Eddie Cheung Joins Adia Chan in TVB’s “Full-Time Nowhere Woman”
At the premiere for his film GOOD TAKE!, Eddie Cheung (張兆輝) revealed that he will be teaming up with Adia Chan (陳松伶) in the upcoming drama, Full-Time Nowhere Woman <全職沒女>. The comedy drama is expected to start filming sometime in late April or early May.
GOOD TAKE!, an indie film that features an ensemble cast, also stars Jessica Hsuan (宣萱). Eddie shared that he does not have many scenes with Jessica, as his character arc centers on his relationship with the rookie actors. The movie will show in select Hong Kong theaters starting April 14.
Eddie, now a free agent, announced that he has signed a per-series contract with TVB. His next TVB project will be Full-Time Nowhere Woman, which stars Adia Chan in her first TVB drama since 2006’s Trimming Success <飛短留長父子兵>. The drama will be produced by Andy Chan (陳耀全), producer of Karma Rider <師父·明白了>, Swipe Tape Love <愛我請留言>, and Speed of Life <鐵馬戰車>.
Eddie said he has never worked with Adia before and is looking forward to the project. However, he is still unsure if he will be involved with Adia’s character romantically.
In related news, Jessica Hsuan was asked at the premiere event if she too would return to TVB. Asking if TVB has contacted her, Jessica teased, “I’ll speak more about it once everything is confirmed.”
Source: Oriental Daily, HK01
This article is written by Addy for JayneStars.com.
Ahh I like Eddie! Hope the comedy will be good! Sound like Jessica may be back for per-series contract also?
is good cheung siu fai is back doing drama!!!
Great news! Eddie Cheung has always been such a likeable actor, even in his evil roles. I always wondered why he never made it super big at TVB. Although I think he moved on to movies relatively successfully afterwards, right? So, good for him.
@sasamii
Eddie had passed the age where he could play the lead regularly at TVB but transferred successfully to movies. He is doing very well!
@sasamii I suppose bad timing? Same with Hugo Ng. Solid actors, but a lot of competition back then. 5 Tigers dominated the 80’s; then, the rise of Chilam, Louis, Gallen, etc. marked the 90’s. Eddie’s peak was in the late 80’s and early 90’s at TVB.
@tiffany @sasamii
Eddie didn’t start straight away as a lead like Felix Wong and Michael Miu but it didn’t take long for him to play the lead role in The Turbulent Decade. @Tiffany is correct that the Five Tigers were competition and were given all the heroic and memorable roles whilst Eddie was left to play leads in the lower quality series. By mid 1990s Eddie was relegated to sitcom and then supporting roles but has proved himself by successfully entering the movies market.It wasn’t just him. The likes of Eddie Kwan and Sean Lau didn’t have the chance to gain popularity although they were luckier with police cadet before Sean broke out with ‘the greed of man’ which made him famous. Bobby at the time wasn’t good enough in his acting and the looks department so it took him even longer. Hugo Ng is probably the most talented of the lot but he fell out with TVB.It has been a great that Hugo has been brought back to TVB. He will certainly make up for the voids left by the veterans who have left for HKTV that aren’t allowed back!
@jimmyszeto Is it me or Hugo Ng looks like Kent Tong?
@peachyogurt hmmm nah peronsally think Hugo Ng is better looking.
@happybi I agree, Hugo Ng ages better while Kent is bald already.
@peachyogurt
Are you sure?
http://www.straitstimes.com/lifestyle/entertainment/1980s-channel-8-star-hugo-ng-to-relocate-here-from-hong-kong-for-sons-ns
@peachyogurt
Kent Cheng was very handsome back in the early 1980s but Hugo Ng only looked handsome in ancient costume. I don’t get mixed up because I grew up watching them. I think both are showing their age but I don’t think they were ever taking care of their appearance.
@jimmyszeto @tiffany You’re right; I forget the wealth of talent that TVB had back then. Those really were fantastic days.
I remember an old comedy series where Eddie played the lead as a con man. I forget what it was called, but he was very dashing!
@sasamii
I have good memories of watching that series repetitively as a child. Eddie was a serious conman but got framed by a partner for murder and was jailed for many years. When he came out of jail, he became a small time conman which was really funny… Yeh. This was the typical small production that Eddie appeared in regularly. When he was finally placed in a big production, he had to play a 4th/5th line actor behind Adam Cheng, Chilam, Gallen, Louis Koo in Cold Blood Warm Heart. He’s had a solid career and making decent but not spectacular money nevertheless.
@jimmyszeto Eddie Cheung’s leading time at TVB was rather short. He was really popular in that drama with Hugo Ng. The Black Sabre?
I’m surprised the veterans are coming back considering how poorly TVB treated them. I guess you don’t forget your roots.
