Louis Yuen Leaves TVB After 35 Years
The actor is rumored to have left TVB for good after more than 30 years at the station, and is no longer listed on its official website.
Last Seen in “The Forgotten Valley”
Louis Yuen (阮兆祥), whose contract is said to have expired this month, joined TVB in 1984. Although he left the station once in 1997, the 51-year-old actor eventually returned and starred in many classic dramas, including Heart of Greed <溏心風暴>, Virtues of Harmony <皆大歡喜> and Brother’s Keeper <巨輪>. One of the station’s rare comedic personalities, he also appeared on the long-running program Super Trio <獎門人> along with Eric Tsang (曾志偉), and proved his mettle by nabbing the “Best Program Host” award at 2009’s TVB Anniversary Awards.
Although Louis did film many dramas in recent years, and was only seen in The Forgotten Valley <平安谷之詭谷傳說 > last year, the multi-hyphenate performer also dabbled in hosting radio programs and regularly appears in Mainland Chinese commercial gigs, and wrapped up a Singapore theatrical production recently with veterans Michelle Yim (米雪) and Ha Yu (夏雨). Louis likely enjoys a good income.
The actor has yet to reply to reporters who reached out to him for comment over his departure at TVB.
A Bright Comedic Talent and Versatile Actor
Born in 1967, Louis joined a singing talent contest in 1984 and officially made his debut as a singer. He joined TVB thereafter as a host and appeared on many programs including Jade Solid Gold <劲歌金曲>. Appearing in Enjoy Yourself Tonight <欢乐今宵> later, Louis impressed viewers and gained recognition as a comedian, an image which has stuck until today.
Besides being a proficient host, he also left a deep impression with his acting, with the most representative role being Lau Kam in the well-received Virtues of Harmony. Although he often played second fiddle to other male actors, he made viewers sit up with his memorable acting style in many dramas, showing his versatility in both period and modern dramas including The Legend of Lady Yang <杨贵妃>, Can’t Buy Me Love <公主嫁到>, The Other Truth <真相>, Queens of Diamonds and Hearts <东西宫略>, and more.
The actor once said that having been in the industry for so many years, interest rather than money is his key consideration for taking on jobs. He hopes to thank supportive viewers by ensuring the quality of his output.
Source: On.cc
This article is written by JoyceK for JayneStars.com.
Another great actor/host bites the dust. Raymond Lam coming back to reach his lifetime target in this shipwreck though. The best Actor award…
Aww. Another great actor leaving tvb will missed him for sure best of luck for him.
he’s certainly talented and it’s such a loss for tvb considering he’s been with them for so long. with these veteran artists leaving, it speaks for how much tvb cares for talents vs cheap labor.
That’s unfortunate. Louis is so funny and brings great camaraderie and energy to the cast. TVB needs to realize that having great supporting actors is what makes the leads and storylines shine.
Oh no…I like him even though his acting is kind of samey.
Yet another veteran leaving TVB…so what else is new? Though technically, I would say that Louis isn’t exactly “leaving” in that he is actually signing with Wong Cho Lam’s company — which, let’s not forget, is partially funded by TVB’s sister company Shaw Brothers….so he’s not signing with TVB anymore, but still associated with them in a way. This is actually similar to what Roger Kwok did last year – this type of move actually frees them from the restrictive rules under TVB management without damaging their relationship with TVB (keeps the option open for them to go back and film series for either TVB or Shaw Brothers) and it also allows them to focus more on outside projects that they may want to pursue (which they had less freedom to do under TVB management contract). Whether it’s a smart move for them or not depends on the artist….in Louis’s case, he said he is planning on reviving his music career (he’s working on an album as well as a concert currently), so for him, this seems like the best move in that he will still have a platform to promote his music while also maintaining acting gigs that he can fall back on if needed…
@llwy12
Anyone nearly retiring or looking for quick money should sign with Wong Cho Lam. Anyone with serious ambitions to make a career in movies or progress their acting should stay well away. Louis has slaved away at TVB for decades and has maintained his popularity in every era. He was just made for entertainment. You can see that in the young Louis Yuen with his performance in the New Talent Singing Contest in the 1980s…
@jimmyszeto Agree…and Louis is definitely talented. It’s a shame that TVB never really made good use of his talents. He actually has a lot of potential as a host, but in that area, TVB always did the “ensemble” thing with him where he was always relegated to being a part of an act with someone rather than on his own (for example – part of FLS with Wong Cho Lam and Johnson Lee and then one of a group of hosts in the later years of Super Trio, when the show was already less popular). Glad that he eventually got more opportunities to host with his own radio show on CRHK – I listened to it awhile back ago and he’s quite good…I also liked that during all his radio show gigs, he covered topics neutrally and didn’t try to use the platform he had to promote TVB (which he could have easily done given the fact that he was managed by TVB and they supposedly have to approve/endorse all outside projects before he is allowed to take them on). As for him signing with WCL, I have a feeling he’s doing it primarily because WCL is his friend (I’m sure we all noticed the pattern already that most of the artists signed to WCL are either his church friends or his work friends and most are doing so because of the relationship with him, not because of what he will do for their careers)….with that said though…who knows, maybe it truly is a good move for him given what he wants to do in the future (though personally, if the friendship piece was the only consideration, then it’s a stupid move to sign with the person just because they are your friend instead of first and foremost considering what it will do for your career…)