AsianConnections Team member Suzanne Kai recently chatted with superstar Chow Yun-Fat in Beverly Hills during the premiere of his latest film, Anna and the King. Chow talked about his film roles, and about the person who has inspired him most in his life.

     Chow was charming and engaging, revealing more of the human being behind his "superstar status." He talked of the hardships of his childhood and moral values in today's fast changing society. The conversation is filled with laughter as you can read and hear from the following interview highlights and audio clips:

Chow Yun-Fat comments on his name:   You can call me Puppy Chow.  [laughter]  Chow is my surname.  Yun-Fat is my given name.  Some people call me Mr. Fat. Interesting. Or maybe you can cal

Photo: Andrew Cooper -
20th Century Fox

l me "Fatty" [laughter] 

AsianConnections:?You just flew in from China to California?

Chow Yun-Fat:�� I just finished a new movie in Beijing.?It is another Ching Dynasty epic movie, involving a lot of martial arts, sword fighting, and romance.?It is called Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, directed by Ang Lee.

AsianConnections:?First off, I want to mention that your role is historical, in that you are probably one of the first, if not the first Asian male to play a starring romantic role in a major American movie.

Chow Yun-Fat:?No, no, no.?John Lone, The Last Emperor.?Oh, another guy is [the late] Haing Ngor.?He did The Killing Fields.?It's a very heavy drama role.?I like it.

AsianConnections:?But we believe you may be the first Asian male actor to carry an entire major American motion picture as a romantic leading man. How do you feel about doing dramatic versus action roles?

Chow Yun-Fat:? Of course, holding a girl [is] better than holding a gun!?[laughs]?

Plus this movie, I got tons and tons of concubines, wives, and kids.?But you can see a lot of action movies that I've done before, even though I still have two bags of uzis and colt 45's, [it's] very heavy, and every time you have to push your finger to open fire, so tiring!?But if you have tons of girls, you just sit there, somebody do[es] a massage for you, serving you food and water.?It's totally a different story.?

AsianConnections: Your choice of role in Anna and the King is a fantastic role for an Asian male actor.?Most of the Asian male roles have been somewhat stereotypical.?But this is the first "whole person"�what are your thoughts on that?

Chow Yun-Fat: Yes, yes, very interesting.?And very exciting and very challenging.?I think it's good that more American people [can] see the different faces of Yun-Fat.?Not just like�only he can do action.?Actually, if you go back to the early 80's I did a lot of TV series which is very popular in Hong Kong. They are romance.?Like now, in this movie give[s] Yun-Fat one more try,?to go back to the old days, to do the drama again, to do the romance again.?For the first time in 1986, I made with John Woo, A Better Tomorrow, and [then] sudden[ly], I become an action hero, because before that I am still a romantic, comedy actor. 

 

Photo: Andrew Cooper -
20th Century Fox
AsianConnections:  Can you tell us about working with Jodie Foster?

Chow Yun-Fat:  She's very talented, she's very professional. She's got tons and tons of patience.  The lady's no sweat.  Even under the heat [35 C/90 F], very hot sun, very humid weather, she never sweat.  She's just cool and calm.  I'm lucky that I have such kind of opportunity to work with her.  She's adorable.  Sometimes can be playful and funny.

AsianConnections:  Jodie says very complimentary things about you as well.  She mentions your "inner stillness."

Chow Yun-Fat:  Because I paid her.  [laughter]

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