@tiffany
I think if an actor wants to live in Hong Kong and stay with family then TVB is likely the main option. Hugo can act in movies but there’s not enough roles
@jimmyszeto Yeah, I get the per-series contract. You can spend time with family in HK while make money elsewhere. Hugo Ng is also back, Noel’s husband, Akina Hong, and a few others.
@jimmyszeto That’s the unfortunate part, which is why it’s such a shame that the government was so close-minded about opening the television market and giving both artists as well as audiences more options. I remember Chow Yun Fat remarked a few years back that he was worried that future generations of Hong Kongers who actually have a passion for acting (like those who actually studied acting at the HKAPA and wanted to make acting a career) would have a hard time finding good acting jobs in HK because of the severe lack of options. When your only option for acting in HK is either TVB or the movie industry (which we all know not everyone is cut out for, plus very few actually make it to A list status), that’s definitely a huge problem.
@llwy12
I think if a Hong Kong actor/actress is dedicated they should include China as a target stage for them to develop their career. It isn’t too far from Hong Kong. It might be a long road from the bottom but one must go to where work can be found and one day they may find success. The Hong Kong market is small and not everyone can make a good living from acting.Good supporting actors are just making enough. This shows that there’s a huge gap in earnings between a small time actor and the leading stars.
@jimmyszeto Yea, Eddie is definitely underrated. Too many talented artists in the 80s and not enough good roles to go around. Though to be honest, Eddie did take part in some pretty big productions in the 80s so I wouldn’t say he was always in lower quality series, except in the 90s of course when he got pushed to 4th and 5th line (the little amount of screen time he got in CBWH was pathetic). Yes, he did successfully transition to movies, even winning 2 Best Actor awards at international film festivals. Nowadays, he really doesn’t have to worry about money, since the beauty products business he has with his wife has earned him enough to live comfortably the rest of his life (rumor has it that he is actually a millionaire now, though he continues to be very low profile about it).
about time TVB is willing to unload some cash to rehired these excellent stars from the 90’s, I sure hope Jessica is next in line! I seriously can’t stand Grace and Sisly still too fresh off the boat.
@vodka
An acting class background will always be an advantage than Miss Hong Kong. Probably Amy Kwok and Anita Yuen are the only ones to immediately show their acting talent after Miss Hong Kong. Some have done after a few years as support. Tracy Chu is probably the closest we will get to a talented Miss Hong Kong actress. Grace and Sisley are shockingly poor and eventually TVB will have to make a decision when netizens keep on providing negative feedback.
@jimmyszeto The pool of talent was much better back then. Kenix, Ada, etc. didn’t place first in MHK, but were charismatic onscreen. Now…I just don’t know. No talent nor looks.
@tiffany
Kenix wasn’t great when she started but Ada had charisma on screen. Both improved quite rapidly. It will be interesting to see how Grace and Sisley are in 5 years time!
@jimmyszeto I agree with you the system was more legit back then, now it seem everyone in TVB vision can be an actor/actress as long you are good looking or whatever dumb reason they think of. The new generation is having it all so easily the old days people goes through many minor roles before landing huge roles.
@vodka
I think timing is key. I watched a Felix Wong interview last week and he was asked ‘how come he became a lead actor so quickly?’ He said it was luck because at the time every lead left Alex Man, Damian Lau, Wong Yuen San, Ng Wai Kwok etr. Felix and Michael Miu was selected from acting class to lead right alway and the first series ‘The lonely Hunter’ brought them fame straight away. After that Felix acted as lead in 3+ series a year which is unheard of nowadays. This also tired him out and he isn’t as passionate in acting these days. It was also harder to make quick money these days and TVB had tight control of them through long contracts. Nowadays artistes can appear at an event and make thousands. Eddie Cheung,Eddie Kwan, Francis Ng, Sean Lau can be considered unlucky because the ‘five Tigers’ were heavily promoted but they also be considered luckier than some who didn’t even make it into support. Usually it only takes one huge hit to become famous. The timing is right for the actresses and actors right now because many of the best have left and places are up for grabs. Currently we cannot see a new ‘five tigers’breaking out though with the lack of talent nor the beauties that led series in the 1980s Similar to the likes of Margie Tsang, Indy Chan,Barbara Yung, Kathy Chow. Yammie Lam, kitty Lai etr. the Miss Hong Kongs have the correct timing similar what Felix as all the lead actresses have left at once. It’s up to them to put in some breakout performances now!
@jimmyszeto A bit of luck and a bit of talent.
At least Felix and Michael came from acting class. The newbies nowadays need to attend one. Or cast them in a sitcom to gain exposure.
