Marco Polo - Netflix Original Series

[sanjuro_ronin]

Looking forward to seeing it.

[GeneChing]

In Travels, Polo does discuss fantastical beasts like unicorns and such. They don't play a major role in the narrative, just odd descriptions of things he's heard about.

Remote Patrol: Is Netflix's Marco Polo the new Game of Thrones?
By Bruce Fretts
Friday, Dec 5 2014, 6:31am EST
Remote Patrol: Is Marco Polo the new Game of Thrones?


© Netflix / Phil Bray

Tis the season for epics at the movies with Exodus: Gods and Kings and The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies rolling out worldwide over the next few weeks. But if you're craving massive battle scenes and fancy costumes, you don't have to leave home, as Netflix offers its own large-scope historical opus, Marco Polo, which is set to conquer the globe starting December 12.

The sprawling 12-episode drama, executive-produced by Harvey Weinstein, follows the exploits of the titular Venetian adventurer (Lorenzo Richelmy) in the court of the 13th century tyrant Kublai Khan (Benedict Wong). With its majestic theme song, royal scheming and prodigious nudity, Marco Polo may remind you of another small-screen epic, Game of Thrones.

HBO went for it and won big with its pricey extravaganza, and Netflix is following suit. While Marco Polo may not have the fan base of George RR Martin's novels, he's still a recognizable brand name, and Netflix didn't skimp on hiring top-notch behind-the-camera talent, including veteran GoT directors Alik Sakharov and Daniel Minahan.


© Netflix / Phil Bray

I've seen the first six episodes of Marco Polo, and while my tastes generally run to contemporary stories, I've gotta admit I got swept up in the pageantry of it all. I daresay it's Game of Thrones for people who don't like Game of Thrones - people like me, who lost interest once dragons and too many other fantastical elements removed it from the gritty, grimy realism of season one.

Richelmy's got real star quality, and his performance is even more impressive when you realize the Italian actor spoke very little English when he was cast in the role. He's supported by a stellar ensemble, including Prometheus's commandingly charismatic Wong, The Last Emperor's Joan Chen as his cunning wife (she's the cool yin to his hot-headed yang), and Kick-Ass 2's wicked-awesome Tom Wu as Marco's blind martial-arts trainer.


© Netflix / Phil Bray

The fight sequences are exhilarating, and the sex scenes aren't entirely gratuitous (Kublai Khan did like his concubines). Creator John Fusco - who's also penning the Weinstein Co.'s reboot of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, The Green Legend, which will premiere on Netflix next year - keeps the story grounded in history. And he's hired seasoned scribes like Law & Order veteran Michael Chernuchin to maintain the just-the-facts tone.

The first two hours were expertly directed by Joachim Ronning and Espen Sandberg, the Norwegian duo behind 2012's rafting saga Kon Tiki and the next Pirates of the Caribbean sequel, Dead Men Tell No Tales. Blessedly, there's no Johnny Depp to chew Marco Polo's scenery - and what gorgeous scenery it is (the series was filmed in Italy, Kazakhstan and Malaysia).

So why not stay in, curl up, and binge-watch an episode or 10? After all, as Game of Thrones reminds us, Winter is coming...

Bruce Fretts is a veteran of both Entertainment Weekly and TV Guide Magazine, where he penned the wildly popular 'Cheers & Jeers' column for ten years.

[GeneChing]

How to Build an Empire, the Netflix Way
By EMILY STEEL NOV. 29, 2014


Anatomy of a Scene | ‘Marco Polo’

John Fusco, creator of the Netflix series ”Marco Polo,” narrates a scene in which the 13th-century traveler enters the court of Kublai Khan.
Publish Date November 29, 2014. Photo by Phil Bray for Netflix.

In the first episode of “Marco Polo,” Netflix’s coming original series, the Mongolian emperor Kublai Khan sits on a throne in his gilded palace and plots the future conquests of his growing empire.

One adviser questions whether the ruler desires to be emperor of Mongolia or emperor of China. Khan rises from his throne, draws his sword and roars: “Emperor of China? Emperor of Mongolia? I want to be emperor of the world!”

Such an audacious declaration could very well have been written for Netflix itself as it pursues global expansion at breakneck speed. This streaming company has pushed aggressively into just over 50 countries and counts more than 50 million total global subscribers. Conquering foreign lands is now crucial as its growth slows in the United States.

“It is no secret that we want Netflix to be a global product,” said Ted Sarandos, its chief content officer. “That is the mission.”

As was the case with Kublai Khan’s 13th-century empire building, Netflix’s 21st-century mission will involve a series of battles as the company encounters vast cultural differences, fierce rivals and high costs, among other challenges.


Olivia Cheng in a scene from “Marco Polo,” an original series on Netflix, which will be available for streaming on Dec. 12. Credit Phil Bray for Netflix

Already, Netflix has stumbled. Infrastructure issues like establishing payment systems for customers proved difficult in Latin America. And about a fifth of the company’s market value has evaporated since mid-October, after it disappointed investors with slower-than-expected subscriber growth that followed its September debut in France, Germany and other European markets. Some analysts have raised concerns that rapidly rising obligations tied to paying for content (totaling $8.9 billion as of September) could leave it in a precarious financial position in the long term.

