Following these career beginnings (comparable to those of other major Hong Kong stars), Tony appeared in a series of "auteur" films which soon earned him a reputation as an extremely versatile actor. Working for several of East Asia's greatest filmmakers, he has turned in outstanding performances. With his slender physique, boyishly good looks and full, petulant lips, Tony Leung does not look the part of a standard action hero. His handsome features seem most natural tightened with concern or softened into dreaminess. Well-paired with ultra-cool superstar Chow Yun-fat in John Woo's over-the-top cop drama, "Hard-Boiled" (1992), he was impressively restrained and tense as a deep undercover operative

It is with Wong Kar-wai that Tony Leung has enjoyed his strongest, most durable collaboration, having appeared in five of the writer/director's seven features. Following a cameo appearance in Days of Being Wild (1991), portrayals for Wong have been a wandering knight gradually going blind (in Ashes of Time [1994], for which he won several awards); a solitary policeman in love (in Chungking Express [1994], for which he received the Best Actor award at the Hong Kong Film Awards); and a homosexual facing exile and a painful separation (in Happy Together [1997], for which he again received the Best Actor award at the Hong Kong Film Awards). For his performance in In the Mood for Love, Tony received the Best Actor award at the Cannes International Film Festival. Tony has begun work on Wong Kar-wai's next film, 2046.

His other notable films include John Woo's classics Bullet in the Head (1990) and Hard-Boiled (1992); Stanley Kwan Kam-pang's Love Unto Waste (1986); Derek Yee Tung-shing's The Lunatics (1986); Ching Siu-tung's A Chinese Ghost Story III (1991); Tran Anh-hung's Cyclo (1995); Patrick Yau Tat-chi's The Longest Nite (1998); and Hou Hsiao-hsien's City of Sadness (1989) and Flowers of Shanghai (1998).

The actor appeared in one of Asia's greatest cinematic triumphs, "Ying xiong" (2002), which was released in the United States in 2004 under the title "Hero." Leung teamed with celebrated writer-director Zhang Yimou--known more for character dramas than kicks and fisticuffs--Australian cinematographer Chris Doyle and Li's fellow Asian martial arts stars Jet Li, Zhang Ziyi, Maggie Cheung, Daoming Chen and Donnie Yen for the big-budgeted tale set at the violent dawn of the Qin dynasty, circa 220 B.C., where the soon-to-be first Emperor is on the brink of conquering the war-torn land and three of his most passionate opponents (Cheung, Leung and Ziyi) are trying to assassinate him, opposed by the indomitable Li as Nameless, a lowly policeman who faces off against powerful forces. The film become a phenomenal hit in Asia and Europe, and was nominated for an Oscar in 2003 in the foreign language category before its North American release in 2004.

Tony Leung has also carved out a singing career as a pop star in the Asian market. Reportedly he favors a bizarre singing style, chained nose rings and skirts. He should not be confused with the other Tony Leung - actor Tony Leung Kar-fai, best known as "The Lover" (1992)--who also works in the HK and international cinemas and with whom he co-starred in "Ashes of Time".

Extras

Hero [Initial Pressing Limited Edition]	Seoul Raiders [DTS]	Infernal Affairs Trilogy [6 Disc DTS]	2046	Heaven Sword and Dragon Sabre Part I
Heaven Sword and Dragon Sabre Part II	Police Cadet 1985 Part I	Police Cadet 1985 Part II	In The Mood For Love	End Of The Road

Related links

Jackie Chan
Bruce Lee
Jet Li
Michelle Yeoh
Chow Yun-Fat
Stephen Chow
Andy Lau
Zhang ZiYi
Gong Li
Maggie Cheung
Shu Qi

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