It is a film with as many twists and turns as any thriller. But the plot of The Battle of Red Cliff, John Woo's multimillion-dollar Chinese epic, started to unravel as soon as the director snapped shut his clapperboard.
Woo, making an eagerly awaited return to Chinese film after a stint in Hollywood, lost his two leading men in the space of a couple of days this week, only for one to return, but in a different role.
Tony Leung Chiu-wai, who won best actor at Cannes in 2000 for In the Mood of Love, was the first to go, saying Red Cliff came too soon after completion of his most recent film, Ang Lee's Lust, Caution. Then his co-star, Chow Yun-fat, stormed off the set in a rage after complaining that he had been sent the script too late and had not been given enough time to prepare.
The casting nightmare has proved a huge embarrassment to Woo, who had hoped to use the $80m (£40m) Red Cliff to showcase his talents after directing, among other Hollywood films, Mission: Impossible II.
If that wasn't enough, he is under pressure from the Chinese government to ensure the new film, based on an epic Chinese battle in 208AD, is released before next summer's Olympics in Beijing.
