https://www.scmp.com/rss/523396/feed The latest news and top stories on Louis Koo Tin-lok, a Hong Kong actor and film producer. He began his career in Hong Kong television in the 1990s before shifting to films. He won Best Actor at the Hong Kong Film Awards and Asian Film Awards in 2018 for *Paradox*. Koo founded One Cool Group Limited in 2013, producing films and executive producing Hollywood animated features. He also established the Koo Tin Lok Charitable Foundation in 2009, funding over 100 schools and infrastructure in rural... en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Edmund Lee Edmund Lee On January 13, the Hong Kong Film Awards (HKFA) Association released its provisional list of contenders for the 44th edition of the city’s most prestigious film ceremony. The film list is meant to be a routine administrative update, a roll-call of the artistic output from the 2025 calendar year, and the definitive source of reference for HKFA voters filling out their nomination forms. However, this year’s list quickly threw the industry into turmoil. In an unprecedented development, four... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3340395/why-did-hong-kong-film-awards-drop-4-eligible-films-its-2026-list?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3340395/why-did-hong-kong-film-awards-drop-4-eligible-films-its-2026-list?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 19 Jan 2026 09:14:14 +0000 James Marsh James Marsh Hong Kong movie star and producer Louis Koo Tin-lok is currently rewriting history – and box office records – with the time-travel adventure Back to the Past. Taking in over HK$60 million (US$7.7 million) since its New Year’s Eve debut, the film is a much-anticipated sequel to 2001’s A Step into the Past, a favourite television series from Hong Kong broadcaster TVB. It sends Koo’s security agent hurtling back to the Qin dynasty, reuniting him with many original cast members, including Raymond... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3339696/10-best-asian-time-travel-movies-watch-after-hong-kong-hit-back-past?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3339696/10-best-asian-time-travel-movies-watch-after-hong-kong-hit-back-past?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 15 Jan 2026 11:15:07 +0000 Charmaine Yu Charmaine Yu The 2000s are experiencing a nostalgia-driven renaissance in Hong Kong, spearheaded by the record-breaking time-travel action fantasy, Back to the Past. A big-screen sequel to the popular 2001 TVB drama A Step into the Past, the film has become a box office sensation since its release on December 31, 2025. Co-directed by Ng Yuen-fai and Jack Lai Chun-lung and starring original lead Louis Koo Tin-lok, the blockbuster – which picks up where the TV series left off – is pure fan service wrapped... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3339583/how-back-past-fuelling-nostalgia-2000s-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3339583/how-back-past-fuelling-nostalgia-2000s-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 13 Jan 2026 05:00:11 +0000 Elizabeth Cheung Elizabeth Cheung The only cinema in the Ma On Shan area has shut down, joining a wave of theatre closures in Hong Kong that began during the pandemic. Emperor Cinemas announced on Monday that its branch in MOSTown, a shopping centre in Ma On Shan, had ceased operations on the same day. No reason for the closure was given. “Thank you for your support. Emperor Cinemas (Ma On Shan) will cease operations from January 12, 2026,” the company said in a social media post. The group said all movie vouchers and coupons... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3339550/hong-kongs-ma-shan-loses-its-only-cinema-amid-wave-theatre-closures?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3339550/hong-kongs-ma-shan-loses-its-only-cinema-amid-wave-theatre-closures?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 12 Jan 2026 05:37:05 +0000 Ashlyn Chak Ashlyn Chak Hong Kong time-travel comedy film Back to the Past – the big-screen adaptation of the 2001 TVB drama A Step into the Past – has, since its release on December 31, broken two local box office records and become the talk of the town. Co-directed by Ng Yuen-fai and Jack Lai Chun-lung and starring the drama’s original lead Louis Koo Tin-lok, the movie grossed HK$10.9 million (US$1.4 million) on its opening day, smashing the city’s first-day performance record for local or Chinese-language films. At... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3339024/what-know-about-back-past-record-breaking-new-hong-kong-film-starring-louis-koo?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3339024/what-know-about-back-past-record-breaking-new-hong-kong-film-starring-louis-koo?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 07 Jan 2026 23:15:13 +0000 Lo Hoi-ying Lo Hoi-ying Hong Kong science fiction blockbuster Back to the Past has overtaken A Guilty Conscience and The Last Dance to become the highest-grossing film in its opening week. Industry body Hong Kong Box Office Limited on Tuesday said that Back to the Past, starring Louis Koo Tin-lok and Raymond Lam Fung, had earned a cumulative HK$45.4 million (US$5.8 million) at the box office in Hong Kong and Macau as of Monday. Hong Kong cinema-goers accounted for more than HK$42.8 million of the total. “This figure... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3338868/hong-kong-sci-fi-film-back-past-rakes-record-hk45-million-first-week?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3338868/hong-kong-sci-fi-film-back-past-rakes-record-hk45-million-first-week?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 06 Jan 2026 06:04:31 +0000 Denise Tsang Denise Tsang Historical science fiction action film Back to the Past, starring actors Louis Koo Tin-lok and Raymond Lam Fung, has broken the opening-day record for a Chinese film despite a gloomy box office last year. Local takings sank to a 14-year low of HK$1.13 billion (US$145.2 million) in 2025 from a year earlier amid a wave of cinema shutdowns, according to data compiled by industry body Hong Kong Box Office Limited on Friday. Last year’s best performing films – both locally produced and from abroad –... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3338554/back-past-film-starring-louis-koo-and-raymond-lam-smashes-hong-kong-record?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3338554/back-past-film-starring-louis-koo-and-raymond-lam-smashes-hong-kong-record?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 02 Jan 2026 12:28:13 +0000 Charmaine Yu Charmaine Yu From an exhibition that evokes childhood memories to a dining experience starring an overlooked ingredient, here are five things to do in Hong Kong this weekend as we turn the page into 2026. 1. The Beginning of the Moomins Celebrating the 80th anniversary of the beloved Finnish-Swedish characters, “The Beginning of the Moomins” is an immersive exhibition of adorable characters that evokes childhood nostalgia. Attendees can purchase a range of exclusive 80th-anniversary merchandise, including... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/arts/article/3338449/5-best-things-do-hong-kong-weekend-january-2-4?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/arts/article/3338449/5-best-things-do-hong-kong-weekend-january-2-4?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 02 Jan 2026 03:00:10 +0000 Edmund Lee Edmund Lee 3/5 stars A film does not need to be a masterpiece to become a megahit, provided it strikes the perfect chord. Few contemporary Hong Kong releases prove this better than Back to the Past, a subpar historical sci-fi fantasy that is saved – and arguably even transcended – by the potent wave of nostalgia it inspires in its target audience. An effects-driven action adventure that picks up where the 2001 TVB drama series A Step into the Past left off, this long-gestating sequel co-directed by Ng... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3338164/back-past-movie-review-louis-koo-raymond-lam-lead-nostalgic-sequel-tvb-series?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3338164/back-past-movie-review-louis-koo-raymond-lam-lead-nostalgic-sequel-tvb-series?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 30 Dec 2025 16:00:08 +0000 Edmund Lee Edmund Lee There were, ultimately, no miracles for Hong Kong cinema in 2025. It was a regrettable year that began with reports of further cinema closures and ended in collective mourning after the Tai Po fire tragedy, which in turn pushed back the release of Avatar: Fire and Ash (now renamed Avatar 3) – previously earmarked as a saviour for cinema operators this Christmas. The forecast downturn in film investment has been keenly felt; even several “urban myth” titles – the label jokingly given to... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3337807/hong-kong-films-released-2025-ranked-worst-best?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3337807/hong-kong-films-released-2025-ranked-worst-best?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 26 Dec 2025 10:11:31 +0000 Edmund Lee Edmund Lee 3.5/5 stars Few Hong Kong films have arrived with as much anticipation as Juno Mak Chun-lung’s Sons of the Neon Night. A hyper-stylised crime thriller with a reported HK$400 million (US$51.4 million) budget and a star-studded cast, it was shot between 2017 and 2018 only to be shelved until its premiere at the Cannes Film Festival in May this year. The long delay has only added to the film’s enigmatic aura. Set in an alternate-reality Hong Kong of 1994, so much has transpired in the interim that... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3327384/sons-neon-night-movie-review-hong-kong-crime-thriller-striking-watch?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3327384/sons-neon-night-movie-review-hong-kong-crime-thriller-striking-watch?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 30 Sep 2025 10:15:12 +0000 SCMP SCMP We have selected seven Lifestyle stories from the past seven days that resonated with our readers. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. Can you train your mind to be happy? Yes, experts say. Here’s how Happiness can be elusive. When you get what you expect will bring happiness – a cool new job, a flashy car, the date you always wanted – for a time, you feel great. But that feeling subsides, and you start to feel that, really, you had it wrong, and you... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3324125/training-your-mind-be-happy-meaning-chinese-red-thread-7-lifestyle-highlights?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3324125/training-your-mind-be-happy-meaning-chinese-red-thread-7-lifestyle-highlights?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 04 Sep 2025 07:30:08 +0000 Edmund Lee Edmund Lee 3/5 stars Ronald Cheng Chung-kei sets aside his laid-back comedic persona for an utterly grim role in this devastating Thailand-set action thriller, which sees the Hong Kong singer and actor buff up and play an anguished father on a deadly hunt for the evil locals who have taken his young daughter. A co-directing effort by Cheng and Mark Wu Yiu-fai – Cheng’s director and co-star in the 2015 buddy comedy Undercover Duet – Atonement was shot in 2018 but shelved until now. It would almost certainly... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3324190/atonement-movie-review-ronald-cheng-avenging-father-bleak-thailand-set-thriller?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3324190/atonement-movie-review-ronald-cheng-avenging-father-bleak-thailand-set-thriller?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 03 Sep 2025 10:50:17 +0000 Richard James Havis Richard James Havis Like all Hong Kong actors who have sustained long careers, Louis Koo Tin-lok has performed in many genres. The last 15 years in particular have seen Koo excelling in hardcore action roles, even though, unlike Andy Lau Tak-wah, he received no early training in martial arts. Koo always tries to instil his action performances with human drama. Here we look at three of his best 21st-century action films. 1. Drug War (2012) Koo mainly plays it introspective and quiet in this rough crime caper from... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3323485/how-hong-kong-movie-star-louis-koo-fared-his-action-roles?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/entertainment/article/3323485/how-hong-kong-movie-star-louis-koo-fared-his-action-roles?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 31 Aug 2025 04:15:07 +0000