@jimmyszeto Yup…definitely luck and timing. With Felix, he also got lucky to be cast in LOTCH and LBIA, which pushed his popularity to new heights and pretty much allowed him to be set for life financially due to the immense popularity of both series not just in HK but also across Asia. To this day, Felix is still highly sought after to attend and perform at various functions and events, which of course is where a lot of the artists really make their money.
The timing may be right at the moment due to so many spots being up for grabs, but unfortunately, the talent pool is severely lacking. Unlike back in the days (mostly the late 70s, entire 80s, and early 90s periods in my book) where there was an overflow of talent and not enough spots to go around – nowadays, TVB would be hardpressed to find enough ‘talent’ to fill those spots (hence their ‘strategy’ of bringing more veterans back).
@llwy12
Yes. lOCH Felix was cast straight away as Kwok Jing but the Lead actress role was auditioned which Barbara Yung won. lBIA Felix was also the main option because of his popularity. Shows that it only takes 1 or 2 to propel an actor to stardom. I don’t understand why there is a lack of talent nowadays especially when the likes of Felix, Michael and Tony in the 1980s blindly signed for acting class at a young age with no education or life experiences. One would expect the talent in Hong Kong to be immense with the opportunities to hone skills at young age. The mainland is full of talent but the mainland is seriously lacking. Veterans shouldn’t come back because they are risking their legacy for small sums of money. I’m surprised Gallen Lo is coming. It must be an incredible groundbreaking script TVB have come up with.
@jimmyszeto Oh, I meant to comment on the acting class piece you had mentioned. To me, it’s partly TVB’s fault for scaling back the acting classes and making them less priority than in the past. Back when the likes of Felix, Michael, and Tony were able to blindly sign up for acting classes, there was plenty of opportunity for them to do so, as the criteria was ‘stricter’ in the sense that the acting classes were the main avenue to ‘get your foot in the door’ so to speak, especially for the guys who obviously couldn’t go the beauty pageant route. It was like applying to get into a prestigious college where people had to go through an interview and selection process and then be accepted into the program. Back then you could have a hundred people apply but only 20 get accepted. Nowadays, the acting classes still exist, but in a different format and have pretty much been placed on the back burner, with TVB preferring the “fast-track” route for artists they plan on promoting. How many acting class graduates from the past decade have actually made a name for themselves or have been promoted? Most are still playing kelefe roles even now and a many have already left. Plus TVB no longer puts the pageant winners through acting class anymore (not officially anyway – they have some of their MHKs ‘sit in’ on certain sessions just to listen, but that obviously doesn’t count, since they aren’t actually going through the full course). Of course, there’s also the HKAPA, but that’s only for those who are truly passionate and serious about acting as a career and are willing to go through years of studying to achieve that goal (which is why I have the utmost respect for HKAPA graduates and their willingness to devote so much of their personal time to enriching themselves).
@llwy12
Every artiste that has graduated from the HKAPA are well rounded. Shows the amount of work they had put in not the mention the talent they showed just to be able to gain entry to the HKAPA. Yeh. it’s unheard of nowadays of placing a graduate from TVB acting class into a lead role immediately which is arguably a much better choice than using a miss HK participate with zero acting experience.The last few fast trackers were Tavia and Raymond Lam because they only took a few years to make it. Others have been playing extras. It’s ok for a few series but after a while they get typecast in minor roles and viewers would never accept their promotion to lead roles if given.
@jimmyszeto Yup. Back when Andy, Tony, Michael, Sean, Francis, Carina, etc. were playing ‘extras’ or minor roles after graduating from acting class, they only did that for 1 year at most (some only a few months) and after that they were already getting major supporting and/or lead roles in series or other opportunities such as hosting. It’s rare for TVB to place someone straight out of acting class into a lead role, even back then – the one example I can think of is Sheren Tang, who went through the Artists Recruitment classes (that was around the time that TVB briefly changed their acting class format to a multi-discipline recruitment course rather than full-fledged acting class) and then went straight to lead in her first series (Legend of the General Who Never Was in 1985). In comparisons, Wayne Lai went through those same classes (the Artists Recruitment classes in 1985) and look at how long it took him to get to lead status…
@jimmyszeto
Eddie Kwan was cast as lead in many series in the 90s. He was handsome and can act and was given many opportunities. But, don’t know why he did not make it big. He was fairly well known, but, never hugely.
He is still handsome in the recent ‘Lord of Shanghai’. I think he can still carry a series if given the chance.
@kidd Eddie Kwan had a fallout with TVB in the 90s which pretty much ended his career in HK (TVB fired him when they found out he had filmed a series in I think it was Malaysia or Singapore). I agree that Eddie had great potential — not only could he act, he also had the looks (tall and handsome). I feel the problem with why his career didn’t go far was because he got typecasted after Police Cadet ’84, since his performance in there was quite memorable (that series actually made most of the cast household names). It wasn’t until the early 90s that his career took off, but then the fallout happened. I honestly feel he might have been able to make it big in the 90s if it wasn’t for that, given the ‘changing of the guard’ with most of the other 80s artists gone and the ones who were previously in support roles rising up.
