Jackie Chan will return to the Armour of God franchise in Armour of God 4: Ultimatum, with filming slated to begin in July and a worldwide release targeted for the second quarter of 2027.
The production will move to Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan and has Salem Entertainment aboard; Robert Kun, whose credits include Night Watch and Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, is directing. The plot hinges on an ancient relic called the Tumar, which is tied to a reported $20 million reward, signaling a large-scale adventure positioned for global audiences.
The timing gives the film a clear runway: shooting in July, post-production through 2026 and early 2027, and the Q2 2027 release window. Those dates matter because they set when international locations and logistics must be locked, when line producers will need to secure permits and crews in two distinct regions, and when financiers will expect principal photography to start.
Armour of God helped cement Chan’s global profile decades ago. Chan, 72, first led the series in the 1980s, and the franchise’s reputation has long been defined by its physical stunt work and hand-to-hand choreography—an element producers are explicitly balancing with modern production practices on this instalment.
That balance is the project’s central tension. The new film is being planned with an emphasis on risk control and safety even though the series’ history includes a near-fatal accident: in 1986, during the production of the original Armour of God, Chan fell roughly 16 feet, suffering a skull fracture and partial hearing loss in his right ear. After Eric Tsang departed that earlier production, Chan took over directing to finish the film; the episode remains part of the franchise’s legacy.
Those facts frame decisions the team must make now. The production’s move to Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan opens opportunity for dramatic landscapes and period architecture, but it also raises practical safety questions—stunts that played on cramped Hong Kong sets or backlot towers will need fresh risk assessments on remote locations. With a $20 million reward written into the plot, the filmmakers appear set on big set pieces that will test those assessments.
Practical details for viewers are straightforward: principal photography starts in July and the film aims for a worldwide release in Q2 2027. Salem Entertainment’s attachment and Kun’s hiring give the project commercial heft and a clear creative lead, but casting beyond Chan, the scale of international crews, and U.S. distribution arrangements have not been disclosed.
The remaining, sharp question is how much of the physical work Chan will perform himself. The production’s stated emphasis on safety and Chan’s age—72—paired with the franchise’s stunt-heavy past, make a straightforward answer unlikely to come until cameras roll. Reality suggests a compromise: Chan will almost certainly remain the public and creative face of the picture while much of the highest-risk choreography is designed around modern safety protocols, doubles and controlled effects.
When filming begins in July, those watching should note two things: how the production stages its action in Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan, and how Chan is presented within it—center stage in a protective, technically guarded way, or still performing the raw, dangerous moves that defined his early career. The outcome will determine whether Armour of God 4: Ultimatum leans into franchise nostalgia or signals a new, more cautious chapter for action filmmaking with one of its longtime stars.
