Corey Yuen Kwai (15 February 1951 – 2 March 2022), born Ying Gang-ming and nicknamed Ah Dan, was a Hong Kong director, action choreographer, producer and actor. As a child he trained in Peking opera under Yu Jim-yuen alongside Sammo Hung, Jackie Chan and Yuen Biao, the group billed as the Seven Little Fortunes. He became a stuntman in 1970, appeared in Fist of Fury in 1972 and later turned to action direction on films such as Zu: Warriors from the Magic Mountain, Dragon Lord and The Hell. Invited by Ng See-yuen, he directed his first feature, Ninja in the Dragon's Den, in 1982, earning a Best Action Choreography nomination at the 2nd Hong Kong Film Awards; Yes, Madam (1985) brought another. In 1990 he co-directed All for the Winner with Jeffrey Lau, which made Stephen Chow a star and topped the year's box office. In 1992 he formed the Eastern Production company with Jet Li, collaborating on Fong Sai-yuk, Bodyguard from Beijing and My Father Is a Hero, and in 1994 shared the Best Action Choreography prize with Yuen Tak for Fong Sai-yuk at the 13th Hong Kong Film Awards and at the 30th Golden Horse Awards; in 1995 he won the same Golden Horse category for Thunderbolt. He helped launch the action careers of Michelle Yeoh and Jet Li, and later followed Jet Li to Hollywood, choreographing Lethal Weapon 4 (1998) and working on X-Men, Romeo Must Die, The One and Kiss of the Dragon, and directing The Transporter. He died of COVID-19 in the United States on 2 March 2022, a fact only made public by Jackie Chan in August 2024. Bringing Hong Kong-style close-quarters combat and comic timing to international productions, he was among the first Hong Kong action directors to be embraced by Hollywood.
Corey Yuen carried the opera-trained discipline of the Yu Jim-yuen school into modern action design, choreographing hit films for Stephen Chow and Jet Li in the 1980s and 1990s and showing that comedy and combat could share the same frame. He was also among the first Hong Kong action directors to enter the Hollywood system, taking close-quarters Hong Kong fight staging into Western productions such as Kiss of the Dragon.
Achievements
- 1982 · Directed his first feature, Ninja in the Dragon's Den
- 1994 · Shared the Best Action Choreography award at the 13th Hong Kong Film Awards with Yuen Tak for Fong Sai-yuk
- 1995 · Won Best Action Choreography at the 32nd Golden Horse Awards for Thunderbolt