@llwy12 As expected. Same with Hugo Ng right?
Eddie Cheung, Eddie Kwan, Hugo Ng and the likes are very versatile. Too bad their leading days were rather short.
@tiffany Yup, same with Hugo Ng, except his ‘fallout’ with TVB was over an appearance on an ATV variety program, which caused TVB to ‘put him in the freezer’ and subsequently terminate his contract. This kind of stuff actually happened quite often during the 90s, since there were so many ‘better’ opportunities outside of TVB, whether it was in movies, filming series in other countries, etc. Also, ATV was pretty strong during that era as well (especially early 90s), with heavyweights such as Lydia Shum and Felix Wong already having jumped shipped to ATV from TVB (though TVB ‘took revenge’ in a way by recruiting Eric Tsang, who was actually working for ATV at the time, to join them – one of the smartest decisions they ever made in my opinion).
@kidd Heard from some actors’ and actresses’ blog postings and some TVB crew that actually said Eddie Cheung is arrogant, unfriendly etc towards colleagues. He may be able to act well, but he lacks EQ according to some of them.
Not sure why Eddie Kwan isn’t popular though.
@kk12345
Never knew about this. I thought it would be the exact opposite because initially when he managed to transfer into movies, it is through connections with old friends. He didn’t start with any experience in movies but is now fully established. Gordon Lam also did it through connections.
@kk12345 I never heard about this either. Since back in the 80s, Eddie Cheung has always been known as a humble, hard-working guy with a passive personality who was obedient (pretty much did what TVB told him to do) and rarely complained about things. I’m curious to know which artists complained about him being arrogant and unfriendly….seems so random. Maybe you’re referring to the wrong person?
As for Eddie Kwan, it’s not really that he wasn’t popular (of course, compared to the 5 Tigers, everyone else paled in the popularity department), it’s just that, like many of the male artists back then, they were all overshadowed by the 5 Tigers, so it wasn’t really until all of them left that the others got a chance to rise up (you guys all heard the story of why Bobby AuYeung decided to change his name to Chan Wah instead of keeping his birth name Yiu Chuen, right? It was partly because of the 5 Tigers…). Unfortunately, with Eddie, the timing was bad because just as his career was really starting to take off in the early 90s, he took 1 wrong step (which wasn’t entirely his fault technically since it’s not like the ‘rules’ were spelled out that clearly) and that cost him big time.
@llwy12 @kk12345
Eddie Cheung has played with the likes of Felix Wong and Nat Chan in the celebrity soccer team for a few decades. The fiery one is Felix Wong but off the set he is also nice. Eddie, I believe is popular and has good relationships with others within the industry
@llwy12 @jimmyszeto One of them was Noel Leung. She was very sick at that time, so she asked eddie or deric to help her buy some medicine and was told not to disturb them. One of the TVB crew helped her instead. Noel was later admitted to hospital.
@vodka It’s definitely not about the money, as TVB will always be cheap when it comes to paying artists, even the veterans who return to film one or two series for them. Even A-listers like Anthony Wong get paid ‘pennies’ compared to what they would make outside. Most of these artists return not because TVB is going to pay them ‘good money’ (to be honest, there is no such thing as even ‘decent’ pay at TVB), but because of some type of connection they have to someone at TVB or as ‘payback’ for the contribution that TVB made to their careers. This is why I don’t advocate veterans returning to TVB because if they are doing it merely as a favor without regard for the script or what type of role they would be playing, they are essentially ‘blindly’ putting their reputations and good names on the line, which to me is absolutely unnecessary (especially for established artists like Gallen Lo, Eddie Cheung, etc. who are already successful in their own rights and don’t need to risk damaging their reputations for TVB).
I actually have mixed feelings about this. I personally don’t want to see the talented veterans that I grew up watching come back to film crappy series, which seems to be the only type of series TVB is capable of churning out nowadays. I would hate for this to be another Born Rich situation where the great cast was wasted on such a horribly written script. If TVB is just going to throw these veterans into crappy productions and hope that the ‘star power’ alone will attract viewers to watch, then sorry, but no thanks….
@llwy12
Yes. Born Rich could have been great and I’m sure the actors and actresses came back because the cast and script attracted them. Ray lui was brilliant but there wasn’t much more he could have done for the series. I think in the end there was a disagreement between the actors and the director over the story whilst filming but it didn’t get changed suitably so ended up with a poor final sequences. The problem now is that when veterans come back they are working with rookies and the chemistry will be lacking. A good actor cannot perform a good scene without good opponents.
