On November 19, 2022, Power Rangers franchise star Jason David Frank died at the age of 49. The actor made his debut as Tommy Oliver in the original Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers series, and after starting out as the Green Ranger, Tommy later held the White, Red and Black Ranger mantles across various shows. However, prior to his death, Frank was hard at work on a movie not connected to Power Rangers, and it’s finally been announced when Legend of the White Dragon, which was launched as a Kickstarter in 2020 and wrapped filming the following year, will be released.
Bat in the Sun Productions and Bascule Productions Ltd., the production companies behind Legend of the White Dragon, announced that the movie will be open in North American theaters on September 4, which would have been Frank’s 50th birthday. Scott Kennedy’s Falling Forward Films will release Legend of the White Dragon in the top 25 markets this fall. Frank co-stars in Legend of the White Dragon include Mark Dacascos, King Bach, Michael Madsen, David Ramsey, Jason Faunt, Rachel Brooke Smith, Ciara Hanna, Kevin Porter, Mayling Ng, Cerina Vincent and Jenna Rae Frank, the latter being the Power Rangers star’s daughter.
Legend of the White Dragon, which was directed by Aaron Schoenke and Sean Schoenke, sees Jason David Frank playing Erik Reed, a.k.a. the White Dragon, who’s returned to the city he fought to protect after spend three years on the run as a fugitive. Now that he’s back home, he must fight to clear his name and save the family he’s kept secret before the enigmatic Dragon Prime, played by Aaron Schoenke, can exact revenge. Frank also produced Legend of the White Dragon with the Schoenkes and Christopher Jay. Aaron Schoenke had this to say in a statement to Deadline about The Legend of the White Dragon’s theatrical release:
We are proud to have worked with such a talented actor, and we are grateful for the opportunity to share his final performance with the world. Having been on this journey with Jason for 10 years, I know he would be beyond excited to know that LEGEND OF THE WHITE DRAGON will be opening in theaters.
Sean Schoenke added in his own statement that “the production team has worked tirelessly” to complete Legend of the White Dragon to make sure that “it meets the high standards that Jason set for himself,” and this has resulted in “a powerful and moving tribute to his talent and dedication.” There’s no word yet on when Legend of the White Dragon will be released outside of North America, but with Scott Kennedy saying that his company is helping bring the movie to “worldwide audiences,” it sounds like it will either be theatrically released in other territories at a later date, or perhaps it’ll eventually be made available in these places as a VOD offering from the start.
Following Jason David Frank’s death, it was reported that he was in the midst of divorcing his second wife, Tammie Frank, and the separating couple were also being sued by Jason Meekins, who allegedly had a child with Tammie Frank’s daughter, Shayla Bergeron. Tammie Frank later confirmed that Jason David Frank died by suicide and opened up about facing “harassment” following his death, while Mike Bronzoulis, a friend of Jason’s, talked about how he’d been dealing with mental health struggles. Jason David Frank’s Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers co-stars Amy Jo Johnson and Austin St. John were among the people who paid tribute to him after his passing was revealed to the public.
Should any other major news about Legend of the White Dragon be shared, we’ll let you know. Until then, although Jason David Frank did not shoot any scenes for Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Once & Alway, which premieres to Netflix subscribers on April 19, the special will be dedicated to him and Thuy Trang, who played Trini, Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers’ original Yellow Ranger, and died in 2001.