Media executives and analysts predict that as Netflix pushes ahead with its global mission, it will face threats from local insurgents, as a growing number start streaming services of their own. It must also outmaneuver competitors like Time Warner’s HBO, which already has a robust international business and announced a streaming deal last week in China.

“Netflix is the one that everybody speaks about, but there are lots and lots and lots and lots of others,” said Keith LeGoy, president of international distribution at Sony Pictures Television. “New streaming services are launching every week.”

Netflix’s global ambitions mirror a quest across the media industry to offset slowing domestic growth by expanding abroad. “Some people have said that it is checkmate before it started,” said David Bank, a media analyst at RBC Capital Markets. “But it is really, really early days.”

Netflix is doubling down on its international bet, preparing to enter markets like Australia and New Zealand next March, and snapping up the global rights for original film and television programs. But perhaps its biggest content wager is “Marco Polo,” its series about the 13th-century traveler’s adventures in the court of Kublai Khan. Netflix owns the international rights for the show, which is produced by the Weinstein Company, an independent studio, and will be available for streaming on all of Netflix’s global outposts on Dec. 12.
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At about $90 million for the first season’s 10 episodes, according to industry executives, the East-meets-West epic is not only Netflix’s most expensive original production to date, but also one of the most expensive series today. Only “Game of Thrones,” on HBO, is said to surpass that steep budget.

While Netflix has a number of original programs in the pipeline, the success of “Marco Polo” will serve as a referendum on how well its original programming strategy performs on a global stage.

Some rivals and analysts said that replicating Netflix’s early success with the drama “House of Cards” and the dark comedy “Orange Is the New Black” for international audiences could prove challenging. The programs generated buzz, won awards and are credited with attracting subscribers. While Netflix did not own global rights to those productions — meaning “House of Cards” appeared on rival TV networks in France and Germany, for instance — executives say the shows helped bolster awareness and perception of Netflix abroad.

Executives and producers said they hoped that “Marco Polo” — filmed in Italy, Kazakhstan and Malaysia with an international cast of hundreds and filled with gory battles, sexual allure, adventure, martial arts and political intrigue — would resonate with viewers around the world.

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[GeneChing]

The series, which cost $90 million for the first 10 episodes, used hundreds of extras in filming. Credit Phil Bray for Netflix

“At the heart of it is a universal story,” said John Fusco, the creator and an executive producer of the series. “The journey of Marco Polo is the hero’s journey, one that all cultures across the globe can relate to.”

Mr. Fusco is intimate with that journey. Known for his work on “The Forbidden Kingdom,” the martial-arts film, and on the thriller “Young Guns,” he said he was captivated as a child by Chinese culture and has been fascinated with Marco Polo’s story ever since. “You cannot read about that stuff without coming across the name Marco Polo,” Mr. Fusco said.

While shooting “Forbidden Kingdom” in 2007, he and his son, Giovanni, then 13, crossed Central Mongolia on horseback, following the Silk Road and tracing the Genghis Khan trail. Along the way, Mr. Fusco said they encountered story after story about Kublai Khan and Marco Polo and the missions the adventurer took to various Mongolian villages.

“It always circled back around to Marco Polo and Kublai Khan,” Mr. Fusco said. “That always fascinated me because so few people make the connection between the two. Marco Polo has been kind of buried under this cloud of rather banal historical dust when the true story is so much more exciting.”

After pitching the idea around Hollywood, Mr. Fusco eventually heard from Harvey Weinstein, whose company has been expanding its television business.

Ben Silverman, chairman of the multimedia studio Electus, recalled having lunch with Mr. Weinstein about five years ago at the rooftop garden of the Peninsula Hotel in Beverly Hills, talking about great stories in the public domain that would intrigue viewers across cultures. The two brainstormed about how to create an East-meets-West drama that would include the appeal of a foreign land, but also a Western character who could connect it.
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“Immediately, it was Marco Polo,” Mr. Silverman said. “There was genuine excitement about bringing the Asian storytelling style to the global audience.”

The Weinstein Company and Electus announced in 2012 that they had found a home for the series on Starz, the premium cable network, with Mr. Fusco as the writer. At the time, Mr. Weinstein boasted to the Hollywood publication Variety that the program would be “one of the most expensive shows ever done for pay TV.”

Production soon hit roadblocks. Executives wanted to shoot the series in China, but censors raised issues about the violence and sexual aspects of the story. Projected costs started escalating.


Lorenzo Richelmy with Zhu Zhu in a scene from the new series; Mr. Richelmy was cast as Marco Polo after a global search. Credit Phil Bray for Netflix

Seeking a bigger budget, producers took the idea to Netflix, which had recently started pouring resources into its own original series. Mr. Sarandos said Netflix was not looking specifically for a show that would appeal to international audiences, but rather human stories that were rich and relatable. He picked up Mr. Fusco’s scripts, which had been inspired by Marco Polo’s own accounts, couldn’t put them down and signed on to the project.

