Yuen Wah - Career

Career

Known for his agility and acrobatic skills, Yuen Wah began his film career working as Bruce Lee's stunt double in the films Fist of Fury (1972) and Enter the Dragon (1973). He also made his acting debut in Fist of Fury, as a Japanese who asks Bruce Lee's character to crawl like a dog and is soundly beaten for it. He began to receive a number of roles in Shaw Brothers films.

Yuen's versatility, his lean, wiry frame and later, his distinctive moustache often saw him cast as the villain in most films. During the 1980s, he worked on several films with former classmates Jackie Chan, Sammo Hung and Yuen Biao, both in an action director / stunt co-ordinator capacity, and in acting roles as villainous characters. The films included Mr. Vampire (1985), My Lucky Stars (1985), Millionaire's Express (1986), Eastern Condors (1986), and Dragons Forever (1988).

During the 1990s, whist still appearing in a number of films, Yuen began to focus on television series roles for TVB. In 1996, he starred as a Taoist priest fighting Jiang Shi vampires in the series The Night Journey. His comical and endearingly scrooge-like image earned him popularity on the Hong Kong television circuit. Since then, he has appeared in over 20 different television series.

In 2004, Yuen casted as The Landlord in Stephen Chow's comedy film Kung Fu Hustle. During the 2005 Hong Kong Film Awards, his colleagues took the opportunity to award him with the award for Best Supporting Actor.

Yuen made his debut in English language film in Aiming High (1998). He appeared in another English language production, the Baz Luhrmann period film, Australia (2008), alongside Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman.