Variety is reporting that the Weinstein brothers are planning a stage version of the poetic martial arts epic, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.  The Weinsteins have obtained worldwide rights to Wang Du Lu's Crane/Iron Pentalogy of which Crouching Tiger, which earned $128 million in the U.S. in 2001, was the fourth book.  The brothers plan to create a movie franchise out of the property by filming the three prequels to Crouching Tiger as well the final volume in the saga (they do not plan to remake Crouching Tiger).  According to Variety the Weinsteins are attempting to get director Ang Lee, who helmed the original Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon film, to work on the new series of films.

Although they won't make a movie out of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, the Weinsteins are planning to turn the property into a major stage production, a combination spectacle with plenty of martial arts set pieces (i.e. the battle in the bamboo forest) and musical production.

The original Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon set box office records for a foreign language film in 2001 and also provided retailers with a nice array of spin-off merchandise including a manga adaptation, making-of books, and action figures.