“The characters that were created and the relationships that were created, you can lift them up from the time and the place and put them somewhere else, they would work just as well,” Mr. Sarandos said. “They were that well written.”

The resulting production is on a scale much larger than the series planned at Starz. The construction crew included 400 people, with an additional 160 in the art department. The team built 51 sets in Malaysia, including Kublai Khan’s opulent throne room. For battle scenes, hundreds of extras appeared costumed and on horseback.

A global search to cast the role of Marco Polo came down to the wire. Producers had looked at more than 100 actors, holding auditions in London, Australia and Los Angeles, but still hadn’t found their star. Mr. Fusco’s wife, an acting coach and a teacher of Shakespearean drama, stayed up one night, went through the audition tapes and found a little-known Italian actor named Lorenzo Richelmy.

Mr. Richelmy, 24, flew to Malaysia and landed the role. He started an intensive training program that included four hours in the gym, martial arts and horseback-riding lessons each day.

Producers brought on a team of cultural advisers and historians to ensure that the narrative would be authentic enough to hold up to viewers worldwide. They noted details, such as how men would bow before the emperor and how to hold shields when riding horses. Filming wrapped up in Malaysia in August after a five-month shoot that started in the canals of Venice.

“We just tried to make the most exciting, entertaining show we could about this very special world and hope that it would be accessible in a lot of different markets, in a lot of different regions,” said Dan Minahan, an executive producer of the series.

Netflix, which has said it would spend more than $600 million in 2014 to woo people to try the service, has an extensive marketing campaign for “Marco Polo.” It will take cast members to the Comic Con conference in Brazil, for example, and display costumes and props from the series at a mall in Mexico. Other promotions include television, print and digital ads. The tagline is “Worlds will collide.”

The buzz around the show will also serve as a promotional tool for Netflix as it enters new markets, Mr. Sarandos said. Although it doesn’t currently operate in Asia, it hasn’t ruled out the possibility.

Mr. Sarandos likened Netflix’s global expansion to Marco Polo himself. “At some point or another we have all been a stranger in a strange land,” he said. “Netflix is that stranger in a strange land.”

5 days to go....

[GeneChing]

Producer John Fusco Talks MARCO POLO, Hiring an Unknown Lead, Working With Netflix, CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON 2, and More
by Christina Radish Posted 5 hours ago



Based on the famed explorer’s adventures in Kublai Khan’s ornate court in 13th century China, the 10-episode Netflix original series Marco Polo is set in a world filled with greed, betrayal, sexual intrigue and rivalry. Marco Polo (Lorenzo Richelmy) is a young Italian merchant who arrives in China with a father he barely knows, who then offers him to the Mongol emperor Kublai Khan (Benedict Wong) as a servant. Captivated by the traveler’s way with words, Kublai Khan and Marco Polo develop a deep trust and bond that leads to many tales of adventure and legend.

During this exclusive phone interview with Collider, show creator/writer/executive producer John Fusco talked about why he was compelled to tell the story of Marco Polo, why Netflix was ultimately the perfect home for the show, the approach they decided to take with the material, having an unknown Italian actor in the lead role of such an epic series, and that there’s a treasure trove of material for possible future seasons. He also talked about writing the sequel for Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, which will be available exclusively through Netflix and at IMAX theaters on August 28, 2015, basing it on the sequel to the source material, introducing a new generation of sword heroes and star-crossed lovers, the return of Michelle Yeoh, and bringing in Woo-ping Yuen as director. Check out what he had to say after the jump.

Collider: What was it about this story that not only compelled you to tell it, but also made you feel like you could tell it?

JOHN FUSCO: What it was, really, was that I had an unlikely fascination with China when I was really young, and I became fascinated by Marco Polo. He was an Italian kid traveling in China, and I’m of Italian decent with a fascination for China. So, I always felt this connection to him and lived vicariously through the travels of Marco Polo. One of the things, in reading the travels, that always amazed me was to realize just how so few people know anything, at all, about Marco Polo. This amazing historical figure has been reduced to a hide-and-seek swimming pool game, or the myth that he brought noodles back to the West. When you read his accounts, it’s just so much more enthralling and dramatic and relevant. No one knows about this stuff. It’s one of the great untapped stories, certainly untapped in the long-form TV format, which is the only way I think you can tell the Marco Polo story.

And the reason why I felt that I could do it was because there are few things that I’m as passionate about, as I am about Marco Polo and his story. I have spent time in Mongolia, in China. I have read multiple translations of his book and cross-referenced those with Rashīd al-Dīn, who was the Persian historian of the time. I’ve also cross-referenced with Chinese dynasty accounts. I basically have done my homework and feel like I know the subject. There’s also this East meets West quality about it that’s in my wheelhouse.



This series was originally set up at Starz, and now it’s at Netflix. Were you ever worried that the whole thing might fall apart and never get made, or were you always confident that it would somehow work itself out?

