Stephen Chow

Stephen Chow was born in Hong Kong on 22 June 1962 to Ling Po-yee ({{lang|zh-Hant|凌寶兒}}), an alumna of Guangzhou Normal University, and Chow Yik-sheung ({{lang|zh-Hant|周驛尚}}), an immigrant from Ningbo, Zhejiang.{{sfnb|Hua|2016|p=4-5}} Chow has an elder sister named Chow Man-kei ({{lang|zh-Hant|周文姬}}) and a younger sister named Chow Sing-ha ({{lang|zh-Hant|周星霞}}).{{sfnb|Hua|2016|p=5-6}} Chow's given name "Sing-chi" ({{lang|zh-Hant|星馳}}) derives from Tang dynasty (618–907) Chinese poet Wang Bo's essay Preface to the Prince of Teng's Pavilion.{{sfnb|Hua|2016|p=5}} After his parents divorced when he was seven, Chow was raised by his mother.{{sfnb|Hua|2016|p=5}} Chow attended Heep Woh Primary School, a missionary school attached to the Hong Kong Council of the Church of Christ in China in Prince Edward Road, Kowloon Peninsula.{{sfnb|Hua|2016|p=11}} When he was nine, he saw Bruce Lee's film The Big Boss, which inspired him to become a martial arts star.{{sfnb|Hua|2016|p=15-19}} Chow entered San Marino Secondary School, where he studied alongside Lee Kin-yan.{{sfnb|Hua|2016|p=15-19}} After graduation, he joined the TVB's acting classes.{{sfnb|Hua|2016|p=69-73}}

Chow began his career as an extra for Rediffusion Television. Around 1980 he applied for TVB's famous artist training course{{cite web | url=https://www.scmp.com/magazines/style/celebrity/article/3159526/hong-kongs-star-factory-without-tvbs-artist-training | title=Inside TVB's artist training course, Hong Kong's 'star factory' | date=14 December 2021 }} alongside his friend, Tony Leung Chiu-wai.{{cite web | url=https://www.8days.sg/entertainment/asian/stephen-chow-tony-leung-tvb-acting-course-night-school-749681 | title=Tony Leung & Stephen Chow Applied for a TVB Acting Course Together when They Were Young but Only Tony Got Accepted }} Leung Chiu-wai won a place in the class, but Chow was rejected and became an office assistant for a shipping company, a job he describes as "so boring."{{cite web | url=https://talesacrossthesea.net/57/stephen-chow-sketches-2-i-was-quite-a-trouble-maker-at-school/ | title=Tales Across the Sea » Blog Archive » Stephen Chow Sketches (2): I was quite a trouble-maker at school }} A year later, his friend and neighbor, Jaime Chik Mei-jan, a veteran of the previous year's training course, put in a word for Chowhttps://inf.news/en/entertainment/143111d7917ef7c0ee0aff9698432b22.html and he was admitted to the 1982 training class.

He captured the attention of the public as host of the TVB Jade children's program 430 Space Shuttle.{{Cite magazine|last=Walsh|first=Brian|date=April 28, 2003|title=Stephen Chow|url=https://time.com/time/asia/2003/heroes/stephen_chow.html|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040204090809/https://time.com/time/asia/2003/heroes/stephen_chow.html|archive-date=February 4, 2004|access-date=January 12, 2021|magazine=Time}}{{Cite web|last=Mok|first=Laramie|date=2019-06-22|title=5 Stephen Chow movies that made him Hong Kong's comedy king|url=https://www.scmp.com/magazines/style/news-trends/article/3015490/5-stephen-chow-movies-made-him-hong-kongs-king-comedy|access-date=2021-01-12|website=South China Morning Post|language=en|archive-date=14 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210114192624/https://www.scmp.com/magazines/style/news-trends/article/3015490/5-stephen-chow-movies-made-him-hong-kongs-king-comedy|url-status=live}} He stayed with the show for five years.{{cite web | url=http://www.china.org.cn/english/culture/116368.htm | title=Chow's Film Career }} Producer and actor Danny Lee signed him to a two year contract with his company, Magnum Films,{{cite web | url=https://www.scmp.com/article/674626/no-one-seems-comic-actor-director-stephen-chow-any-more | title=No one seems to like comic actor-director Stephen Chow any more | date=26 March 2009 }} and cast him in a supporting role in the crime drama Final Justice (1988),{{cite web | url=https://www.filmcomment.com/blog/kaiju-shakedown-danny-lee/ | title=Kaiju Shakedown: Danny Lee | date=15 September 2015 }} which won him the Golden Horse Award for Best Supporting Actor at the Golden Horse Awards.