When first I read the title of this series, my first thought was ‘It will be a lousy series’. But my confidence of the series improve after reading that this series will be produced by the producer of ‘Karma Rider’. ‘Karma Rider’ is one of my TVB series of recent years. So, I’m confident that this will series will turn out to be at least decent.
looking forward to see Eddie and Adia !!
Good news! Hopefully it will be a well written series. He still looks dreamy lol! Besides talent, most people in the 80’s and 90’s are so good looking!!! All are so memorable, females with minimal make up and natural beauty, males with strong manly facial figures (and thanks goodness not with the stupid Korean hair style covers half of the face that most guys are wearing nowadays!). Sometimes I wonder, are we being too nostalgic so everything in the past seems so much better or is it the reality that the past IS actually better than now? Whenever I talk the older people, they seem to be very proud of their generation. But in 20 years when my kids ask me who are some of my most favorite celebrities in my generation, I’d have to refer back all the way to the 80 and 90 lol. “But mom those were not your generation? Well because, in my time, there were no memorable talents”, that is sadly what I’m going to tell them.
if a few of these TVB actor/actresses make it into box office stars in 10-20 years time then maybe we can look back and have something positive to say to our kids. Someone has to take over the amazing but aging male movie leads. No doubt the HK female leads will be fully occupied by mainlanders due to their talent. Hopefully the male category isn’t the same.
@kaykay408 LOL…I chuckled at your last sentence! 🙂 For me, luckily I can still tell my future kids about all the great artists from my generation (which was the 80s and 90s), just like my mom still tells me so many great stories about the artists from her generation (Shaw Brothers era + CTV/RTV/early TVB era ). I do find it sad though that the HK entertainment industry has declined to the point it has where it probably won’t even be worth talking about in another 20 to 30 years. In the past 15 years or so, I’ve watched so many artists that I grew up with either retire or pass away and seeing the state of the industry currently, it kind of gets harder as the years go by not to grab onto that nostalgia and remember how good things truly were back then (most recent example was when veteran host / comedian David Lo died last month, I nearly cried when TVB did that retrospective on him and showed all the clips from his performances on various shows over the years. It brought back so many memories of past eras and reminded me once again how much talent the industry has lost.) I know some people may find it annoying that we keep talking about past eras and the ‘golden age’ of the HK entertainment industry, but to be honest, can’t help it given how things are now…
Hope actors/actresses from 80/90s return…can’t stand present young actresses especially. I like Eddie Kwan, Michael miu.
Love Eddie Kwan! He’s a great actor. He looks good in both modern and ancient series!!!! Wish he can be a lead in a drama. He def. can carry the series IMO and I’ll def. watch!!!
@happybi
Yes, he’s actually pretty good. I watched this really old series from my mom’s collection as she was rerunning it and he can be really good looking in ancient dramas even thou I hardly like ancient series’. It was this really really really old series called Zu Mountain or something even thou it’s old but the stylists and outfits they were wearing are very nicely done even to this day I feel. Not like super old fashion compares to it being a really old series. The female lead is very pretty I don’t know who she is as I have never seem her in other series. Dancing king AARON KWOK is in there hahah and that was the reason I was watching. I was like who is that? haha lol…Anyway, yes this Eddie Kwan – I don’t u/s how come he never really got famous cuz there was a modern drama and he’s pretty cute there too and even now I see him in dramas I was like that was him? Holy….He’s actually aging really well same as Michael Miu.
This guy above as well, he’s kind of good looking too but he’s just never made it big huh? Sad!!!!
@kiki Is Zu mountain the one where he became evil at the end and he jump down the mountain with the girl? Don’t remember what that series is call but I only remember a scene like that and I know I cried my eyes out during that time!!!!
@happybi
Yes!!! Both women seem to love him and I didn’t get how he suddenly felt in love w/the other one too haha but I like their outfits and everything so I actually finished it. I find it entertaining somehow since I haven’t much of the TVB crappyzz series these days. Aaron kwok got me watching it b/c he was so darn young and he was cute in there. LOL..So yeah totally didn’t get how some can be given good scripts and not bad looks but not at all popular. 🙁
@kiki ahhh that ending.. till this day I remember it and get mad about it… WHY???!!!!
I think the pretty girl you are talking about is Anita Lee.. I like her.. I believe Eddie did get popular int the 90s.. but someone mention above that he had a fallout with TVB so they basically cut him off because of it.. =( sad as it’s a waste of talent.
