AJ Lee To Co-Write 47 Ronin Sequel With Lucifer Star

AJ Lee is getting into screenwriting. As announced today by Deadline, the former WWE Diva's Champion has signed on to co-write the screenplay for a sequel to the 2013 film 47 Ronin. She will be joined by writing partner Aimee Garcia, best known for playing Ella Lopez in the Netflix TV series Lucifer.

Details on the plot for this sequel are not yet known. The original film, starring Keanu Reeves, was a fictionalized account of the real life forty-seven rōnin, a group of samurai who set out to avenge their fallen master. Released on Christmas Day in 2013, the film grossed $151 million against it's estimated budget of between $175-225 million. Nevertheless a sequel was announced last year, with Ron Yuan signed on to direct.

"AJ and I are excited to write a diverse and inclusive action film," Garcia said in a statement. "Director Ron Yuan's vision to blend martial arts, horror, cyber-punk and action was inspiring and we'd like to thank the team at 1440 for being so supportive."

In a separate statement, AJ concurred with her co-writer. "As creators of color, we're honored to be part of a modern, multicultural story with powerful female leads.

Garcia and Lee have worked together as writing partners on the comic book series GLOW, based off the Netflix TV series of the same name, since 2019. They have also worked together on the comic book series Dungeons and Dragons.  In April of 2020 the duo launched their production company Scrappy Heart Productions in order to create diverse stories across all media.

Lee's memoir about her career in wrestling, Crazy is My Super Power: How I Triumphed By Breaking Bones, Break Hearts and the Breaking Rules, was released in April of 2017 and debuted at number 10 on the New York Times Bestsellers list. The book is being adapted by Scrappy Heart Productions. She has also written a pilot script called Home, which was included in The Black List's inaugural Latin TV list of unproduced pilot scripts in 2020.