For the next two years, Chow capitalized on that success, working non-stop. He shot to further television stardom in the TVB wuxia series, The Final Combat (1989).Over 2 million people watched The Final Combat and Hong Kong only 5.18 million people in that time In addition to shooting the 30 episodes of The Final Combat, he also appeared in 12 feature films during that same period,{{cite web | url=https://hkmdb.com/db/people/view.mhtml?id=7230&display_set=eng | title=Stephen Chow Sing-Chi }} most of them triad movies, action films, or dramas. Jeff Lau directed him in the police thriller, Thunder Cops II (1989), and remembered him in early 1990 when producer Ng See-yuen tried to capitalize on the success of the previous year's hit Chow Yun-fat vehicle, God of Gamblers. Chow would not return to shoot a sequel and so, sensing a hole in the marketplace, Ng hired Jeff Lau to direct a parody.{{cite web | url=https://www.filmcomment.com/blog/kaiju-shakedown-jeff-lau-stephen-chow-wong-kar-wai/ | title=Kaiju Shakedown: Jeff Lau | date=7 March 2014 }} Remembering his work with Stephen Chow, Lau hired him to star, pairing him with Sharla Cheung (who would appear as Chow's co-star in 12 more films){{cite web | url=https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3235944/rise-hong-kong-actress-sharla-cheung-star-stephen-chow-and-wong-jing-films-and-surprise-movie-she | title=God of Gamblers actress and Stephen Chow co-star Sharla Cheung: Her career | date=29 September 2023 }} and Ng Man-tat, a big star in the Seventies before a gambling addiction wrecked his career. He was then trying to make a comeback as a character actor.{{cite web | url=https://www.todayonline.com/8days/sceneandheard/entertainment/ng-man-tat-hated-chow-yun-fat-not-lending-him-money-clear-his | title=Ng Man Tat Hated Chow Yun Fat for Not Lending Him Money to Clear His Debts Years Ago |author-last1=Fam|author-first1=Jonathan|publisher=Mediacorp Pte. Ltd.}}

All for the Winner (1990) became the highest grossing Hong Kong film of all time and the number one film for the year.{{cite web | url=http://www.hkbo.com.hk/top10.html?year=1990 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180409044149/http://www.hkbo.com.hk/top10.html?year=1990 | archive-date=9 April 2018 | title=Hong Kong Box Office Limited }} Wong Jing hired Chow to star in the official sequels God of Gamblers II (1990){{cite web | url=https://hkmdb.com/db/movies/view.mhtml?id=7342&display_set=eng | title=God of Gamblers II (1990) }} and God of Gamblers III: Back to Shanghai (1991){{cite web | url=https://hkmdb.com/db/movies/view.mhtml?id=7457&display_set=eng | title=God of Gamblers Part III: Back to Shanghai (1991) }} sequels which Wong wrote and directed (Chow Yun-fat would return to the role he made famous in 1994's God of Gamblers Return,{{cite web | url=https://hkmdb.com/db/movies/view.mhtml?id=7941&display_set=eng | title=God of Gamblers Return (1994) }} also written and directed by Wong). Lau had vowed never to work with Stephen Chow again after All for the Winner{{cite AV media |people=Hendrix, Grady |date=August 2024 |title=Hong Kong's Greatest Comedian |trans-title= |type=motion picture |language=English |url=https://vinegarsyndrome.com/products/love-on-delivery |access-date= |format=Blu Ray Special Feature|time= |location=Love on Delivery |publisher=Vinegar Syndrome|id= |isbn= |oclc= |quote= }} and so when it came time to make the sequel to that hit, Stephen Chow only appeared in a brief cameo.{{cite web | url=http://www.lovehkfilm.com/reviews/top_bet.htm | title=The Top Bet (1991) }}

