passion and personal involvement, the film was delayed for years after it was first announced in 2017, with Yen set to play Wei Shen. In late 2024, Indonesian director Timo Tjahjanto was chosen to direct the project.
He brought his trademark violent, primal action style from movies like Headshot, parts of the V/H/S anthology series, and The Night Comes for Us. This brutal Netflix thriller is frequently compared to Sleeping Dogs for its subject matter and visual appeal. But by early 2025, Yen acknowledged that the initial version was no longer being developed.
Simu Liu will be the star of this project. A self-described lover of the game, the Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings star took up the cause in early 2025, publicly voicing his dissatisfaction with studio officials who “don’t understand the game” and his resolve to bring it back to life.
Liu posted updates on social media, including a picture of the finished script draft written by Tze Chun (Gotham) in October 2025. Liu is also producing through his partnership with rights holders Square Enix and production company Story Kitchen, which is well-known for video game adaptations like Sonic the Hedgehog.
Liu and Tjahjanto’s social media exchanges, in which the director shared script pages and bemoaned previous development setbacks, encouraged rumors that Tjahjanto had formally joined the new version. Liu’s charisma, martial arts training, and growing star power make him a new, contemporary take on Wei Shen, while Tjahjanto’s proficiency in high-impact, brutal action makes him a perfect choice to recreate the game’s violent melee fighting and grimy underbelly ambiance.
The project is still under pre-production as of late 2025, and no formal release date has been set. Although there are still obstacles to overcome—video game adaptations frequently encounter studio skepticism—Liu’s momentum and Tjahjanto’s involvement have rekindled enthusiasm among fans who have been waiting more than 10 years for this Hong Kong crime drama to come to the big screen.