FUSCO: No, I was concerned because I love the show so much. We were going great guns and full steam ahead. When we hit that bump that had to do with a production plan in China, it momentarily stalled, and then it looked like it stalled in earnest, and I felt sick. When you believe in something so strongly, it was just like, “Oh, my god, we’ve gotten it to this point. I’ve had this amazing writers’ room. We’ve got these scripts that everyone just loves.” So, yeah, there was that moment that my heart sunk. But Harvey Weinstein, who’s been the driving force behind this, wasn’t going to let it die. In fact, he knew how to take it to the home that it actually belonged in. The incredible global home of Netflix just makes so much sense for this project, on so many levels. It’s amazing!

When you’re dealing with such a vast, epic tale, how do you decide what to include, where to put the focus, where you stay as close to history as possible, and where you deviate to make compelling TV?

FUSCO: We took an approach to the material that was based on the perception of Marco’s accounts. Most historians today acknowledge his accounts as mostly accurate, but definitely a blend of fact and legend, so we had that latitude. In some regards, the journey is still out on Marco Polo and his accounts. Because Marco has left us gaps in his storytelling, we felt that we could take license and use the historical signposts that Marco writes about, but also get creative. The lightbulb for that idea went off, for me, when I learned about Marco’s deathbed experience, which was recorded in Venetian history. And that was that, on his deathbed, on January 9, 1323, he was surrounded by his friends, his family, his relatives and his priest. They said, “Marco, you’re leaving this world now. This is your chance to recount your fabulous tales. If not all of them, at least come clean on the parts you made up. Take back what you made up.” And Marco is reputed to have gotten very angry, and sat himself up and said, “I haven’t told half of what I saw.” So, I put that story up on the writers’ room wall, on day one, and I said, “We are going to not only dramatize the accounts that Marco wrote about, but we’re going to explore the half he might have seen, all in the spirit on his voice and in the spirit of this rich world that he inspired.”

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[GeneChing]

You have an unknown Italian actor in the lead of this big show. Was there ever any pressure to hire a known actor, or was it always just Lorenzo Richelmy?

FUSCO: Another thing that’s great about Netflix is, who else is going to allow you to go and cast an unknown Italian actor that brings such raw verisimilitude to the role. It’s such authentic casting. I always wanted it to be an Italian actor. We brought in Mongolian actors from Mongolia, and we were really striving for authenticity. But we searched around the globe and looked at well over a hundred Marco Polos, came down to the wire, and went back and looked at our Italy tapes, and we realized that we had overlooked someone. That was Lorenzo Richelmy. So, when it came down and we had some strong candidates, in the end, he won the day. Being Italian was surely a part of it, but it was also this uncanny blend of innocence and confidence. He could play this boyishness, but he’s also a man. He was our guy.

You had the scripts in place and you had your cast, but what was your relationship with the directors?

FUSCO: I worked very closely with the directors. Dan Minahan was great at finding the best directors and the best DPs, to unify the look and style of the show. They were all huge on preparation and research, so I was able to bond with each of them. I was on set with them and I was open to their great ideas. The directors all contributed so much. They kept the voice consistent, but they all brought their own unique signature to it.

When you tell a story like Marco Polo, that is so epic in scope and scale, do you have to have it fully detailed and planned out before it ever starts shooting, and do you also have to allow for some open doors for future seasons?

FUSCO: Everything is carefully planned out. I come out of the features world and I learned, very quickly, that TV is this run-and-gun approach to production. You have to measure three times and cut once. Everything needs to be planned out, very carefully. We had our scripts ready, well before production, so we were able to fine tune them. Of course, you make discoveries along the way and in rehearsals, and that’s all exciting. In terms of a future for the show, my focus is in doing the best Season 1 that we can. Marco Polo was in China for 17 years, so there’s a treasure trove of material. But at this point, I’m just focused on Season 1.



You must have had a positive experience working with the Weinstein Company and Netflix, teaming up with them again to write the Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon follow-up. Is that more of a companion film, or is it an actual sequel?

FUSCO: I view it as a sequel because it’s actually based on the literary sequel to book 4 of the Wang Dulu pentalogy, which is the source material for Crouching Tiger. In fact, when Harvey first contacted me, I told him that the only way that I would do this would be if we could be true to that source material and base the sequel on book 5, which was called Iron Knight, Silver Vase. In that literary sequel, a new generation of sword heroes and star-crossed lovers is introduced, and Harvey was all for that. He agreed and felt that was the only way to do it, to be true to the DNA of the project, but also to bring Michelle Yeoh back and to bring in Master Woo-ping, who really created the Crouching Tiger fight vernacular. He’s a man that’s considered a pioneer of the genre that inspired Ang Lee, and he came in to direct. That’s what it is. We’re not out there trying to top anything, in a Hollywood fashion. We’re telling a sequel, based on the literary sequel to the book.

Even though it will be available through Netflix, which makes the viewing easier for people, would you recommend that people make the extra effort and spend the extra money to see the film in IMAX theaters, if possible?

FUSCO: I think that with the movie-going experience evolving the way it is, it’s really up to the viewer. Do you go to a sporting event, like a football game, or do you watch it at home? Some prefer to stay at home and watch it on the couch with their nachos, and they enjoy the game. Others want to go and have the stadium experience. I think it really comes down to the viewer, and that’s what’s great about Netflix. We’re all busy now, at this time in our lives, and viewers want to have the choice of how they’re going to see it.