After All for the Winner, Chow had two more major hits, God of Gamblers II and Tricky Brains that grossed HK$40 million{{cite web | url=https://hkmdb.com/db/movies/view.mhtml?id=7342&display_set=eng | title=God of Gamblers II (1990) }} and HK$31 million respectively{{cite web | url=https://hkmdb.com/db/movies/view.mhtml?id=7461&display_set=eng | title=Tricky Brains (1991) }} at the box office, but they were followed by what appeared to be a fall from grace as the sequel to All for the Winner, The Top Bet, under-performed at the local box office,{{cite web | url=https://hkmdb.com/db/movies/view.mhtml?id=7459&display_set=eng | title=The Top Bet (1991) }} and his next films, Legend of the Dragon and Fist of Fury 1991 failed to crack the HK$25 million barrier.{{cite web | url=https://hkmdb.com/db/movies/view.mhtml?id=7463&display_set=eng | title=Legend of the Dragon (1991) }}{{cite web | url=https://hkmdb.com/db/movies/view.mhtml?id=7444&display_set=eng | title=Fist of Fury 1991 (1991) }} City Entertainment magazine reported that Chow's career was over and he was repeating himself after the hit that was All for the Winner.{{cite AV media |people=Chan, Gordon |date=September 2023 |title=Truant Hero |trans-title= |type=Blu Ray special feature |language=Cantonese |url=https://88-films.myshopify.com/products/fight-back-to-school-trilogy |access-date= |format= |time= |location= |publisher=88 Films |id= |isbn= |oclc= |quote= }} Win's Entertainment courted writer and director Gordon Chan to helm Chow's next project, Fight Back to School (1991). Chan claims he was unsatisfied with the script and rewrote the film as an outline with 15 bullet points and the rest of the movie was improvised. The result was a movie that cast Chow in a heroic lead role and the result was HK$43 million at the local box office, a new franchise (there would be sequels in 1992 and 1993), and in what's considered a local benchmark of success, it represented the first time Chow unseated Jackie Chan from the number one spot at the Hong Kong box office.

Over the next decade, Chow appeared in more than 40 films.{{Cite news|last=Hale|first=Mike|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/06/movies/stephen-chow-the-king-of-comedy-film-retrospective-at-bam.html|title=Lightning Fast With His Feet and His Jokes|date=2014-10-05|work=The New York Times|access-date=2020-03-06|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=28 March 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200328204040/https://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/06/movies/stephen-chow-the-king-of-comedy-film-retrospective-at-bam.html|url-status=live}} and wind up taking the number one spot at the box office eight times over the course of his career.{{cite web | url=http://cine-hk.chez-alice.fr/Hkcine/SITE/FGUIDE/boxoffice/BoxOffices-79-98.htm | title=Box Offices 79-98 }} Often, more than one of his movies would appear in the top ten, as in 1992 when all five of the top spots were held by Chow's films.{{cite web | url=http://cine-hk.chez-alice.fr/Hkcine/SITE/FGUIDE/boxoffice/BO-92.htm | title=Box Office 92 }} (Jackie Chan would not retake the number one spot until 1995.{{cite web | url=http://cine-hk.chez-alice.fr/Hkcine/SITE/FGUIDE/boxoffice/BO-95.htm | title=Box Office 95 }})

