Andy Lau, one of Hong Kong's most popular and prolific actors with more than 130 film roles to his credit, said that he would like to act in Korean films.
The "No.1 Box Office Actor" of Hong Kong, who yielded a total box office of more than $218 million in the past 20 years, came to Korea for the promotion of his latest film "A Battle of Wits" on Friday.
Meeting the press at the CGV Multiplex in Yongsan, downtown Seoul, after the media premiere of the film, Lau confessed that he feels sad witnessing how the once-prosperous Hong Kong film industry is struggling.
"Currently, Hong Kong films have failed to diversify the source of their stories, which I think is the main reason of the current sluggishness in growth", Lau said. "This is why I want to act in a new environment sometimes, including, of course, acting in Korean films".
He spoke highly of Ahn Seong-gi, a veteran Korean actor who acts together with him in the blockbuster epic set in the late third-century China. "Ahn is not a new face in Hong Kong and China at all", he said. "But his Chinese-speaking acting is good enough to make more than 80 percent of Chinese filmgoers forget that he is a Korean actor who cannot speak Chinese".
Having a huge fan base throughout Asia with the success of both his onscreen performance and his musical career, Lau is best known in the country for his roles in the "God of Gamblers" series, which was a smash hit in the late '80s through early '90s.
Based on a popular 11-volume manga series from Japan originally titled "Bokko", the lavishly-produced historical drama tells the story of a Mozi tribesman called Ge Li (Lau) who comes to save the besieged peaceful land of Liang from the merciless attack from the kingdom of Zhao.
"A Battle of Wits" will be released in cinemas across the nation on Jan. 11.
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