Stephen Chow: Good Blend of Action and Comedy

Stephen Chow is a Chinese actor who became popular for his comedic role in the movie “All for the Winner”, a 1990 spoof of Chow Yun-Fat. Chow is the only Hong Kong-based artist that did not join Hollywood in spite of several offers from movie producers.

Chow was born as Chow Sing-Chi on June 22, 1962. He was the only boy in a family of four children. He grew up in Shanghai, China with his three sisters. He was an avid fan of Bruce Lee and his interest in Bruce Lee’s specialty Wing Chun became an integral part of his movies later on.

Chow’s first exposure to acting happened in 1982 when he auditioned for the acting school of the Hong Kong TV station TVB. The school rejected him but his friend Lee Chi-Hung helped him. He attended the evening classes. He graduated in 1983.

After graduation, Chow’s first assignment was to host “Space Shuttle 430”, a children’s TV show. The show lasted for five years. Towards the show’s final run, Chow starred in several drama shows and was featured in the film “Final Justice”. He won the Best Supporting Actor award in the 25^th Annual Taiwanese Film Awards for that movie.

In 1990, Chow got the breakthrough in his acting career when he co-starred in the Chow Yun-Fat movie “All for the Winner” and its sequel “God of Gamblers 2”. He combined his martial arts skills with comedy to create the acting style known as “Mo Lei Tau”.

In 2002, Chow added a new flavor to his style by adding sports in the movie “Shaolin Soccer”. This movie contained action sequences that were enhanced by digital effects taken under the tutelage of legendary fight choreographer Ching Siu-Tung. “Shaolin Soccer” hit gold and ranked as one of the highest grossing films of all time in Hong Kong.

Hollywood finally noticed Chow’s acting skills. The movie outfit Miramax purchased the rights to distribute “Shaolin Soccer” for its international release in 2003. Movie producer Columbia Tristar also released its own action-comedy movie “Kung Fu Hustle” following the success of “Shaolin Soccer”.

Chow’s creativity in combining action and comedy still finds a good share of audience and will continue to provide valuable entertainment options for generations to come.