Sammo Hung | |||||||||||
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洪金寶 | |||||||||||
 Hung at the press conference of the42nd Hong Kong Film Awards after receiving hisHong Kong Film Award for Lifetime Achievement at theHong Kong Cultural Centre on 14 April 2024 | |||||||||||
| Born | Hung Kam-bo (1952-01-07)7 January 1952 (age 73) | ||||||||||
| Other names | Dai Goh Dai (大哥大) Yuen Lung (元龍) Chu Yuen Lung (朱元龍) | ||||||||||
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| Years active | 1961–present | ||||||||||
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| Relatives | Chin Tsi-ang (grandmother) Hung Chung-ho (grandfather) | ||||||||||
| Family | Lee Chi-kit (brother) | ||||||||||
| Awards | Asia-Pacific Film Festival –Best Actor 1988Painted Faces Hong Kong Film Awards –Best Actor 1983Carry On Pickpocket 1989Painted Faces Best Action Choreography 1983The Prodigal Son 2009Ip Man 2011Ip Man 2 2018Paradox Lifetime Achievement 2024 Asian Film Awards –Best Supporting Actor 2011Ip Man 2 Golden Horse Awards –Best Action Choreography 2009Ip Man 2010Ip Man 2 | ||||||||||
| Chinese name | |||||||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 洪金寶 | ||||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 洪金宝 | ||||||||||
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Samuel "Sammo" Hung Kam-bo (Chinese:洪金寶;Jyutping:Hung4 Gam1-bou2; born 7 January 1952)[1] is a Hong Kongactor,martial artist,film producer anddirector, known for his work inmartial arts films,Hong Kong action cinema, and as afight choreographer for other actors such asKim Tai-chung,Jackie Chan,Yuen Biao, andYuen Wah.
Hung is one of the pivotal figures who spearheaded theHong Kong New Wave movement of the 1980s, helped reinvent the martial arts genre and popularized the zombie-likejiangshi genre. He is widely credited with assisting many of his compatriots, giving them their starts in the Hong Kong film industry, by casting them in the films he produced, or giving them roles in the production crew.
Both Sammo Hung and Jackie Chan were often addressed as "Dai Goh", meaning "Big Brother", until the filming ofProject A (1983), which featured both actors. As Hung was the eldest of the kung fu "brothers", and the first to make a mark on the industry, he was given the nickname "Dai Goh Dai", meaning "Big, Big Brother", or "Biggest Big Brother".[2]
Born in Hong Kong, both of his parents worked as wardrobe artists in the local film industry and guardianship was thrust upon his grandparents. His grandmother was archetypal martial art actressChin Tsi-ang[3] and his grandfather was film directorHung Chung-ho.
Hung joined theChina Drama Academy, aPeking Opera School in Hong Kong, in 1961. He was enrolled for a period of seven years, beginning at the age of 9, after his grandparents heard about the school from their friends.[4] The opera school was run by MasterYu Jim Yuen and as was customary for all students, Hung adopted the given name of hissifu as his family name whilst attending. Going by the nameYuen Lung (元龍), Hung became the foremost member of theSeven Little Fortunes (七小福) performing group,[5] and would establish a friendly rivalry with one of the younger students,Yuen Lo. Yuen Lo would go on to become international superstarJackie Chan.At the age of 14, Hung was selected by a teacher who had connections to the Hong Kong film industry to perform stunts on a movie. This brief foray into the industry piqued his interest in film and he took particular interest in the operation of film cameras.[4] As the eldest of the troupe, Hung would give his opera school brothers pocket money from his earnings, endearing him greatly to his young friends.[6] Shortly before leaving the Academy at the age of 16, Hung suffered an injury that left him bedridden for an extended period, during which time his weight ballooned. After finding work in the film industry as astuntman, he was given a nickname after a well-known Chinese cartoon character,Sam-mo (三毛; Three Hairs).
Many years later, in 1988, Hung starred inAlex Law'sPainted Faces, a dramatic re-telling of his experiences at theChina Drama Academy. Among the exercises featured in the film are numerous acrobatic backflips, and hours of handstands performed against a wall. Despite some of the more brutal exercises and physical punishments shown inPainted Faces, Hung and the rest of the Seven Little Fortunes consider the film a toned-down version of their actual experiences.