In 1994, Chow teamed up with director Lee Lik-chi and writer Vincent Kok for Love On Delivery,{{cite web | url=https://hkmdb.com/db/movies/view.mhtml?id=7797&display_set=eng | title=Love on Delivery (1994) }} a movie that would only be the sixth highest-grossing movie of the year, a significant step down in status. Fortunately, Chow re-teamed with Kok and Lee again that same year for a James Bond parody he's credited as co-writing and co-directing, and From Beijing with Love{{cite web | url=https://hkmdb.com/db/movies/view.mhtml?id=7896&display_set=eng | title=From Beijing with Love (1994) }} became the number three movie at the annual box office, beaten only by Chow Yun-fat's return to the God of Gamblers franchise and Jackie Chan's return to the character of a young Wong Fei-hung in Drunken Master II,{{cite web | url=http://cine-hk.chez-alice.fr/Hkcine/SITE/FGUIDE/boxoffice/BO-94.htm | title=Box Office 94 }} a character he'd last played in 1978 in the first Drunken Master.{{cite web | url=https://hkmdb.com/db/movies/view.mhtml?id=5923&display_set=eng | title=Drunken Master (1978) }}

Around this time, Chow established his own film production company, Choi Sing Company (variously translated as Caixing Film Company and Hong Kong Color Star Film Company),{{cite web | url=http://finance.people.com.cn/money/BIG5/n/2013/0301/c218900-20646582-2.html | title=揭秘周星馳商業王國：身家超15億港元的周模式【2】--財經--人民網 }} and approached Jeff Lau about writing and directing his next movie. Lau told Chow that if he kept making the same movie over and over again he would never find popularity with female audiences and he needed to play a romantic lead. In a hotel meeting, he pitched Chow on filming a two-part adaptation of the classic Chinese novel, Journey to the West, and Chow agreed.{{cite web | url=https://www.yesasia.com/global/0-0-0-arid.96-zh_TW/featured-article.html | title=YESASIA: YumCha! - 劉鎮偉 十年西遊夢 - 專題文章 }} In order to shoot on Mainland locations the movie became a Mainland-Hong Kong co-production between Chow's Choi Sing Company and Xi'an Film Studios.{{cite journal | doi=10.1080/25785273.2024.2375126 | title=Jeffrey Lau's journey to the mainland: Strategic hybridization in Hong Kong-mainland film co-production | date=2024 | last1=Zhang | first1=Hening | journal=Transnational Screens | volume=15 | issue=2 | pages=157–178 | doi-access=free }} The remote Xi'an Studios had always encouraged innovation and become home to China's celebrated wave of Fifth Generation arthouse directors like Zhang Yimou and Chen Kaigehttps://contemporary_chinese_culture.en-academic.com/877/Xi%E2%80%99an_Film_Studio and they were reluctant to work with a commercial, Hong Kong production. However, recent cuts in government subsidies forced them to look for new sources of financing and they embraced the co-production model.https://www.avid.wiki/Xi%27an_Film_Studio The resulting shoot was chaotic, with the Hong Kong crew speaking only Cantonese and the Mainland crew speaking Mandarin. Actors like Lu Shuming and Wu Yujin said they had very little idea of what was going on and actor Law Kar-ying described Chow as "arrogant."{{cite news |last1=Yinxi |first1=Yi |title=Dark Faces of the Kings of Comedy |url=https://issuu.com/pacexisu/docs/pace_p4_i22 |work=Pace Entertainment |date=December 6, 2014}} The two films were titled A Chinese Odyssey Part One - Pandora's Box and A Chinese Odyssey Part Two - Cinderella and released in January and February, 1995 where they underperformed at the box office, leading to Choi Sing Film Company declaring bankruptcy. Chow, however, earned substantial money from the movie over the years through licensing and advertising opportunities{{cite web | url=https://finance-people-com-cn.translate.goog/money/BIG5/n/2013/0301/c218900-20646582-2.html?_x_tr_sch=http&_x_tr_sl=auto&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=en&_x_tr_pto=wapp | title=揭秘周星馳商業王國：身家超15億港元的周模式【2】--財經--人民網 }} and in the late '90s and early 2000s it became a cult favorite in the Mainland{{cite web | url=https://www.hk01.com/%E9%9B%BB%E5%BD%B1/726039/%E5%91%A8%E6%98%9F%E9%A6%B3%E7%9C%BC%E5%85%89%E8%B6%85%E7%8D%A8%E5%88%B0-%E5%83%85%E4%BB%A3%E8%A8%80%E9%81%8E%E5%85%A7%E5%9C%B0%E5%85%A9%E5%93%81%E7%89%8C%E7%9A%86%E6%88%90%E5%95%86%E6%A5%AD%E5%B7%A8%E9%A0%AD | title=周星馳眼光超獨到 僅代言過內地兩品牌皆成商業巨頭 | date=19 January 2022 }} with phrases, expressions, and memes from the two films becoming a foundational part of early Chinese internet culture.{{cite journal | doi=10.1177/2059436420928058 | title=Discovering the digital Stephen Chow: The transborder influence of Chow's films on the Chinese Internet in the 2010s | date=2020 | last1=Chew | first1=Matthew Ming-tak | journal=Global Media and China | volume=5 | issue=2 | pages=124–137 | doi-access=free }} This also became known in part as the Stephen Chow Phenomenon (周星驰现象).[http://paper.people.com.cn/fcyym/html/2013-01/25/content_1190672.htm Chinese watched Stephen Chow's films and grew up. So they knew Stephen Chow's words and use them customarily.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190101070727/http://paper.people.com.cn/fcyym/html/2013-01/25/content_1190672.htm |date=1 January 2019 }}, PEOPLE{{cite web|url=http://www.bjweekly.com/archives/2504453.html|title=What is Stephen Chow Phenomenon|access-date=4 May 2016|archive-date=3 June 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160603185003/http://www.bjweekly.com/archives/2504453.html|url-status=dead}}[https://web.archive.org/web/20180918052723/http://www.xinhuanet.com/legal/2018-09/15/c_1123433427.htm Tencent： WeChat's icon is made of Stephen Chow's action], xinhua{{Cite web |url=http://ent.sina.com.cn/s/h/41288.html |title=SINA：2001年5月2日晚，周星驰到访北京大学，在百周年纪念讲堂直接面对北大的学生与网友。近5、6年来由各著名高校的学生倡导形成的"周星驰热"也终于达到了一个高潮。周星驰和他的电影的影响已经远远超出了大屏幕的范围，渗透到了当今中国的文化甚至是日常生活中。 |access-date=24 May 2020 |archive-date=22 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210522035903/http://ent.sina.com.cn/s/h/41288.html |url-status=live }}

