Stephen Chow Sing-chi (born 22 June 1962), known as Sing Yeh, is a Hong Kong comedian, director, screenwriter and producer who began as a comedy performer and gradually added directing and producing, building a distinctive comic style and creative system of his own. Born in British Hong Kong to Ningbo ancestry, he was the son of an immigrant father from Ningbo and his mother Ling Po-yee; his Chinese name comes from a line in Wang Bo's Preface to the Pavilion of Prince Teng, and his English name was chosen by his maternal grandmother. He grew up poor, had an elder sister and a younger sister, and his parents divorced when he was seven, leaving his mother to raise the three children alone. He finished primary school in 1974 and studied at a church secondary school before completing Form Five at another Kowloon school. In 1980 he began his career as an extra at RTV, the forerunner of ATV, making his debut in the youth drama I.Q. Mature. The following year he applied to Television Broadcasts' 11th actor training class, failed the entrance test and joined its night class through his friend Chik Mei-chun; after graduating in 1982 he spent about four years hosting the children's programme 430 Space Shuttle and played the lead in its comic serial, his idiosyncratic style already foreshadowing the blockbusters to come. He appeared in television dramas from 1983, returned to the drama unit in 1987, and gained wider notice at the end of the decade in The Justice of Life (1989). In 1990 he starred in All for the Winner, whose box office broke Hong Kong records and established him as a comedy star; Justice, My Foot! (1992) then broke the record again, cementing his 'mo lei tau' nonsense comedy. He went on to star in Flirting Scholar (1993), From Beijing with Love (1994) and King of Comedy (1999), and began writing and directing his own films. In 2001 he directed and starred in Shaolin Soccer, whose Hong Kong gross of over HK$60 million broke the city's box-office record and which won six awards at the 21st Hong Kong Film Awards, including Best Film, Best Director and Best Actor; Kung Fu Hustle (2004) broke the record again and took Best Film at the 24th Hong Kong Film Awards. From 2013 he stepped back from acting to direct and produce Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons (2013) and The Mermaid (2016).
Stephen Chow rewrote Cantonese film comedy with the rhythm and wordplay of his 'mo lei tau' nonsense style: All for the Winner broke Hong Kong's box-office record in 1990 and Justice, My Foot! broke it again, helping to make the actor-writer-director a mainstream model. His scenes and lines have been quoted across Chinese-language internet culture for decades, turning them into a pop-culture vocabulary shared by generations. By moving behind the camera he also helped Cantonese comedy travel overseas, and his later productions became major events for Chinese audiences.
Achievements
- 1990 · Starred in All for the Winner, whose box office broke Hong Kong records, establishing him as a comedy star
- 2002 · Won Best Director, Best Actor and Best Film at the 21st Hong Kong Film Awards for Shaolin Soccer
- 2005 · Won Best Film at the 24th Hong Kong Film Awards for Kung Fu Hustle