Hung appeared as a child actor in several films forCathay Asia andBo Bo Films during the early 1960s. His film debut was in the 1961 filmEducation of Love.[5] In 1962, he made his first appearance alongside Jackie Chan in the filmBig and Little Wong Tin Bar, followed by a role inThe Birth of Yue Fei,[7] in which he played the ten-year-oldYue Fei, the historical figure from theSong Dynasty who would go on to become a famous Chinese general andmartyr. The majority of Hung's performance was alongside another actor portrayingZhou Tong, Yue's elderly military arts tutor.In 1966, at the age of just 14, Hung began working forShaw Brothers Studio, assisting theaction director Han Yingjie, onKing Hu's filmCome Drink with Me thanks to the fact that Han was his master's son-in-law.[8] Between 1966 and 1974, Hung worked on dozens of films for Shaw Brothers, their two main rivals Golden Harvest and Cathay, as well as numerous independent production companies,[9] progressing through the roles ofextra, stuntman,stunt co-ordinator and ultimately, action director.
In 1970, Hung began working forRaymond Chow and theGolden Harvest film company.[5] He was initially hired to assist Han Yingjie in choreographing the action scenes for the very first two Golden Harvest films,The Invincible Eight andThe Angry River. Golden Harvest sent Hung to Korea to choreograph films with their director Huang Feng where Hung studied hapkido with MasterJi Han-Jae and earned his black belt.[10] While in Korea he became the martial arts director on three Angela Mao vehicles,Lady Whirlwind,Hapkido, andWhen Taekwondo Strikes. His popularity soon began to grow, and due to the quality of his choreography and disciplined approach to his work, he again caught the eye of celebrated Taiwanese director, King Hu. Hung choreographed Hu'sThe Fate of Lee Khan (1973).
Also in 1973, he was seen in theBruce Lee classicEnter the Dragon. Hung was theShaolin student Lee faces in the opening sequence. In 1975, Hung choreographed the action forThe Man from Hong Kong, the first Australian co-production undertaken by Golden Harvest.
In the mid-70s, martial arts movies began to lose some of their punch at the box office and Golden Harvest signed the Hui Brothers to a contract. Michael, Ricky, and Sam Hui had been at Shaw Brothers but wanted to direct their own movies.[11] When Shaw refused they signed with Golden Harvest and their blockbuster comedies kicked off a comedy wave in Hong Kong.[12] When it came time to direct his first film,The Iron Fisted Monk (1977), Hung made sure to lean into the comedy, delivering what many feel to be the first out-and-out kung fu comedy film.[13]
In 1978, Raymond Chow gave Hung the task of completing the fight co-ordination for the re-shoot ofGame of Death, the film Bruce Lee was unable to complete before his death in 1973.
In 1978, Hung directed his second film, the comedyEnter the Fat Dragon, forH.K. Fong Ming Motion Picture Company, also playing the lead role Ah Lung; a character who idolises and impersonates Bruce Lee.[5] Hung has impersonated Lee on film twice more - in the final fight scene againstCynthia Rothrock inMillionaire's Express (1986),[14] and throughout the 1990Lau Kar-wing filmSkinny Tiger, Fatty Dragon.
After Jackie Chan's success withDrunken Master (1978), Hung was scheduled to make a similar film featuringDrunken Master's "Beggar So" character played byYuen Siu Tien (aka Simon Yuen). As his elder, Sammo's films were expected to surpass Chan's in popularity. The film wasThe Magnificent Butcher (1979), which Hung co-directed withYuen Woo-ping. However, during filming Yuen Siu Tien died of a heart attack. He was replaced byFan Mei Sheng and Yuen's absence may have led to low ticket sales.
As Hung's fame grew, he used his newly found influence to assist his former China Drama Academy classmates, as well as the former students of "rival" school The Spring and Autumn Drama School. Aside from regular collaborations with Chan, others such asYuen Biao,Yuen Wah,Lam Ching-ying andMang Hoi also began to make regular appearances in his films.
In 1978 and 1981, Hung made two films that contain fine examples of theWing Chun style. The first,Warriors Two, was the most significant role to date for South Korean super kickerCasanova Wong, who teamed up with Hung in the final fight. The second film wasThe Prodigal Son, in which the Wing Chun fighting was performed by Lam Ching-Ying. The release ofThe Prodigal Son, along with another film directed by and co-starring Hung,Knockabout (1979), also elevated his fellow Opera schoolmateYuen Biao to stardom.
Hung's martial arts films of the 1980s helped reconfigure how martial arts were presented on screen. While the martial arts films of the 1970s generally featured highly stylised fighting sequences inperiod or fantasy settings, Hung's choreography, set in modern urban areas, was more realistic and frenetic - featuring long one-on-one fight scenes. The fight sequences from several of these films, such as those inWinners and Sinners (1982) andWheels on Meals (1985) came to define 1980s martial arts movies.