Marco Polo is available on Netflix, starting on December 12th.

I'm at the 50th Anniversary of Grandmaster Lau Fat Mang’s Passing Banquet tomorrow so I won't be able to tune in until the weekend.

[doug maverick]

I'm going to start watching it tomorrow, morning.. i planned it out as my weekend show to watch.

[GeneChing]

Marco Polo’s Lorenzo Richelmy on Sudden Stardom: “Just Pretend It’s Easy”
by Katey Rich
December 12, 2014 3:47 pm


Photograph by Chiara Marinai.

Netflix has bet big on their new series Marco Polo, to the tune of a reported $90 million budget for first season. But they’ve bet just as big on their leading man, Lorenzo Richelmy, a 24-year-old unknown outside of his native Italy before being cast as the titular explorer. In addition to the historical crash course, the role came with certain expectations. Netflix’s P.R. notes made available to journalists detailed Richelmy’s Marco Polo workout—“Bench Press - 5 x sets of 20 sec with a 20 sec rest in between each set.”

Visiting the Vanity Fair offices in New York last week, Richelmy brushed off the whole thing. “You Americans have such an obsession with this kind of thing,” he says, though somehow with the Italian accent it sounds less dismissive than utterly convincing. “It’s like ‘Whoah, he’s a great actor he can gain a lot of weight.’ For me, it’s part of the job, I did it, but it’s fine.”

The 10 episodes of Marco Polo span just five of the 20 years the Italian explorer spent in the Mongolian Empire (yes, there’s plenty of room for a Season 2). As a servant to the emperor Kublai Khan (played by Benedict Wong), Marco Polo travels throughout Mongolia, getting into the kind of adventures that even the most talented actors might not quite be prepared for. To take on the role, Richelmy had to do everything from learning kung fu and swordfighting to finally learning how to look good riding a horse—he’d done it once before in a movie, but, he noted, “I was supposed to be **** on the horse, so it was perfect.” For Marco Polo, which features many massive vistas and battle scenes, the same trainer who taught Russell Crowe in Gladiator instructed Richelmy—“I was like, ‘I give my body to you, do whatever you like.’ ”

Many of those stunning horseback scenes are courtesy of the landscape in Kazakhstan, once part of the Mongolian empire. These days much of it is as remote as what Marco Polo explored, which left Richelmy and his cast mates to their own devices when it came to post-work entertainment. “It was called the Premier Spa Hotel,” Richelmy explains of their living quarters. “The only thing was a big warm pool, like a thermal pool. Basically every Friday night and Saturday night, we had to get together and drink until we died, and then everybody in the pool. That was actually a pretty good moment to bond.”

On the exact opposite end of the spectrum were the scenes filmed in Venice, where Richelmy says the production blocked off “three squares, two bridges, and three canals”—the kind of interruption that’s normally “almost impossible” in the Italian city. It was that moment, Richelmy says, that “I realized what I was doing”—that is, starring in a massively expensive project intended as the new international face of Netflix. “The only way to face that,” Richelmy says, “is just to play. Pretend it’s easy.”

With the first season of Marco Polo wrapped and a second not yet in the works, Richelmy has returned to his home in Rome, and swears, “I would never come here to live.” And though he knows Hollywood may come calling soon, for now, Richelmy can remain as loyal to Marco Polo as he is to Rome. “This is the best thing for me, now,” he says. “I’m a storyteller, I [do] kung fu, I can do drama, I can do sex, whatever you want. I don’t want anything more, now.”

Also, I just had to add Olivia Cheng to our Sword-hotties

[GeneChing]

This one is from last week but it's got Kung Fu in the title.

Marco Polo / 11 Dec 2014
Marco Polo: Lorenzo Richelmy's Crash Course in Kung Fu, Archery, and English
IGN spoke to the star of Netflix's new series, Marco Polo, about being trained in Kung Fu by the team from The Matrix and his favorite video games.
By Matt Fowler

Netflix is going grand with its new original series, Marco Polo - a soaring $90 million dollar production about the legendary explorer's early years in the court of conqueror Kublai Khan.

Launching with a 10-episode first season on Friday, December 12th, Marco Polo stars relative newcomer Lorenzo Richelmy as a young version of Polo who finds himself both a prisoner and an honored guest in the complex kingdom of the ruling Khan. Discovering danger, deception, love and war, Polo navigates his way through a foreign land with an open heart and a fresh face, ready for adventure.

I spoke with the enthusiastic Richelmy about being chosen to play the lead role on such a huge project, for which he not only had to learn Kung Fu, archery, and horseback riding, but also English. And - wouldn't you know it? - our chat eventually turned to video games.

IGN: What was your reaction to getting the lead role in such a large-scale project?