I honestly didn’t even remember Aaron in it. ehehheheh
@happybi
I know, I saw Aaron Kwok…I was like Holy Crap, is that the dancing king? He’s seriously kind of short for a guy but he was cute there. No, my mom said the girl I like last name is Yang Bo Ling or something. I have never seem her anywhere else well, i haven’t seen any of her other old dramas so no clue where else she could be in. The other girl is pretty too but the purple one whatever hairstyle and outfits she was wearing seem pretty creative for an ancient drama. It’s beautifully put together and I love purple so haha….lol…
Is that what happen to that male lead? Sad….What a waste, he still looks really good for his age. I mean they were probably all young back then and when you see him now, NOT that much of a difference like some veteran stars.
The ending is weird but what I find even more weird was both women love him but he only liked the purple and he suddenly like the green one too? lol and then he had to evil cuz of whatever world. Yes, kind of weird but hey at least back in the days some of those shows have really out of the norm endings where as to now, most of them are kind of boring happy endings or as expected. Boring!
@kiki honestly don’t remember the drama beside Eddie and the bad ending!!!
Ah I think you are talking about Pauline Yeung.. She’s OK.. good actress but never find her that pretty.
Aaron is short! Think he’s only 5’5… and yes, Eddie still look like before!!! good looking guy!
@happybi @kiki My favorite Eddie Kwan series is actually 1986’s pre-modern era series Battle Among the Clans. He was so good in there and held his own quite well opposite Chow Yun Fat. Ancient series-wise, I liked both Swords of Conquest and Rise of the Taiji Master (though admittedly, Swords of Conquest was a much better story and production overall…Taiji Master story was kind of dumb in my opinion and the series overall was kind of draggy, plus some of the acting from the rest of the cast was so-so…but loved the Eddie Kwan / Fiona Leung pairing in there though!). Modern series-wise, definitely The Link was my favorite in terms of Eddie’s performance (not going to go into what I thought of that series overall though). His performance was memorable in Police Cadet 84 as well, but didn’t really like his character in there to be honest – in comparisons, Sean Lau stood out way more in that series in terms of male supporting cast. Oh and another series of his to watch is the sitcom Everybody Loves Somebody from 1989 (another one of my favorite sitcoms from that era) – even though Francis Ng was really the focus of that sitcom, Eddie’s performance in there proved to me that he could definitely do comedy.
Haha…Pauline Yeung was Miss HK winner, I think it was 1986 or 1987 year. She was actually one of the prettier MHKs, to be honest, and even though she’s no longer in the industry now, I saw pics of her at some type of event recently and she still looks good even now. She was in plenty of series back then and I would consider her a decent actress at that time (in fact, I would even call her a very good actress by today’s standards, lol), just that most of her roles were not really memorable.
@llwy12 @happybi @kiki
Eddie Kwan’s police cadet character wasnt likable towards the end of the series but he did well. I’ve seen Battle amongst the clans many times because I’m a big fan of triad/gangster series. The role he played as ‘hong kwan’ was memorable and different to every role Eddie has ever played. Eddie carried the cool, calm role really well. I’m surprised the series didn’t propel him to superstardom but I think Chow Yun Fat got most of the praise in the series instead plus the ‘five tigers’ were at their peak. The link was also a decent series where Eddie starred so he has been in his fair share of big productions. At least now he is still going strongly at TVB and we get to see him as a much more well rounded versatile actor.
@jimmyszeto Yup, definitely…I think Swords of Conquest was an anniversary series too if I remember correctly and was a big budget production, with the cast and crew actually travelling to Mongolia I think it was to film all the desert scenes. I remember the series being featured in the TVB Anniversary Gala from that year with a fantastic opening segment involving the main leads Eddie Kwan and Kathy Chow.
As for Battle Among the Clans – as much as I loved Chow Yun Fat back then (and still love him now, lol), I honestly feel that Eddie was the one to watch in that series. Loved Eddie’s character Hong Kwan as well as his performance, especially in the emotional scenes – the most heart-wrenching scene of course being the one near the end when Mimi Kung’s character Shu Mei dies in his arms, a scene made even more heartbreaking knowing everything they had to go through to be together… I nearly cried right along with Hong Kwan when I first watched that scene. Eddie’s performance was amazing and it’s definitely one that I still remember to this day.
@llwy12
I’ve not seen swords of conquests. Might have to have a look for it! When I first watched ‘battle amongst the clans’ as a teenager(I had already seen it as a child), I was shocked that Eddie’s performance was so good I was convinced it was an early 90s series and his acting must have matured. When I realised it was a mid 80s series, it seems a massive transformation from the raw performance in Police Cadet a couple of years back. He did have similar aura of Chow Yun Fat character in Shanghai Bund but his character wasn’t as conflicted. It was a risk to cast him in such a role but he pulled it off. It was refreshing in the father,son, Mimi Kung love triangle. The series was full of great veterans. Hun Sui Hung and Kenneth Tsang. He never got the recognition the performance deserved and later did not receive any more cool, serious roles. It wasn’t just Eddie who didn’t get rewarded. Andy Dai who was magnificent as the villain in the series got more typecast end and didn’t push on to greater prospects. He outshone Sean Lau. Sean was good at providing comedy relief and his chemistry with Lui Fong was amazing but when he became a villain, his expressions did not change and he didn’t show enough aggression.