In 2001, his film Shaolin Soccer grossed over US$50 million worldwide.{{cite web|url=http://2006.163.com/06/0704/04/2L5MEQ6R00321QNI.html|title=《少林足球》风靡意大利 意甲球星为电影配音_2006德国世界杯|website=2006.163.com|access-date=26 June 2017|archive-date=16 March 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180316214308/http://2006.163.com/06/0704/04/2L5MEQ6R00321QNI.html|url-status=dead}}[http://xh.xhby.net/mp1/html/2006-06/13/content_3372039.htm 2006 FIFA World Cup]{{cite web|url=http://sports.sohu.com/20080623/n257682800.shtml|title=奥地利热播 周星驰粤语小调德语配音-搜狐体育|website=sports.sohu.com|access-date=14 June 2017|archive-date=7 April 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140407100519/http://sports.sohu.com/20080623/n257682800.shtml|url-status=live}}{{Cite web|url=http://www.asiaarts.ucla.edu/030801/20030801_shaolinsoccer.html|title=Shaolin soccer kicks an international goal|date=1 August 2003|website=asiaarts.ucla.edu|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://archive.today/20120721061800/http://www.asiaarts.ucla.edu/030801/20030801_shaolinsoccer.html|archive-date=21 July 2012}} Chow won Best Director and Best Actor at the 2002 Hong Kong Film Awards, and the film went on to garner additional awards including a Blue Ribbon Awards for Best Foreign Language Film and the Golden Bauhinia Award for Best Picture and Best Director.{{Cite web|url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0286112/awards|title=Siu lam juk kau awards (2001)|date=1 January 2009|website=imdb.com|access-date=29 June 2018|archive-date=15 February 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170215203312/http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0286112/awards|url-status=live}} It was the highest-grossing Chinese film in Hong Kong at the time, grossing $46 million in the Asia region.