Lorenzo Richelmy: [shouts] WOOOO HOOOO! [laughs] That was basically it. It's the biggest production I've ever seen in my life. I mean as an actor, I'm 24, I never expected this type of thing, you know. I was doing well in Italy. I had my position there. And it was so wonderful because I had only heard about the project and I decided by myself to try out for it. And it's not that it's a big, massive production. It's something new. It's something that's changing the way TV shows are made and changing the system. It's something you've never seen before. I mean, I watched it for the first time just a few days ago and it's just huge. People from 27 countries, from all over he world, traveling through valleys and deserts in Malaysia. And working with the best stunt people ever, who worked on The Matrix. We learned regular Crouching Tiger. I had to learn everything, including English. It was just a beautiful ride.

IGN: Let's talk about the Kung Fu. You have some incredible training sequences with Tom Wu, who plays Bayan the Hundred Eyes.

Richelmy: It was incredible. We worked for two months before we started shooting. And we had this tent in the middle of production in Malaysia where everybody was training. And I had these Chinese guys teaching me Kung Fu, some Japanese guys teaching me sword fighting, and the Bulgarians teaching me wrestling, and again others teaching me horseback riding and archery. The first week was fun because according to choreographer Brett Chan, he called my first week of training the "body shocking." So it was 10 hours of training every day and then at the end, deep in a bathtub with salts otherwise the next day I wouldn't be able to move a finger.


Lorenzo Richelmy as Marco Polo.

So it was intense. But at the same time I found a wonderful team of people who were very nice. But for me, everything was difficult. It was all from scratch. I felt like the a black sheep among all of this. But it was the atmosphere of something new that kept me going. Even when you were working with Acadamy Award-winners or Emmy Award-winners, everyone was still trying and coming together to make something unique and different. So it was good for me. It was like an indie movie with a massive production.

IGN: What is the Khan's relationship like with Marco? How would you describe it?

Richelmy: At the beginning, Marco is just a puppet for him. Then, eventually, he becomes a clown. And I'm talking about the truthful relationship between the clown and the king. The king is surrounded by a bunch of "Yes Men" and people who tell him what he wants to hear so he needs fresh eyes and someone to tell him the truth. And someone to have a strong and different point of view about things. And Marco's young. He's a curious and honest guy. He never judges anyone either. And because of that he's been recognized as the first modern man and the guy who built the bridge between the East and West. He was over there for twenty years. He's very open-minded and that helped him fit in with this new world.

IGN: At first, Marco resents being left behind there by his father. So what eventually draws him to the Mongolian world?

Richelmy: First of all, we start with Marco as a boy. As a kid. And then by the last episode of the season, he's a young man. So he's at a point in his life when he starts to fix things within himself and discover who he is as a man. And thought he wanted to be like his father. But then he meets his father and discovers that he's not what he thought he'd be. And so he comes to want to stay with the Khan because at that time, that was the center of the world. He starts to grow into it and become a part of the court. He's not interested in trade. He's not interested in money like his father. Or being a merchant. He wants to be in the center of the world.

IGN: There are also some beautiful woman who catch his eye - Kokachin and Khutulun.

Richelmy: Yes. [laughs] Kokachin and Khutulun. [Actresses] Zhu Zhu and Claudia Kim. We're telling the story of a great explorer, but he's also young now. And so we're on the way to showing how this legendary man became a legend. And so yes, he's a kid. And now he's in Mongolian culture and he loves women. So he starts off his exploring there. Because you can explore in many different ways.


Benedict Wong (as Kublai Khan) and Lorenzo Richelmy.

IGN: Marco doesn't seem to have an easy time with the Khan's son, Prince Jingim.

Richelmy: Marco becomes a confident of the Khan. And Jingim's problem with Marco isn't about Marco really. It's all about him. Because Marco isn't trying to bother anyone. And the show's great because the scope of it is massive but it's still a family drama. And Jingim will understand that his anger toward Marco is part of his own weakness. So their relationship changes a lot. And there will be some fights, of course. Jingim is afraid of Marco because he's afraid of himself as a son. So when he becomes more confident in that he won't see Marco as a threat anymore and will eventually see him as a friend.

IGN: This is an interesting time period to explore. Not many films or shows are made about Mongolian/Chinese history.

Richelmy: That's the first thing that I loved about this part. Because we have the chance to entertain a lot of people while also teaching them about this time in history. It's a period that not many people know about. And it's a little strange that we don't know all that much about one of the biggest empires ever. So we want to see how people react to this, because we put all the best into something new. There is an end to the first season, and we'll be telling the story of five years in Marco's life. And so there's more stories to tell should we come back for a Season 2. And I would of course be happy and amazed to return.

IGN: What's your favorite memory from shooting Season 1?

Richelmy: The biggest one comes from one of the last days of shooting. It was a battle scene. And I was on a horse on the top of a hill and I had to ride through three hundred extras fighting each other. With smoke, fire, craziness all around. Arrows, catapults. Two square kilometers of fighting. And my action was basically "ride as fast as you can inside it." And so, you know, I play video games so it felt like a dream to do.

IGN: What are your favorite games?

Richelmy: My favorite game of all time would be Civilization. And then I also love others. I have the new Xbox so I have Assassin's Creed, Call of Duty. Almost everything. I have a holiday after the next few weeks for about a month and I'm going to spend the whole time playing video games.

