Katy Kung On the Rise
With over 20 films and television dramas already under her belt, it is hard to imagine that Katy Kung (龔嘉欣) is only 23 years old. The young TVB starlet began her entertainment career as a model when she was 16 years old, and had briefly worked as an i-Cable television presenter for two years. In 2008, Katy made the life-changing decision of joining TVB, making her acting debut in the idol drama, Dressage to Win <盛裝舞步愛作戰>.
“I never thought about pursuing a career in the entertainment industry,” said Katy. “I grew up believing that I would eventually become a kindergarten teacher. I really like kids.”
Katy was introduced to the entertainment industry after auditioning for a modeling agency in 2006. “A friend brought me to a modeling audition, and that was how I got selected. Haha, it’s very cheesy story, but that’s the truth. That was how I joined the entertainment industry. I tagged along a bunch of my friends who decided to audition together. I really didn’t expect to get selected.”
Villainess?
In an industry where older actors and mature actresses dominate the market, it is surprising to find out that Katy is only 23 years old. An even more fascinating discovery is that the youthful and carefree Katy is better known for her rebellious, headstrong, and mature female roles, rather than being known for roles that conform to her true age.
Katy’s first notable role was in 2011’s Bottled Passion <我的如意狼君>, portraying the rebellious and spoiled Ko Yee Nga. Although Bottled Passion was widely regarded as one of Katy’s best works, Katy is best known for her role as Vicky in 2012’s Gloves Come Off <拳王>. Vicky was cunning, crazy, and the mistress of Raymond Wong’s (黃浩然) character, Dee. “When the drama aired, I received hundreds of comments on my Weibo per day. Many commented how much they hated my character. I was very, very happy at how much feedback I was getting for the role. I literally sat there for hours to read all the comments. It was amazing.”
With Vicky leaving such lasting impressions on the audience, was Katy afraid that she would be typecast as a villain or homewrecker? “Not really. The audience will eventually figure out that it is just a character, and not who I really am. I’ve portrayed many goody-two-shoes in the past, so it is fun to play a villain once in a while.”
Beauty at War
Nine years ago, Katy was one of us – sipping through some tea and chewing through some late-night snacks as she tuned in to watch 2004’s critically acclaimed War and Beauty <金枝慾孽>. Who would ever know that Katy would eventually become part of its crew years later?
“I was in shock for a long time when I got the casting notice. I just couldn’t believe it!”
Katy stars as Muk Doh Yee, the head palace maid for the Empress, in Beauty at War <金枝慾孽貳>, the sequel to War and Beauty. “To say that I didn’t have pressure working in the drama is a big lie. Of course, I was stressed. To be able to work with so many seniors and veteran actors in the industry is a rare opportunity, and I could not let my performance suffer. No one gave me pressure – I just had very high expectations of myself.”
To prepare for her role, Katy brushed through mainland Chinese palace dramas and watched War and Beauty in detail. “Palace dramas are a completely different genre. Not only do we have to memorize a lot of dialogue, we also have to relearn all of our postures, expressions, and etiquette.”
What was Katy’s most memorable moment while shooting for Beauty at War? Katy immediately laughed. “We had to film a raining scene indoors, but the plumbing system stopped working, so the entire studio floor was flooded. The funniest thing is that all of us, actors and crew members alike, had to come together to collect the water with buckets. It took over two hours to clean out the floor. We wanted to get our work done as soon as possible, so we had great team spirit!”
At just 23 years old, Katy’s future is long and bright. With the proper training and a suitable amount of luck, Katy may become one of TVB’s top fadans in a short time.
Source: StyleHK May 2013 via ihktv.com
This article is written by Addy for JayneStars.com.
Angelababy is only 23 years old and yet very successful – I would say at least 10 times as successful if not more. Ada choi won best actress when she was only 24 years old! there is nothing special about Katy Kung and I still think theres a long way for her to go before she becomes a top fadan. To be honest, I just can’t see her becoming the next big star! Just my opinion
don’t think ada choi got the top fadan look and yet she is one, her acting not that good too if compare to dodo cheng
You are talking about HK- Hong Kong. Aythig is possible, depends on one’s looks and connections like Nicholas Tse and sister.
