Cannonball Run II Artwork Poster

The greatest Asian action ace of the modern era is Jackie Chan. Reel East is proud to present the first of our themed collections celebrating this legendary icon: Jackie Chan : First West.

After Jackie Chan gained superstardom with his films ‘Snake in the Eagle’s Shadow’ and ‘Drunken Master’, he signed with Golden Harvest, the house that Bruce Lee built.

Raymond Chow was keen to launch Jackie Chan in the international market, and added him to the ensemble cast of the Golden Harvest produced action comedy ‘The Cannonball Run’. The film cast Jackie alongside a line-up of Hollywood luminaries, including Burt Reynolds, Dean Martin, Roger Moore and Sammy Davis Jnr. Chan got lost in the shuffle, but was still compelled to return for ‘Cannonball Run II’, in which he was given more screen time, but to similar effect, in terms of the the US market.

The film’s marketing was adjusted to accomodate Jackie’s stardom in Asia. Some original ‘Cannonball Run’ posters didn’t feature his image at all! The international posters for ‘Cannonball Run II’ saw him being strangled by by co-star Richard Kiel. This was considered disrespectful for Asian audiences, and so the Hong Kong poster puts him front and centre next to Burt Reynolds.

As part of our Jackie Chan : First West Collection, Reel East are proud to present the above-mentiond Chinese artwork poster, printed by Golden Harvest to promote the Hong Kong theatrical release of ‘Cannonball Run II’: