Everybody Wasn't Kung Fu Fighting

One of those opportunities again involves animals. Dennis is now working on an animated series for China's CCTV called Monkey Quest, which he describes as an inexact translation of an old Chinese fable featuring a monkey, a pig and a Buddhist monk. In a brief promotional video, a monkey hero possessed with supernatural powers flies around and fights bad guys. The show, which is set to air in June, has some of the spunk associated with Japanese animation. The Laws will handle licensing of the merchandise.

They're also preparing a Chinese digital-animation series about a dragon. And the family's ten-year-old Christmas business, Holiday Creations, continues to churn out "scenes," populated by moving figurines, that are sold at stores such as Target and Wal-Mart.

And a sequel to Warriors could begin shooting next year. It would be a direct-to-video project as well as a pilot for a new television show.

Who in America would watch fighting kangaroos on prime-time television when no one saw them on the screen? "If you focus on dollars and cents, I can't argue with you," says Dennis. But, he says, potential backers focus on a malleable product that can fill a void: youth-oriented fantasy shows. "People like the property."

Apparently, they'll like it even more after the kung-fu kangaroos are bounced from the story. "The Rooz may not have to be Rooz outside the Tao," Dennis says cryptically. "You may see them as forces of nature."

Which means they're toast. "We're getting rid of the heroes that started the whole thing," Chris acknowledges.

In Warriors of Virtue, five kangaroos stood for benevolence, loyalty, righteousness, wisdom and order. Like their film counterparts, the brothers already knew about the value of loyalty. Their experience making the film--where success eluded them in a way it hasn't in all of their other ventures--made them a bit more wise.

"I can't tell you the amount of things we learned," Chris says. "You get a great deal of insight into the moviemaking business. We certainly learned to work together as a unit, the family and brothers. For me, personally, I learned a completely different set of insights into what I can do. That was the most valuable lesson."

"If you knew the result, and given the amount of work and number of years and the financial success, you have to be frank and say it wasn't worth it," says Ron. "But it was the most exciting period of my life. I couldn't wait to get up for the next day.