Veteran actor Anthony Wong Chau-sang, who made his Hollywood debut in The Painted Veil, opposite Edward Norton and Naomi Watts, says there's a shortage of quality actors in Hong Kong. 'People in movies nowadays are celebrities, they're not real actors,' said Wong, who's starred in more than 100 films. 'They don't even believe in acting. I'm not saying there are no good actors here, but only a few.' Wong said Hong Kong has a naive pop culture. '[In Hollywood] they also have stars like Leonardo DiCaprio, but he's a real person. Here, if you're a star, you can't date a girl, can't get married and have to dress up every time you go out. People are just products.' Unlike local talent, Wong found Norton a sophisticated and professional actor who understood the background to The Painted Veil, a love story set in 1920s China. 'He read a lot of books about that particular period in China. He knew every line he said - and that's what made him a good actor,' said Wong, who plays an army colonel who befriends Norton. 'Through acting, there is a cultural exchange among actors and I very much enjoy that.' However, Wong found the continual script changes during filming a challenge. 'Usually, the director made some changes to the script, then Edward, who's also the producer of the movie, would change it a bit more and then they would discuss it again and make some more changes. 'I can only say I've done my best to act my part - if it was in Hong Kong, I would have lost my temper right away,' said the 45-year-old (left and below, with Norton). Wong is the son of a Chinese mother and a British father, but the latter left home when he was four years old, prompting him to use his mother's surname. He began his career at ATV and attended the Academy of Performing Arts, but shot to stardom playing a real-life serial killer who uses his victims' remains to make pork buns in the horror movie The Untold Story. The part won him his first Best Actor award at the Hong Kong Film Awards. He also took some parts he didn't want. 'I needed the money to support my family. I had to do it,' he said. Wong won the Best Actor award at 2003's Hong Kong Film Critics Society Awards and the Best Supporting Actor prize at the Hong Kong Film Awards, Golden Horse Film Festival and the Golden Bauhinia Awards for his role as Superintendent Wong Chi-shing in Andrew Lau Wai-keung's Infernal Affairs. In the mid-90s he was diagnosed with a thyroid disorder but made a full recovery. 'I don't know why I enjoy acting so much, maybe I'm hiding away from my life. Maybe there's a hidden violent side of me, maybe I'm overly imaginative - or maybe I have a split personality,' he said, jokingly. The Painted Veil opens on April 19
