Here's the question of the week: who's the most successful post-handover local actor? Most people would say Tony Leung Chiu-wai, Andy Lau Tak-wah or Stephen Chow Sing-Chi.
But the award goes to ... Lam Suet.
Only the fans so dedicated to Johnnie To Kei-fung that they would sit through the making-of documentary of the director's 1997 film Lifeline would notice the chubby man smiling at the camera.
That 'fat boy' was Lam, who was then not even an actor but one of the many production assistants responsible for arranging lunch boxes, lugging film equipment and generally being at the beck and call of higher-paid staff.
He was the kind of person who, in the words of the legendary football coach Bill Shankly, 'carries the piano' to allow the more creative souls to play it.
One day, To gave in to Lam's requests and gave him a small part, a villain's role in Expect the Unexpected. Since then, he has starred in various supporting or minor roles. They are mostly comedic characters that provide comic relief in To's dark and intense action thrillers.
Lam got his first big break in The Mission (1999), in which he played a low-key hitman in a team of sharpshooters who are hired to protect a gang lord.