IGN: They could make an Assassin's Creed game using your show, I think.

Richelmy: That is actually amazing. That would be the biggest dream of my life. I'm not kidding. I don't need the Oscar. I don't care about the Oscar. I want to be on my couch, in Rome, playing as myself in Assassin's Creed. I can die after that.

All 10 episodes of Netflix's Marco Polo will be available to stream on Friday, December 12th.

Matt Fowler is a writer for IGN. Follow him on Twitter at @TheMattFowler and Facebook at Facebook.com/Showrenity.

I've been hearing lots of criticisms about the nudity in this show. That's actually a lot like the book. In Travels, Polo goes into great detail about Kubalai's harem and concubine selection process. In fact, there are several descriptions of unusual sexual practices of different regions and rulers. I imagine that it was pretty risque back in the day, and I suspect that a lot of the popularity and longevity of Travels over the centuries might have stemmed from this.

Anyone else here ever read Marco Polo's Travels?

[PalmStriker]

Characters: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RNt-GsKoJZY

[sanjuro_ronin]

This one is from last week but it's got Kung Fu in the title.


I've been hearing lots of criticisms about the nudity in this show. That's actually a lot like the book. In Travels, Polo goes into great detail about Kubalai's harem and concubine selection process. In fact, there are several descriptions of unusual sexual practices of different regions and rulers. I imagine that it was pretty risque back in the day, and I suspect that a lot of the popularity and longevity of Travels over the centuries might have stemmed from this.

Anyone else here ever read Marco Polo's Travels?

Yep, years ago.
Funny how people are more quick to criticize nudity than they are violence.
Quite the statement when you think of it.

[GeneChing]

Clearly a tease for Season 2. Well, that's cool. I'd totally watch Season 2. I enjoyed Season 1 immensely.

Yep, years ago.
Funny how people are more quick to criticize nudity than they are violence.

I read it for the first time a few months ago, when I heard this was coming. As I said in my JAN+FEB 2015 Pub Note, it's "a must for any serious sinophile". I'm glad I finally read it as it was very illuminating. I've been reading a lot of comments on the series. You get those haters of course, who just gotta complain that it's not historically accurate. That criticism could be leveled at any Kung Fu flick or similar show like The Tudors. Clearly, this is historical fiction. But at the same time, I like how Fusco took Travels and history and twisted it to tell his story. Hundred Eyes is a great example. Hundred Eyes is in Travels, but he's not a blind Wudang monk. He was one of the Kubilai's generals, a Tartar, instrumental in taking Facfur in Manzi (medieval name of southern China). Bayan is literally taken to mean '100 eyes' (baiyan 百眼) but the editor's note in my edition questions the validity of the translation.

[GeneChing]

Wednesday, December 24th, 2014 | Posted by The UB Post
B.Amarsaikhan: I specifically wore deel to promote Mongolian traditional clothing

Trans. by B.DULGUUN



The following is an interview with B.Amarsaikhan, who is the first Mongolian actor to set foot into Hollywood by starring in the 90 million USD drama series “Marco Polo”.

He signed a contract with Netflix Inc. for the role of Arig Bukh in the currently ongoing drama series created by John Fusco, “Marco Polo”. Netflix is an American provider of on-demand internet streaming media available to viewers in North and South America, the Caribbean and parts of Europe.

Congratulations on becoming the first Mongolian actor to enter Hollywood. How was the premier of “Marco Polo”?

The premier of “Marco Polo” original series took place in New York on December 2. Actors from many different countries gathered at the red carpet and attended a huge party in the evening after the premier.

The red carpet is focused on photographing stars. Photographers ask you to look here and there and make different poses. I felt as if I had become a model. You often see actors and entertainers talking about their outfit at the red carpet. It can be said that this event has become a large custom or tradition.

How is the red carpet of Mongolia different from Hollywood’s?

In Mongolia, people can walk on the red carpet and enter a building straight away. In Hollywood, you get specific directions on where to pose and get photographed. Sometimes, I had to pose alone and sometimes, with my wife. At the premier, only the author and director stood on the stage while actors sat down. In Mongolia, everyone has to stand on the stage.

There were many aspects that should be focused on in the future. The Executive Director of Netflix Inc. took photos individually with the actors.

After the premier, I went to Los Angeles to meet and report on my work to my agency.

Can you tell us about your agency? How did you get connected to the agency?

My agency is called UNEW, abbreviated for United Nations East West. The agency helps actors from Asia step into Europe and Hollywood, and vice-versa. Many entertainers from South Korea and China were introduced to Hollywood by UNEW, such as Lee Byung Hun (G.I. Joe series). I devoted an immense amount of time and effort to connect with this agency. Actors from all around the world try to enter this large organization. I did everything I could do to get their attention. After drawing up an acting contract, the agency recommended “Marco Polo” series.

UNEW worked hard to get me Arig Bukh’s role and I had to travel back and forth to Malaysia for four months to pass several auditions. It may seem like a simple audition from the outside, but it’s actually a fierce competition full of rivalry.

