Simu Liu Says Sleeping Dogs Movie Has a Real Path Forward

A Long Wait Gets a Little Shorter

If you have been quietly hoping that the Sleeping Dogs movie would eventually crawl out of development purgatory, Simu Liu has some good news for you. The Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings star took to X/Twitter on August 16 to answer a fan asking about the project’s status, and the update is genuinely encouraging.

“Okay, here it is,” Liu wrote. “We’re moving along really well, we have a director, and a production company, and a REAL path forward. We’re just in the dealmaking process with the game studio right now (which is a total fan moment for me because I love Square Enix). Your support is fueling us all!”

That game studio, of course, is Square Enix, the publisher behind the 2012 open-world crime drama from United Front Games. The film is based on that title’s undercover cop story set in neon-soaked Hong Kong, with Liu attached to both produce and star as protagonist Wei Shen.

Where Things Actually Stand

To understand how much ground has been covered, it helps to remember where this project started. Donnie Yen had his own Sleeping Dogs adaptation in the works for years before confirming in early 2025 that his version had been cancelled. Liu moved quickly to announce he was picking up the torch, though his specific role took a little while to clarify. IGN later reported he would produce and take the lead role.

Since then, the pieces have been coming together in stages. Late last year, director Timo Tjahjanto was confirmed to be attached. Tjahjanto has built a reputation for kinetic, stylish action with films like Killers and, more recently, Nobody 2, which makes him a plausible fit for a story built around street-level violence and loyalty tested under pressure. Video game adaptation-focused production company Story Kitchen is also involved, adding a team with specific experience navigating the particular challenges of bringing games to screen.

Then in October 2025, Liu announced the script had been completed. That is a meaningful milestone for a project that spent a long stretch with no public-facing momentum at all.

The dealmaking stage with Square Enix is the current hurdle, and it is not a small one. Securing the rights and the terms from the IP owner is exactly the kind of step that can take longer than anyone would like, but the fact that there is an active process underway rather than a stalled negotiation is notable.

The Game Itself, and Why This Still Matters

For anyone who needs a refresher, the Story Kitchen website describes the film’s setting and central conflict this way: “Set in a vibrant, contemporary, neon-infused neo-noir Hong Kong, Wei Shen is an undercover cop torn between his duty as an officer of the law and, separately, his loyalty to a family of violent Triads that he’s trying to infiltrate, many of whom he grew up with on the streets.”

That tension between identity, duty, and belonging is the emotional engine of the original game, and it is a premise that translates reasonably well onto a screen pitch. IGN gave the 2012 game an 8.5 out of 10, and it has maintained a devoted fanbase for more than a decade partly because its Hong Kong setting and Wei Shen’s complicated moral position gave it a texture that set it apart from its genre contemporaries.

As for Liu personally, he has a full plate while the Sleeping Dogs negotiations wind forward. He is set to return to the Marvel Cinematic Universe in Avengers: Doomsday this December, and he has also been vocal about his ongoing efforts to get Shang-Chi 2 made.

No release date or production window has been announced for Sleeping Dogs. But with a director, a completed script, a production company, and active conversations with Square Enix all confirmed, the film is closer to a greenlight than it has ever been.