UFC Women’s Bantam Weight Champion Ronda Rousey is set to star in a new action movie alongside Indonesian martial artist Iko Uwais (The Raid 2), being produced by Peter Berg (Lone Survivor), according to Variety.
The film will follow a CIA officer (Rousey) who is paired with an Indonesian police officer to take down political corruption. According to Berg, the movie will draw inspiration from Uwais’s work in The Raid films.
I am a huge fan of what Gareth (Evans) and Iko did on both ‘Raid’ films, and I’m very excited at the possibility of working with Ronda and Iko to create a film in the spirit of this new wave of combat cinema emerging from Indonesia.
After joining The Expendables 3 ensemble last summer, Rousey is currently building quite the acting resume. This summer she will be she will be featured in both Furious 7 and Entourage. She’s the second female MMA fighter to move into the acting world after fellow fighter Gina Carano made her acting debut as a black ops soldier in Stephen Soderbergh’s Haywire and followed that up with a turn in Fast & Furious 6. Carano is also set to play Angel Dust in the upcoming Deadpool. Rousey looks to be on a similar path. Uwais is also looking to build his prominence state-side, with roles in Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens and the sequel to 2010’s Skyline, titled Beyond Skyline.
The Raid franchise is having quite an influence on American blockbusters, as directors Anthony and Joe Russo cited the movies as a key influence on the action scenes in last year’s hit Captain America: The Winter Soldier. There is also an American remake of The Raid: Redemption in the works staring Taylor Kitsch (Battleship) and Frank Grillo (Captain America: The Winter Soldier). As of yet no director has been announced for Mile 22, but we will have more on the project as it develops.