After hearing that I got the role, the agency celebrated in Los Angeles while I celebrated in Mongolia. A few weeks ago, the agency congratulated me on successfully performing in the role and I made an official report of my work.

At the red carpet, you wore a traditional Mongolian deel. Who did you consult about your outfit and why did you choose that specific outfit?

Besides including actors from over 30 countries, the series is about the history of Mongolia. It was only right that I wore a traditional deel and my Mongolian representative agency, Amin Shiidel PR, recommended I do so. Considerable consideration, effort, and participation from many people lies behind my appearance on the red carpet. I wanted to promote Mongolian deel and the best Mongolian brand by wearing a deel made of cashmere from Gobi Cashmere, hat from Burkh Company, shoes from Best Shoes Company, and accessories from Mongol Costumes Company. The outfit I wore at the evening reception was prepared by a B.Bayarmaa from Monsonics Company. She is a talented designer, globally recognized by her Bayarmaa Brand. Designer of Gobi Cashmere E.Battsetseg, who designed our deels, became the best designer at a Goyol fashion show in Mongolia. Mongolian model working in the USA as a stylist S.Ijiltsetseg worked as our stylist.

Many Mongolians living in the USA welcomed us at the airport, including President of Mongolian Democratic Socialist Youth Association L.Oyun-Erdene and designer Nomin. I was warmly received by Permanent Representative of Mongolia to the U.N. O.Och and his spouse J.Tsolmon, as well as S.Aruinaa, working at one of the largest museums of the world, the Metropolitan Museum of Art. They all attended the premier. Everyone gave a lot of attention to my participation at the red carpet and supported me considerably so that I could prove that Mongolia is as great as any other country.

From the many actors from different countries, did anyone else wear traditional clothing? Deel wasn’t very interesting to fellow actors since they’re wearing them in the series, right?

My wife and I were the only ones wearing traditional clothing. Fellow actors must’ve been fascinated to see modern designs of Mongolian deel they’ve been wearing during filming. I would’ve probably worn a suit if I played in an action or adventure film. As it is a series about the history of Mongolia, I felt wearing deel was the best choice.

Is it true that your introduction at the premier was more special than other actors’? How are premiers for drama series different from film premiers?

Actors were introduced by their roles. When they introduced me, they said they were very happy to introduce me and that I was Amaraa, an actor from Mongolia. Mongolians who were present mentioned that my introduction was special, but it’s probably because it was a series about Mongolia.

As for the premier, just like a film premier, the first two episodes of the series was shown in the cinema.

Most foreign historic films about Mongolia received criticism. Do you think “Marco Polo” will also receive negative comments?

Everything depends on how the artist wants to portray their work. I don’t know how this film will continue. I know for a fact that John Fusco wrote his script after researching in detail. Sometimes, I complained that some events and costumes weren’t accurate but he said that he’s portraying how Marco Polo saw Mongolia and the rulers. So, the series will be filmed in that manner.

The series is an artistic and commercial script so there will be some exaggerations and imaginative aspects. I can notice that John Fusco did a lot of research for some of the scenes. For instance, he noticed that Mongolians communicates and expresses their agreement or disagreement through words like “thh”, “hnn”, and “mmm”. He tried to display this in the series. I think “Marco Polo” will be different from other films since it was created by a person who did heavy research.

Watching the first few episodes, the Mongolian music, costumes, headwear, and other accessories seem very accurate. Is there a Mongolian advisor for the series?

A president of a travel company, Byambaa, is working as a cultural advisor. John Fusco met him many years ago during his trip to Mongolia. Fusco focuses on portraying Mongolia’s traditions and customs properly. He even dedicates a day of the week as “Mongolian Day” for introducing necessary information about Mongolia to actors. No wonder the series is different from other films.

Do actors researching about their roles ask you about Mongolia?

Of course. During my stay there, I tried to teach even the littlest details to as many people as possible, starting from how to properly sit in gers, how to play Mongolian traditional games with angle-bones. I helped with the pronunciation of words that aren’t translated to foreign languages such as airag and borts. Foreigners pronounce Chinggis Khaan as Jinghis or Genghis, but in the film it will be pronounced properly as “Chinggis”. This is all because a Mongolian actor starred in the series. It was awkward at first but later, the crew got closer and they started inquiring about small things.

You are only in the first two episodes. Don’t you think your role ended too soon?

The first antagonist in the series is the enemy of Khubilai, Arig Bukh. Script writers also said that Arig Bukh’s role ended too soon and wanted to find ways to bring him out again. They even talked about making him appear in Khubilai’s nightmare. I don’t know how the script will continue. Currently, the script for the third season has been completed.

The series is struggling financially and critically now. $90 million is a lot to recoup.

[GeneChing]

Read Creating the World of the Warrior: John Fusco and Marco Polo By Lori Ann White

[sanjuro_ronin]

Nice article Gene.
I really enjoyed the kung fu in this series.
It was nicely done with just the right hint of "silliness".
The praying mantis was nice and the final fight between Ji Dao and 100 eyes was sweet