File:Stephen Chow in Malaysia.jpg (2008)]]

In 2004, his film Kung Fu Hustle grossed over US$106 million worldwide. Chow also won Best Director at the Taiwan Golden Horse Awards and Best Picture of Imagine Film Festival as well as over twenty international awards.{{Cite web|last=Chow|first=Vivienne|title=Kung Fu Hustle wins Stephen Chow top award|date=7 March 2005|url=https://www.scmp.com/article/491627/kung-fu-hustle-wins-stephen-chow-top-award|access-date=30 May 2021|archive-date=2 June 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210602212817/https://www.scmp.com/article/491627/kung-fu-hustle-wins-stephen-chow-top-award|url-status=live}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0373074/awards|title=Kung Fu (2004) – Awards|date=1 January 2009|website=imdb.com|access-date=29 June 2018|archive-date=8 April 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170408234719/http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0373074/awards|url-status=live}} Comedian Bill Murray said that the film was "the supreme achievement of the modern age in terms of comedy".{{cite web|last=Fierman|first=Dan|title=Bill Murray Is Ready To See You Now|url=https://www.gq.com/entertainment/celebrities/201008/bill-murray-dan-fierman-gq-interview?currentPage=2|work=GQ|date=19 July 2010|access-date=2 October 2011|archive-date=4 September 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110904084602/http://www.gq.com/entertainment/celebrities/201008/bill-murray-dan-fierman-gq-interview?currentPage=2|url-status=live}}

His final role film CJ7 began filming in July 2006 in the eastern Chinese port of Ningbo.{{Cite web|url=http://www.twitchfilm.net/archives/007688.html|title=Stephen Chow's Sci-fi/Comedy will give 'A Hope' to audiences|date=29 September 2006|access-date=19 September 2008|website=twitchfilm.net|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081012220942/http://twitchfilm.net/archives/007688.html|archive-date=12 October 2008}} In August 2007, the film was given the title CJ7, a play on China's successful Shenzhou crewed space missions—Shenzhou 5 and Shenzhou 6.{{Cite web|title=Stephen Chow's Movie 'A Hope' Changes Title|publisher=Asian Popcorn|url=http://www.asianpopcorn.com/default.asp?Display=919|date=17 August 2007|access-date=31 August 2007|archive-date=28 September 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070928202222/http://www.asianpopcorn.com/default.asp?Display=919|url-status=live}}

For his work in comedy, he has received praise from notable institutions such as the Brooklyn Academy of Music, which has called him the King of Comedy.{{Cite news|last=Hale|first=Mike|title=Lightning Fast With His Feet and His Jokes|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/06/movies/stephen-chow-the-king-of-comedy-film-retrospective-at-bam.html|date=2014-10-05|access-date=6 March 2020|archive-date=28 March 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200328204040/https://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/06/movies/stephen-chow-the-king-of-comedy-film-retrospective-at-bam.html|url-status=live}}

In 2010, he became the executive director and major shareholder of 比高集團(BingoGroup Limited).{{Cite news|last=Yan|first=Pei|date=May 28, 2010|title=Movie star Stephen Chow takes control of Emcom|work=China.org.cn|url=http://www.china.org.cn/business/2010-05/28/content_20139257.htm|access-date=May 28, 2010|archive-date=27 June 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120627052054/http://www.china.org.cn/business/2010-05/28/content_20139257.htm|url-status=live}}

In 2013, his film Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons was the highest-grossing Chinese film of all time.{{cite web|url=http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/cineasia-sony-takes-north-american-rights-stephen-chows-journey-west-2-953692|title=Stephen Chow's last two films set all-time China box-office records at the time of their release|author=The Hollywood Reporter|website=The Hollywood Reporter|date=7 December 2016|access-date=7 December 2016|archive-date=8 December 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161208114635/http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/cineasia-sony-takes-north-american-rights-stephen-chows-journey-west-2-953692|url-status=live}}{{Cite web|title=Stephen Chow: A Guide for the Perplexed|date=25 February 2016|url=https://cinema-scope.com/cinema-scope-online/11043/|access-date=30 May 2021|archive-date=2 June 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210602212544/https://cinema-scope.com/cinema-scope-online/11043/|url-status=live}}

