Jean-Claude Van Damme is heading back into the kind of fight that made him an action-movie icon. The star of Bloodsport, Kickboxer and Double Impact is set to lead Katana, a new Japan-set action thriller from filmmaker Jeremy Zag that will send him into the country’s criminal underworld for a dangerous mission involving the yakuza.
As first reported exclusively by Deadline, Katana is being prepared for international sales by The Veterans ahead of the American Film Market. Zag, the French filmmaker best known for creating the Miraculous franchise, will write and direct the movie, which centers on a former world champion fighter who has walked away from his violent past to raise a family. That peaceful life comes crashing down when his daughter is kidnapped by the yakuza, forcing him to return to combat for one more fight.
Let’s hope this is better than The Gardener from 2025. That was supposed to bring JCVD back to the fight as well, but it left me fighting to keep my eyes open.
This new flick pairs Van Damme with actual martial arts competitors, including Armenian MMA fighter Melsik Baghdasaryan and French Muay Thai and kickboxing world champion Cyril Benzaquen. The production is being handled by Division Z in partnership with Japan-based Wowow Bridge, a company that supports international productions filming in the country and previously worked on HBO Max’s Tokyo Vice.
Filming is scheduled to take place across Japan, France and Los Angeles during April, May and June 2027. The Veterans is handling international distribution rights and plans to bring a sizzle reel and screenplay to potential buyers at AFM. CAA Media Finance is representing the film’s U.S. rights.
Zag has been eager to work with Van Damme for years, and his enthusiasm for the project goes beyond simply getting an action legend in front of the camera. The filmmaker has practiced Kyokushin karate for 30 years and says Van Damme was one of the people who inspired him to enter a dojo in the first place.
“Jean-Claude Van Damme made me want to walk into a dojo,” Zag said. “After thirty years of practicing Kyokushin karate at an elite level, directing him in Katana is a lifelong dream come true.”
Zag also outlined the kind of movie he hopes to make, describing it as a combination of Bloodsport, Taken and John Wick, with a personal story at its center. He wants the physical combat to carry real weight, with the experience of Van Damme’s character becoming his greatest weapon as he fights to bring his daughter home.
The director’s interest in Japanese culture also plays a major role in the production. Zag explained that his passion for Japanese anime helped inspire Miraculous, and he plans to draw on Japan’s landscapes, darker criminal underworld and martial traditions for Katana. The samurai code of honor and the intensity of katana combat are central to his vision for the film.
Zag says he and Van Damme share a background in martial arts and an understanding of what makes this kind of action cinema work. He also described the project as an opportunity to bring together fighters and champions from different countries and generations. Calling it “one last great martial arts film,” Zag sees Katana as a celebration of the genre and a tribute to the actor who helped inspire him.
The collaboration between Zag and Van Damme has been in the works for quite some time. Deadline previously reported in 2022 that the two were developing What’s My Name?, a project described at the time as Van Damme’s final action film, involving a story that would bring him face-to-face with opponents from his movie career. That earlier project now appears to have evolved into Katana, although the extent of the changes has not been detailed.
Van Damme has spent decades trading kicks and punches on screen, so seeing him return to a story built around his fighting abilities should be welcome news for fans who grew up with his action movies. With production planned for 2027, Katana is still a ways off, but the combination of Van Damme, Zag and a cast that includes real martial arts champions gives the project a clear direction.