In 1983, the collaboration between the triumvirate of Hung, Jackie Chan, and Yuen Biao began with Chan'sProject A. Hung, Chan and Yuen were known as the 'Three Dragons' and their alliance lasted for 5 years. Although Yuen continued to appear in the films of Hung and Chan, the final film to date starring all three was 1988'sDragons Forever.
Hung was also responsible for theLucky Stars comedy film series in the 1980s. He directed and co-starred in the original trilogy,Winners and Sinners (1983),My Lucky Stars (1985) andTwinkle, Twinkle Lucky Stars (1985). These first three films featured Chan and Biao in supporting roles. Hung also produced and played a supporting role in the fourth film,Lucky Stars Go Places (1986), and made a cameo appearance in the sixth and final film,How to Meet the Lucky Stars (1996).
During the 1980s, Hung was instrumental in popularizing thejiangshi genre.Jiangshi are reanimated corpses which can only move by hopping due to the onset of rigor mortis, a Chinese equivalent to Western vampires. Two landmark films,Encounters of the Spooky Kind (1980) andThe Dead and the Deadly (1983), featured jiangshi who move by hopping towards their victims, as well asTaoist priests with the ability to control these vampires (and at times, each other) through magical spells and charms. Hung's jiangshi films would pave the way for films such as the popularMr. Vampire (1985), which he also produced, and its sequels. He revitalised the subgenre of female-led martial art films, producing cop films such asYes, Madam a.k.a.Police Assassins (1985), which introduced starsMichelle Yeoh andCynthia Rothrock.
After some relatively poor performances at the domestic box-office, Hung had a dispute with studio head, Raymond Chow. Hung had produced the thrillerInto the Fire (1989), but Hung felt Golden Harvest had withdrawn the film from cinemas too soon. The disagreement led to Hung parting company with Golden Harvest in 1991, after 21 years with the company.
Whilst continuing to produce films through his own companyBojon Films Company Ltd, Hung failed to equal his early successes. His fortunes improved somewhat as the helmer ofMr. Nice Guy (1997), a long-awaited reunion with Chan.
In 1994, Hung coordinated the fight sequences inWong Kar-wai'swuxia epic,Ashes of Time.
In 1998, US television networkCBS began to broadcastMartial Law (1998–2000) on Saturday nights, an action-drama built around Hung. The hour-long shows were a surprise success and installed Hung as the only East Asian headlining a prime time network series. The television series was executive produced and occasionally directed byStanley Tong, and co-starredArsenio Hall. Hung reportedly recited some of his English dialogue phonetically.[citation needed]
During 2000–2001, Hung expressed interest in creating a film adaptation of the video gameSoulcalibur. The production agreement for the film was made around April 2001 with an estimated budget of $50 million. Hung had the idea of producing a martial arts epic with Chen LungJackie Chan in the lead role, but the film was never made. Hung's plans were detailed on his website, but after a year the announcement was removed. The film rights have since been acquired by Warren Zide, the producer ofAmerican Pie andFinal Destination.[15] No film ever materialized.
Hung found renewed success in the Hong Kong film industry in the 2000s, beginning withThe Legend of Zu (2001), the long-awaited sequel to the 1983 hitZu Warriors from the Magic Mountain. In 2004,Stephen Chow'sKung Fu Hustle was released. ThoughYuen Woo-ping was credited for the martial arts choreography onKung Fu Hustle, Hung actually did the preliminary work but left the film midway through, and Yuen filled in to complete it. Because of his departure from the film, there was tabloid speculation that he and Chow had strong differences over the film, resulting in their separation. Chow has since responded that Hung left for personal reasons and not because of speculated tensions. In 2004, Hung again worked with Jackie Chan, in a brief but notable appearance inDisney'sAround the World in 80 Days as the legendary folk heroWong Fei Hung, a character played by Chan in theDrunken Master series.
In 2005, Hung was involved inDaniel Lee'sDragon Squad andWilson Yip'sSPL: Sha Po Lang (akaKill Zone). In the latter, Hung played a villain for the first time in over 25 years, and had his first ever fight scene againstDonnie Yen. One of the key relationships inSPL had been Hung's role as the adoptive father ofWu Jing's character. However, these scenes were dropped from the final film as the director couldn't find a way to fit them into the film. In response to this, a prequel film was planned. Hung appeared alongside Wu Jing again in 2007'sTwins Mission with stars, theTwins. In early 2008, Hung starred inFatal Move, in which he andKen Lo played a pair of rivaltriad gang leaders.[2] He also starred in, and performed action choreography for,Daniel Lee'sThree Kingdoms: Resurrection of the Dragon, withAndy Lau andMaggie Q. The film, was based on the bookRomance of the Three Kingdoms.