In 2016, his film The Mermaid broke numerous box office records,{{Cite web|url=http://p2.pstatp.com/large/10a00033be6b96edec7|title=Stephen Chow in China=Star War in American|access-date=10 August 2016|archive-date=30 July 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180730234340/http://p2.pstatp.com/large/10a00033be6b96edec7|url-status=dead}} and became the highest-grossing film of 2016 in China.{{cite web|url=http://yuqing.people.com.cn/n1/2016/0308/c383249-28182181.html|title=NO.1 star in China – Stephen Chow|access-date=21 February 2016|archive-date=12 March 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190312024235/http://yuqing.people.com.cn/n1/2016/0308/c383249-28182181.html|url-status=dead}} The Mermaid was released in Vietnam on 10 February 2016. On 14 March, it became the third-highest-grossing film of all time in Vietnam. It has now grossed over US$553.81 million worldwide.{{cite magazine|url=https://www.forbes.com/pictures/gmik45eeeg/9-stephen-chow/#326a306d7299 |title=Stephen Chow Movie: The Mermaid Worldwide Box Office: US$553.81 million |magazine=Forbes}} Chow became the ninth-top-grossing Hollywood Director in 2016.{{cite web|url=https://www.forbes.com/pictures/gmik45eeeg/9-stephen-chow|title=Top-Grossing Hollywood Directors|author=Forbes|work=Forbes|date=31 December 2016|access-date=31 March 2017|archive-date=3 May 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190503042416/https://www.forbes.com/pictures/gmik45eeeg/9-stephen-chow/|url-status=live}}

Chow spent 4 years writing, directing and producing the remake of his 1999 film King of Comedy, the film was titled The New King of Comedy, released in February 2019.{{cite web |last1=Hsia |first1=Heidi |title=Stephen Chow unveils "The New King of Comedy" poster |url=https://sg.style.yahoo.com/stephen-chow-unveils-king-comedy-061800208.html |website=yahoo.com |access-date=15 September 2024 |language=en-SG |date=4 December 2018}}

Chow and Jacqueline Law met while filming the TV series The Final Combat in 1989 and began dating shortly thereafter. In the autumn of 1992, they broke up. Law later struggled with depression and recalled mentioning marriage to Chow, only to be dismissed as “crazy,” which left her heartbroken: “I longed to start a family with him, but he treated me like a lunatic.” Years later, when Law announced she had cancer, Chow was working on Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons. Among other memorial references, he named the film’s female lead Miss Duan, referencing The Final Combat, where Chow and Law portrayed Mr. and Mrs. Duan. The film premiered after Law's death.{{Cite web |date=2023-04-14 |title=周星驰：电影全是她的影子 首坦承挂念罗慧娟 |url=https://www.enanyang.my/%E5%A8%B1%E4%B9%90/%E5%91%A8%E6%98%9F%E9%A9%B0%EF%BC%9A%E7%94%B5%E5%BD%B1%E5%85%A8%E6%98%AF%E5%A5%B9%E7%9A%84%E5%BD%B1%E5%AD%90-%E9%A6%96%E5%9D%A6%E6%89%BF%E6%8C%82%E5%BF%B5%E7%BD%97%E6%85%A7%E5%A8%9F |access-date=2024-10-06 |website=www.enanyang.my |language=zh-hans}}