@jimmyszeto Yes, agreed! In Battle Among the Clans, the main leads definitely carried the series well, but the supporting cast was just as good, especially the veterans. Interestingly enough, I actually wasn’t too impressed with Sean’s performance in the series, though I think part of it was his character, which really wasn’t that well written. Lui Fong wasn’t bad, but I’ve always liked his singing more than his acting — out of all the series he’s been in though, this one was the best in terms of pairing…he matched Chan On Ying quite well here. Speaking of Chan On Ying, she was great in here too. And everyone else you mentioned of course (Benz Hui, Kenneth Tsang, Andy Dai — though I would also add Ko Miu Si, Poon Wang Bun, etc.). Oh, I just remembered that the producer of the series was 80s ‘golden producer’ Chiu Chan Keung, who had also produced The Bund as well as both Police Cadet 84 and 85 — hence the similar cast (primarily with Police Cadet) and the parallels in terms of plot and overall look and feel with The Bund.
@kiki She’s Pauline Yeung, Miss HK 1987. She did pretty well in the international pageant too, winning 4th runner up in Miss Universe Pageant and 12th place in Miss World Pageant.
She has left the entertainment industry and joined the business world. She did very well in business too. She has now settled in US with her family. According wikipedia, she gave birth to a son in 2007.
@kidd Yea, I remember that Pauline was known as one of the ‘most decorated’ MHK’s back then, with success in several competitions and several awards to her name. Most recent news is that Pauline is rumored to be getting married again – read some article about it a few months ago. She (or perhaps her company?) is also one of the sponsors for the Miss HK pageant crown (her ‘link’ back to her MHK roots). Yup, she’s here in the U.S. now, though still does travel back to HK when needed….since she’s not in the industry anymore, obviously tries to keep a low-profile.
@happybi
Eddie has lead or co-led many low key series in the past.Over the years Eddie Kwan has been brilliant in playing goofy characters.His comedic side is one of a kind. One of the best supporting roles in last decade is in Swipe Tap Love. Pity there wasn’t an award to go with it!
@jimmyszeto Know he led before but a long time ago… wished he can led a series now as I think he can still do it!!! He’s still so good looking IMO!
@happybi
I don’t think the newer generation will accept him though but he can certainly play 2nd leads like Michael Miu. Eddie has said He loves acting and it’s all about acting his roles to the best of his ability. I think he understands that the spotlight has gone and he doesent really need it at this stage of his career anyway.
@jimmyszeto That is too bad. I really enjoy Eddie’s acting. And he’s so good to look at. ekekekekek
@happybi His leading days are over at TVB. Eddie Kwan peaked early in the 90’s to mid with many notable leading dramas. He’s a very versatile actor!
@tiffany It’s too bad because I think he can still lead. He’s still good looking (even better then most of the newbies) and he’s still a great actor.
@happybi @tiffany Somehow I don’t understand why is Eddie Kwan being demoted to supporting roles while other veteran actors like Damian Lau, Michael miu, Bobby Au are still been given lead roles, even though they had passed their prime.
@unknown Eddie Kwan was never the leading actor in TVB whilst Bobby Au Yeung was always the leading big brother. Damien is the veteran, michael.. not lead but supporting lead more like it.
By the Eddie does look amazing for his age. He never ages. Acting wise he has improved over the years but maybe he neither is young nor old, so TVB doesn’t know what to do with him.
@unknown Well, my take on it is this:
Firstly, Damian Lau is in a different class altogether, as he was already an established lead actor prior to joining TVB, plus the first year he joined, he filmed Luk Siu Fung, which was essentially the role that made him a household name. Also, he never really ‘belonged’ to TVB, as he pretty much jumped back and forth between RTV/ATV, TVB, filming series in Taiwan, China, and other Asian countries, plus filming movies — so to me, he doesn’t really count as a ‘TVB artist’, so he shouldn’t be grouped together with the others who actually started with TVB and grew up with them.
Michael was already an established lead actor for a long time prior to leaving TVB, plus he was one of the core artists that defined the 80s era for TVB, so of course it’s no surprise that he would continue to get lead roles (it’s just like if any of the 5 Tigers were to come back to film for TVB, no way in hell that TVB would relegate them to small supporting role the likes of what Eddie had been getting since his return to TVB). Though like Funn pointed out, Michael HAS been pushed back more to ‘group lead’ type position in recent years (meaning he’s just ‘one’ of the many leads in a series with ensemble cast and not first lead like in the past).
