A poster of Hong Kong action director John Woo's classic "The Killer." The film will be remade by a Korean director with a Korean star replacing Chow Yun-fat as the titular hit man. (File Photo)

    BEIJING, Oct. 9 (Xinhuanet) -- Hong Kong action director John Woo's classic "The Killer" will be remade by a Korean director with a Korean star replacing Chow Yun-fat as the titular hit man, media reported Tuesday.

    Korean-American director John H. Lee will set the movie in Los Angeles' Koreatown, Chinatown and South Central.

    "The actor has to be Korean in this version, but also, L.A. is a character in the film," said Terrence Chang, who produces Woo's films.

    "In John's original version, it doesn't really matter where the film is set, except that Hong Kong has this dragon boat festival which adds a bit of local flavor. In this remake, we will use the geography of L.A. to move the story forward."

    The script was being worked on, but it was too early to reveal other details, he added.

    Director Lee told the media that he was excited about working on the remake of one of his "favorite films of all time."

    "I ask myself why they chose me and whether I can top it," Lee said. "But then I realize it's not about making it better. It's about making my own version. My strength is dealing with human emotions, austerity and elegance."

    (Agencies)