Chow and Athena Chu started dating after working together on Fight Back to School. Their secret relationship lasted for more than three years, ending due to Chow's alleged infidelity. In a 2008 interview on Be My Guest, Chu recalled the breakup: "One day, after wrapping up work, I went to visit my boyfriend’s room. The door was locked, and when he opened it, he looked flustered. I touched the bed, and it was warm, while the bathroom door was locked from the inside." Chu stated that she didn't know who the other person was and suspected there were more than just one. Despite this, Chu continued to work alongside Chow until the film finished. Karen Mok, the often suspected mistress at the time, denied being involved with anyone during the filming of A Chinese Odyssey.{{Cite web |title=朱茵痛述14年前"捉奸在床"情伤 疑是周星驰(图) |url=https://www.chinanews.com.cn/yl/yrfc/news/2008/08-18/1351255.shtml |access-date=2024-10-06 |website=www.chinanews.com.cn}} According to Tiffany Chen, however, during the filming Chow had relationships with Yammie Lam, Chu and Mok.{{Cite web |title=向太再炮轰周星驰：曾与朱茵等3女星同时联系_新闻频道_央视网(cctv.com) |url=https://news.cctv.com/2016/08/10/ARTIne1qmJEjiCvfBsNMiOTv160810.shtml |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240402085324/https://news.cctv.com/2016/08/10/ARTIne1qmJEjiCvfBsNMiOTv160810.shtml |archive-date=2024-04-02 |access-date=2024-04-02 |website=news.cctv.com |url-status=live}}

From 1995 to 1998, Chow dated actress and singer Karen Mok, who has starred alongside him in several films.{{Cite web|last=Koh|first=Lydia|date=2019-07-27|title=Is Stephen Chow secretly married? Ex-girlfriend Karen Mok comments|url=https://theindependent.sg/is-stephen-chow-secretly-married-ex-girlfriend-karen-mok-comments/|access-date=2021-09-23|website=The Independent Singapore|language=en-US|archive-date=28 November 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211128141636/https://theindependent.sg/is-stephen-chow-secretly-married-ex-girlfriend-karen-mok-comments/|url-status=live}}

Chow had a relationship with Alice Yu Man-fung, daughter of business mogul Yu Ching-Po, for 12 to 13 years until March 2010, during which Yu also assisted Chow with personal investments and was paid a salary based on a written contract from 2002, initially at HK$20,000 a month. Chow had paid Yu HK$19.5 million at her request between 2007 and 2011, and an additional HK$10 million in February 2012 in “appreciation for [her] friendship and support over the years”. In September 2012, Yu filed a lawsuit against Chow, asserting that there was an additional oral agreement purportedly reached around Christmas of 2002 for Chow to pay her a 10 per cent share of net profits on all successful investments she recommended. Yu’s claim for damages of some HK$80 million was based on her purported share of the profits from Chow’s investments in his current luxury home at 12 Pollock’s Path on The Peak, three houses at The Beverley Hills in Tai Po and a private equity fund. In 2021, a lower court ruled the pair never made that deal, a decision that was upheld on appeal.{{Cite web |date=2021-09-07 |title=Hong Kong court rules against ex-girlfriend of Stephen Chow in fight over millions |url=https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3147883/hong-kong-court-rejects-appeal-ex-girlfriend-stephen |access-date=2024-10-06 |website=South China Morning Post |language=en}}

In 2013, Stephen Chow was elected a member of the 11th Guangdong Provincial Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC).{{Cite web |title=Stephen Chow elected political advisor – China.org.cn |url=http://www.china.org.cn/arts/2013-01/15/content_27691867.htm |access-date=2023-06-08 |website=www.china.org.cn |archive-date=3 February 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130203051310/http://china.org.cn/arts/2013-01/15/content_27691867.htm |url-status=live }} According to media exposure, Chow often arrives late and leaves early at the conference, and has not put forward any proposals.{{cite news |title=广州媒体：周星驰做政协委员四年无一提案，不是迟到就是早退 |url=https://www.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_1424327 |accessdate=2020-11-13 |work=The Paper |date=2016-01-24 |archive-date=2017-02-13 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170213181513/http://www.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_1424327 |language=zh-cn }}{{More citations needed|date=September 2024}}

Acting roles

Feature film

Producer

• Sing girls
• Mo lei tau
• Cinema of China
• Cinema of Hong Kong

{{Reflist}}

• {{cite book|last=Hua |first=Cheng |script-title=zh:《周星驰：做人如果没有梦想，跟咸鱼有什么分别》|trans-title=Stephen Chow: Without Dream, What's the Difference between Men And Salted Fish|year=2016 |publisher=Sino-Culture Press |location=Xicheng District, Beijing |isbn=978-7-5075-4635-4 |language=zh}}

{{Commons category|Stephen Chow}}

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Category:1962 births

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