Action movie maestro is fighting off illnesses

Thankfully the tumour turned out to be benign and his liver has begun to behave itself.

The last time we saw Panna was amid the controversy over “Tom-Yum-Goong 2” last year. Channel 3’s show-business reporters broke the story on Monday, saying he’d fallen ill in November. His family has barred cameras from the ICU where he’s being treated but released the photo that friends had taken. 

There’s been no visit so far from Panna’s protégé, Thatchakorn “Tony Jaa” Yeerum, but that’s understandable since Jaa, according to his Facebook page, is back in Los Angeles shooting “Fast and Furious 7”. Production resumed there after the role of Paul Walker, killed in a car wreck, was split between his two brothers.

Panna’s wife told a reporter that his liver disease had worsened because he was working so hard, and only later was the tumour found in his brain. Doctors soon determined that the tumour was not malignant and were able to remove it during hastily arranged surgery, with his studio Sahamongkol Film covering all the expenses.

And it now appears that Panna’s liver condition is improving as well, though he’ll remain in hospital for a while yet. His family says they’ll arrange an interview as soon as he’s ready. 

Interview or not, we hope that moment comes very soon.

 

Movie in the making

From initial plans for the remake to its casting, director ML Bandevanov “Mom Noi” Devakula has been generous with a steady trickle of leaks about his plans for “Plae Kao” (“The Old Scar”). First we learned that Chaiyapol “New” Pupart would play the male protagonist Khwan and Davika “Mai” Hoorne would fill the role of Riam. Then there was the supporting “army” Mom Noi assembled from among the finalists and winners of television’s “The Star” singing contest. One of them, Sinjai Plenpanich, gets to play a key character from the saga, Khunnai Thongkamplew.

Now comes the revelation that Mom Noi has recruited big-name actors to play Khwan and Riam’s parents. In Cherd Songsri’s original version, the late Sor Asanajinda played Khwan’s father. That role this time goes to the charismatic Pongpat Wachirabanjong, one of Mom Noi’s regulars, having appeared in his stage play “Rashomon” and movies including “Anda Kab Fah Sai”.

Cherd had Suwin Sawangrat and Sarinthip Siriwan starring as Riam’s parents. Mom Noi has chosen Sakarat Riththamrong as her dad and former Miss Thailand World Parnlekha Waanmuang as her mum. Sakarat also previously worked with Mom Noi, most recently playing Jan’s father in “Jan Dara”.

This clever piecemeal unveiling of a terrific cast is certainly whetting appetites for the movie’s premiere on September 25.