Malaysian actress Michelle Yeoh said Tuesday that she has been waiting many years to reprise her role in "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" in an upcoming sequel to the supernatural martial arts movie.

"Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: Sword of Destiny," centers around the protection of a legendary sword.

It also stars Donnie Yen of the "Ip Man" martial arts films and "The Monkey King" as "Silent Wolf," Harry Shum Jr., who played Mike Chang in the TV series "Glee," and Jason Scott Lee.

"We've been waiting for this film for many, many years," Yeoh said at an event in Beijing marking the new movie, which will be released on Feb. 8 in theaters in China and on Feb. 26 in the U.S. on Netflix and in selected theaters.

In her first movie appearance, Australian actress Natasha Liu Bordizzo plays Yeoh's apprentice. Liu Bordizzo, also at the event in Beijing, said she thought the sequel had the potential to replicate the 2000 movie's success.

"I think the first story is known so much for a beautiful story and not just the martial arts and I think our film definitely also has that element '€” we have a beautiful story as well as so many layers," she said.

The original was filmed in Mandarin. The sequel is in English and will be dubbed into Mandarin for its release in China. (kes)

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