Why is she famous? She’s annoying.
Totally agree. That pic above did her justice, she’s usually uglier too. Haha..
Her appearance is not attractive to be a big star.
Dare I say so are other artists’ in tvb-yet they make it to the big screen.
would you say all of hk’s famous actors/actresses are attractive? lol bobby yeung too? looks is not everything.
Katy Kung is not pretty, but she acts well, especially in “Beauty at War”. Hope she will get heavier supporting
roles.
Personally I think she looks a bit young for her role in “Beauty at War”.
I agree with you, Sandcherry! (:
Did something happen to her nose when she was little? It looks crooked on tv…maybe she should get it fixed because it’s very distracting because I actually find her quite attractive (save for the nose)
Nose job like the blow job Tavia?
Nah, I don’t think she had a nose job. It looks more like an accident from something like sport. If she ever wants to play lead roles in drama, she should seriously consider getting her nose fixed. I think it’s best for her to get it fixed now since she’s still young. No one will notice it in the future.
I think its probably bad camera angle, her nose is fine. She is a beauty.
It is a must for you to comment on every artists’ nose or other facial features when the articles about their acting?
I think you ought to get your eyes fixed yourself.
nice
Well said…:)
I like her. She does have a future.
She did well for BAW (^-^)b
I love you Katy!!! You’re awesome! =)
I don’t like Katy Kung’s ears. They look funny to me, but they are not the results of any plastic surgery.
“To prepare for her role, Katy brushed through mainland Chinese palace dramas and watched War and Beauty in detail.”
Her hardwork paid off. I found her really good in BAW. The posture, her speech, all very appropriate to that time period and to someone working in the palace.
i agree. in fact i think 99% of the cast in Beauty At War are good. only 1 exception.
love her acting! she’s so young too! also much better than the promoted sire ma, eliza sam and christine kuo!
she’s not pretty but definitely better than Sire “BoBo chanting” Ma.
definitely agree that Katy Kung’s acting
is much better than Sire Ma.
agreed with sel_fi_wu
she acts really “smart and sharp” like a know it all maid in WAB. not a looker but is decent in performing.
shes pretty good at acting annoying, because she made me dislike her in all series I watched heh. Good luck to her.
KK is not suitable for the role in WAB because she looks so young to be a high ranked maid. Even though I love ST, CN, and Ada Choi I can’t continue to watch the series WAB because it has no action scene but just long winded dialogues.
KK is not suitable for the role in WAB because she looks so young to be a high ranked maid.
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Agree. Producer Chik should get a maturer actress though Katy did quite well in her character.
Agree. I felt she doesn’t looked like a mature and experienced maid…
Katy’s character should only be 24 since the other characters said she will be eligible to leave the palace the following year. Palace maids work until 25 years old and if they are not retained by their mistress/master, they can leave.
In Chinese culture, a baby is counted as 1 year old the moment their born. So, convert to english way of counting, Muk Dong Yee is 23 years, same as Katy’s real age.
Katy’s has the right age and look.
I actually thought KK’s Muk Dong Yee is the ONLY age appropriate female character in the cast. She just looks young compared to the other actresses who are actually older than their character age (i.e. Sheren Teng is almost 50 and has 7 yr old child in show).
I find Katy quite pretty. Also, she’s very young. She sure has a future. I guess the break up did her good bc TVB tend to promote single actresses, lol
Katy is not so bad..most of the series she was in annoying the crap out of me..but again she play it well. Keep up your hard work and good luck to u Katy.
I don’t think that KK is not pretty, she just looks like a teenager growing into her features – her eyes and nose and ears a bit prominent for her face.
But also in that way, she looks unique, not exactly the same like a million other girls.
I don’t know what other people may think, but if that’s not pretty I don’t know what is. Sure, there are plenty more who are more beautiful than that, but that doesn’t make her not pretty.