With Bobby AuYeung, it’s even more simple — he has been in lead roles since the early 90s and subsequently elevated to ‘big brother’ position, which he has maintained for close to 2 decades. Also, he never really ‘left’ TVB like other artists have, his series are usually ratings guarantees, he’s well-loved by audiences (for many audiences, the name Bobby AuYeung is forever linked with TVB, almost like he’s part of their brand already), he’s loyal and easy to work with, etc. so there’s no reason for TVB to ‘demote’ him (in fact, TVB would be damn stupid if they pulled any of that ‘demotion’ crap on Bobby…they need him more than ever now).
Eddie Kwan only started getting true lead roles in the early 90s and technically wasn’t an ‘established’ lead actor yet to the level of first line big brother type position — and he still wasn’t in that type of position when he left TVB in the mid 90s. Also, after that, he kind of ‘faded’ from the HK entertainment industry for awhile and didn’t establish a name for himself elsewhere, so it makes sense that he would be looked upon as more of a ‘supporting’ level actor in TVB’s eyes.
@llwy12
Although Bobby is reliable ratings guarantee, i feel he isn’t a versatile actor.He is aging and has passed his peak. There might only be a few more series in him before changes have to be made.
@jimmyszeto Bobby CAN be versatile, it’s just a matter of whether he wants to be and also whether TVB recognizes it. I can definitely see him going the leading veteran route even as he gets older, it’s really just a matter of whether TVB knows how to utilize him. This is actually where I feel that HKTV did a better job, as they were able to make good use of veteran and senior artists in roles that were appropriate for them, yet still in leading status (i.e. Beyond the Rainbow, Hidden Faces, etc.). With TVB, it seems like every lead actor or actress MUST have a relationship line, otherwise the series can’t be made, which is why they often have the problem of having to pair older veterans with younger actresses and most of the time, it ends up coming off weird.
With all that said though, I think Bobby is already at a stage in his life where other things take priority and there is no need for him to work as hard as he used to. As it is, he is already on per series contract and only filming 1 series a year for TVB, so I don’t think he or TVB is in a rush to change things any time soon.
@llwy12 This is just an out of curiosity question. Do you constantly follow entertainment news, since you are so familiar with all the celebrity news?
@unknown Yes, I do follow HK entertainment news consistently, though admittedly nowadays I actually don’t follow the entertainment industry as “religiously” as I used to back in the old days (primarily due to time constraints with work and personal life, but also because there really isn’t as much worth ‘following’ nowadays). I actually wouldn’t say that I’m familiar with ALL celebrity news, as there are a good number of celebrities out there that I know very little about (passing knowledge if I happen to come across info about those celebrities while checking out other things) or that I have what amounts to no knowledge about at all (and most likely have no interest in knowing). I tend to focus more on stuff related to celebrities/entertainment people I grew up watching, which in many cases ends up being the veterans and seniors that many of today’s younger audiences, who either may not have been around back then or didn’t follow entertainments much at the time, may not be as well-versed on (outside of what is posted on Wikipedia, which we all know is never 100% accurate). I think it also helps that the hobbies of reading and collecting things run in my family, as my mom used to read/watch/collect anything she could get her hands on related to the HK entertainment industry (whether video, audio, or print) and I seem to have developed the same habits over the years too, lol….though I do have to give props to my mom for keeping a lot of the stuff she had from the old days, since this was pre-Internet age and information was not as ‘readily available’ as it is now (a lot of that ‘old stuff’ has proven to be quite useful in recent years!). Outside of actual news and celebrity interviews from the ‘traditional’ sources such as television, radio, newspapers, magazines (and of course Internet), books are also a huge treasure trove of information, especially ones from the last decade or so, as more and more industry people (artists, behind the scenes people, veteran reporters, etc.) have taken to writing books about their experiences in the industry or putting together special compilations of their works, interviews throughout the years, etc. etc. (Ming Pao book division is one I definitely recommend, as they have quite a few veteran reporters – most of whom have been in the industry for 30+ years – who’ve put out some very interesting and informative book series over the years, mostly related to veteran artists). I’m constantly on the lookout for entertainment industry-related books and make it a point to visit as many bookstores as I can on my yearly trips back to HK. Of course, with all that said, it’s also important to take everything with a grain of salt, since this IS the entertainment industry after all and so there’s bound to be info put out there for certain reasons/motives and therefore may not be entirely true or factual.
By the way, sorry for the long-winded response to a simple question, lol…looks like I got carried away (again) when typing my response. 🙂
@unknown unfortunately life can be unfair sometime.