Antony Szeto's film,Wushu, which stars Hung premiered in Beijing in October 2008. The film was unveiled byGolden Network at the2008 Cannes Film Festival. Jackie Chan was the film's executive producer, and worked on the film in an advisory capacity, assisting with marketing and casting.[16] Hung then worked again with director Wilson Yip and star Donnie Yen, as the action director for the 2008 filmIp Man.
In 2010, Hung was given a lifetime achievement award at the New York Asian Film Festival, where four of his films were shown.[17] That year Hung appeared inIp Man 2, which he also choreographed. His role is that of a Hung Gar master who challengesIp Man. In the same year, Hung appeared in the movieThe Legend Is Born: Ip Man as well. He acts asChan Wah-shun, the martial arts teacher ofIp Man.
The annual and highly anticipated Hong Kong International Film Festival was held for its 45th edition in April 2021. Hung is one of the six veteran Hong Kong filmmakers who directed renowned local directorJohnnie To Kei-fung's highly anticipated anthology series : "Septet: The Story of Hong Kong" (2022). The other filmmakers includeRingo Lam,Ann Hui On-wah, Patrick Tam Kar Ming,Tsui Hark,Yuen Woo-ping and Johnnie To. The short files were shot entirely on 35mm film with each of them touches on a nostalgic and moving story set across different time periods, with every one acting as an ode to the city.[18]
In between films and special appearances, Hung has appeared in several East Asian television series. In 2003, he was in mainland Chinese TV film seriesDragon Laws withFan Bingbing, followed byThe Valley of Lost Vengeance (akaEnd Enmity Hollow). More recently, he played a master con-artist in the Taiwanese seriesComing Lies and Wing Chun master Wong Wah-bo inWing Chun, reprising the role he played inThe Prodigal Son over 20 years earlier. He co-starred in the series alongsideYuen Biao,Nicholas Tse and his youngest son, Sammy Hung.[19]
Hung appeared as a guest judge on theChina Beijing TV Station reality television seriesThe Disciple, which aired in mainland China and was produced by, and featured, Jackie Chan. The aim of the program was to find a new star, skilled in acting and martial arts, to become Chan's "successor", the champion being awarded the lead role in a film. It concluded on 7 June 2008, with the series winner announced in Beijing.[20]
In another mainland Chinese television series,The Shaolin Warriors, set during theMing Dynasty, Hung played Big Foot, a Shaolin warrior monk joining GeneralQi Jiguang's marines to help defend the nation againstJapanese pirates. Sammy Hung also has a role, as Big Foot's disciple.[21]
Hung has starred in 75 films, and worked on over 230, beginning as a child actor whilst still attending the China Drama Academy. Upon leaving the opera school, he worked as an extra and stuntman, and progressed through other roles including fight choreographer, stunt co-ordinator, action director, actor, writer, producer and director.
Most recently, Hung has starred in the 2017 historic action filmGod of War.[22]
In 1978 Sammo Hung formed Gar Bo Motion Picture Company, a subsidiary ofGolden Harvest,[23] with directorKarl Maka and former actor-choreographerLau Kar Wing (brother of actorsLau Kar-leung andGordon Liu). The company's name consists of the "Gar" sound from LauKar Wing and Karl Maka (MakKar), and "Bo" from Hung KamBo.).[24] The company disbanded in 1980, when Maka moved on to formCinema City & Films Co. withRaymond Wong andDean Shek.[25] Gar Bo released two films, both starring Hung and Lau:
1980 saw Raymond Chow pull one of Hung's films from local cinemas after just two weeks. Hung responded by starting his own production company, Bo Ho Film Company Ltd., allowing him to have greater control in producing Hong Kong films.[26][27] While Bo Ho produced, Golden Harvest still operated as distributors. In all, 44 films were released by Bo Ho, several of which starred Hung:
In 1983, Hung co-founded another production company, D&B Films Company Ltd ("D&B" being short for "Duk-Bo"), withDickson Poon andJohn Shum.[14] The company operated until 1992 and produced a total of 68 Hong Kong films:[28]
In 1980, Hung formed a production company, Bojon Films Company Ltd.[29] The company produced 12 films, 8 of which starred Hung:
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