Orlando Bloom Starring in Chinese Action Thriller S.M.A.R.T. CHASE: FIRE & EARTH

Even though Orlando Bloom has appeared in blockbuster spectacle trilogies like The Lord of The Rings, The Hobbit, and Pirates of the Caribbean, I've never really considered him a leading man action star. But this is Hollywood, so perception be damned: he's taking the lead role in a Chinese action thriller that has to have one of the most ridiculous titles of whatever year this ends up coming out: S.M.A.R.T. Chase: Fire & Earth.

ComingSoon has the synopsis:

S.M.A.R.T. Chase: Fire & Earth, which will film in Shanghai, follows Danny Stratton, a washed-up private security agent, who is given the rare opportunity to escort a valuable Chinese antique out of Shanghai, but is ambushed en route. With the safety of the women he loves in jeopardy, Danny has to work with his team of security experts, the S.M.A.R.T., to save her, as a dreadful conspiracy begins to unravel.

I'm sure whatever "S.M.A.R.T." stands for will be sufficiently insane, so I'm kind of looking forward to this as what I'm hoping will be a completely bonkers thriller. The Chinese box office is continually proving to be an extremely powerful force in getting movies made these days, and this is a key example of one that would probably never happen if China wasn't a factor. Julien Seri (Night Fare) is directing, and Bloom will star alongside Jing Tian (Great Wall, King Kong), Leo Wu (The Wonder), Cao Kefan (The Flowers of War) and Liu Enyou. Production starts this August.