Maximum Choppage: Action's Answer To 'Flight Of The Conchords'?

No one wants to let down their mum by bringing home, say, a lacklustre report card or an inappropriate date. But both of those scenarios pale in comparison to the heavyweight champion of parental disappointment: choosing the wrong career track. That, believe it or not, is the subtext of Maximum Choppage, the ABC’s new kung-fu comedy starring comedian Lawrence Leung. After years of refining his fists of fury at a Beijing martial arts temple, Leung’s Simon Chan has returned home to the Sydney suburb of Cabramatta to fulfil his destiny by following in his late father’s footsteps as a fearsome but noble warrior. There’s only one problem: Simon has actually been studying at a Melbourne art school and can’t throw a punch to save his life. “We flip all those parental expectations of getting a proper job, like a doctor or a lawyer, on their head,” says Leung, who wrote a number of Maximum Choppage episodes in addition to playing the lead.

And it all takes place in “a heightened universe that still captures the essence of Cabramatta”, he says. The suburb has had a rough go of things in the past, with news and current affairs reports, especially in the ‘90s, playing up what Leung calls the “dark and shady” reputation of the area. But Leung and the creators of Maximum Choppage wanted to showcase the neighbourhood’s culture, albeit in a somewhat stylised way. “A local ghost festival lets us play with horror themes, and we’ll throw an action sequence into the middle of a food festival.”

As you may have gathered, the spirit of Kung Fu Hustle’s Stephen Chow and Spaced’s Edgar Wright flows through Maximum Choppage’s veins, with the creators of the show ever-eager to maintain humanity and heart while raising the stakes by asking “Ok, how we can ‘Max Chop’ that?” whenever a funny or furious situation arose. “We think it’s going to appeal to action fans, comedy fans, even fans of a family drama,” says Leung. “It’s a bit like Flight Of The Conchords, but instead of going into a musical number like they do on that show, we’ll transition into an action scene.”

While he’s primarily known for his acclaimed stand-up work, which he’ll be taking around the comedy festival circuit next month in The Escapist, Leung is no stranger to acting, having appeared on the likes of House Husbands and Offspring. Taking on the central role in Maximum Choppage, however, gave him greater opportunities to “embody a character”, even to the point of undergoing a bit of training (from very nice martial arts experts “who could kill you with their bare hands... but never would”) for the show’s action sequences. Leung does admit with a laugh that he could slack off a little because, well, Simon kinda sucks at fighting.