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There was an earlier thread on Akira Kurosawa coming to America to do Westerns but what if he went instead to Italy to do them once his Toho contract ran out in 1966?
Let's say he and Sergio Leone make amends following the Yojimbo/Fistful lawsuit and Kurosawa comes to Italy to meet with his former rival.
Now let's say that a Western version of The Hidden Fortress comes onto the table as something they could work on together to get rid of all the bad blood and get Akira accustomed to working outside of Japan. Around this time OTL Paramount is offering Leone access to Henry Fonda for an American budgeted Spaghetti.
Now (just for shits/giggles) let's say that while Kurosawa and Leone are contemplating ideas for their picture and visiting America, James Coburn or Stirling Silliphant introduces them to Bruce Lee who is busy portraying Kato in The Green Hornet. Lee loves Westerns and the idea of an "East Meets West" storyline is already emerging in his head. He offhandedly pitches the idea to the directors who are immediately intrigued.
The result is a year of research and storyboarding and the final product is a Leone-Kurosawa (with some help from Lee) penned rethinking of "The Hidden Fortress" with heavy elements of "Kung Fu" and "Once Upon A Time In The West."
(The idea here is to make this film as eerily similar to an earlier Western version of Star Wars as possible. I'm sure that's obvious...)
Who does Henry Fonda play? Does Bruce Lee act and what will he play? Will Toshiro Mifune make an appearance? Does Star Wars still get made as a Space Opera retelling of this film? How does Star Wars change?
Cast and describe such a film.
Bonus points: For an African American actor having a vital role in the film as one of the protagonists...