Park Ji-won is a writer for The Korea Times who has been covering a wide range of topics from Korea’s culture to its politics. An avid journalism enthusiast to the core, Ji-won brings a thoughtful and unique perspective to every topic she covers. On weekends, you'll often find her contemplating life’s purpose on a yoga mat — with a cup of quality tea in hand. A native Korean speaker by birth and fluent in English through her work, she went to college in Japan and is learning Chinese and French — hoping to add Polish, Russian and Thai to the mix.
'We love you': Hong Kong's Tony Leung finds new generation of fans in Korea
Hong Kong actor Tony Leung attends a Q&A session at the Busan International Film Festival (BIFF) on Oct. 7. Courtesy of BIFF
By Park Ji-won
By Park Ji-won
HONG KONG ― Legendary Hong Kong actor Tony Leung Chiu-wai has been the center of attention at this year's Busan International Film Festival (BIFF), held in South Korea's second-largest city.
Not only was the star of the much-loved films, “In the Mood for Love” (2000), “Infernal Affairs” (2002) and “Lust, Caution” (2007) crowned the 2022 Asian Filmmaker of the Year, but fans hung on his every word during a special Q&A at the festival, and his merchandise packs have been selling like hotcakes.
A festival official said that the demand for the Tony Leung merchandise pack had taken organizers by surprise. Fans have queued for hours to snap up one of the 150 packs put on sale each day of the event, which ends on October 14.
Costing 35,000 won ($24.50), each pack contains a poster, badge, postcards, letters, photographs of the actor's previous visits to the festival, as well as Tony Leung autographs.
An extra 600 sets had to be printed to meet demand, and the pack was being resold online for 100,000 won.
“Some people were in line from very early in the morning,” the BIFF official said. “We knew that Tony Leung Chiu-wai has a wide fan base in South Korea, but we didn't know it included people of every age group, including millennials and Generation Z.”
The actor became popular in South Korea during the 1980s for his appearances in Hong Kong films. But it is his performance in the recent Marvel action film, “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings,” and the releases of remastered versions of films he starred in decades ago, such as “In the Mood for Love,” that have earned him wide support among younger fans as well.
After Leung walked the red carpet at the festival's opening, a report in one Korean news publication about his popularity headlined: “'I didn't realize I love a middle-aged man': teenagers queue for Tony Leung's merchandise.” Leung turned 60 this year.
His presence at the festival has drawn plenty of comments on social media, too.
One Twitter user, commenting on how “cute” Leung was, wrote: “Don't you dare leave the country … Carina Lau Kar-ling [Leung's actress wife] will be also summoned. Please be prepared to settle in Korea. We love you.”