Jackie Chan Signs for "The Spy Next Door"

Jackie Chan is set to star in “The Spy Next Door,” a martial-arts comedy about a man who’s called to baby-sit his neighbor’s kids and winds up having to fight off secret agents after one of the kids inadvertently downloads a secret code.

I’m having flashbacks of The Pacifier, starring another action star, Vin Diesel (fortunately, he’s returning to his roots). Do these action-family movies ever really score with audiences? Doesn’t seem like it, although my kids and I liked “Pacifier” well enough.

Read more…

Chan is one of the biggest-grossing comedy action stars of all time, with his Rush Hour films earning more than $500 million in the U.S. alone. The Forbidden Kingdom, which showcased his trademark brand of action chops and comic timing, earned $51 million in North America.

This sounds like one of those films that could be either really cheesy or semi-good. If you’re a fan of Jackie Chan, it probably doesn’t really matter.

Image: The Forbidden Kingdom, Lionsgate, 2008