View source for Michael Hui

{{Short description|Hong Kong comedian and filmmaker (born 1942)}}
{{Family name hatnote|[[Xǔ (surname)|Hui]]|lang=Chinese}}
{{BLP sources|date=December 2017}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2021}}
{{infobox person
| name         = Michael Hui
| image        = Michael Hui - 2022 Hong Kong Film Awards Interview (cropped).jpg
| alt          = 
| caption      = Hui at the [[2022 Hong Kong Film Awards]]
| birth_date   = {{birth date and age|df=yes|1942|9|3}}
| birth_place  = [[Panyu]], [[Guangdong]], [[Republic of China (1912–1949)|China]]
| occupation   = {{hlist|Actor|playwright|director|producer}}
| years_active = 1968–present
| spouse       = {{marriage|Cheng Kit-ying|1972}}
| children     = 2
| relatives    = {{plainlist|
* [[Ricky Hui]] (brother)
* [[Sam Hui]] (brother)
}}
| awards       = {{awards|award=[[Hong Kong Film Awards]]|name='''Best Actor'''<br>1981 ''[[Security Unlimited]]''}}
| module       = {{Infobox Chinese|child=yes
| t = 許冠文
| s = 许冠文
| p = Xǔ Guànwén
| j = Heoi2 Gun3 Man4
| y = Héui Gun Màhn
}}
| module2      = {{infobox musical artist|embed=yes
| alias = Cool-faced comedian, Mr. Boo! (in Japan)
| background = temporary
| origin = [[Hong Kong]]
| associated_acts = Hui Brothers: [[Ricky Hui]], [[Samuel Hui]]
}}
}}

'''Michael Hui Koon-man''' (born {{zh|許冠文}}; 3 September 1942; also known as '''Mr Boo!''') is a [[Hong Kong people|Hong Kong]] actor, [[comedian]], [[screenwriter|scriptwriter]] and [[Film director|director]]. He is the eldest of the four Hui brothers (together with [[Ricky Hui|Ricky]], [[Sam Hui|Sam]], and Stanley) who were prominent figures in the Hong Kong entertainment industry during the 1970s and the 1980s. Michael Hui is considered by many critics to be one of the foremost comedians in the [[Cinema of Hong Kong|Hong Kong film industry]].

==Education==
Hui studied in [[La Salle College]], and then earned a degree in [[sociology]] from the [[United College (Hong Kong)|United College]], the [[Chinese University of Hong Kong]].

==Career==
After a spell hosting [[quiz show]]s on [[TVB]], Hui gained popularity in the Hong Kong entertainment industry with his variety show stints in the ''[[Hui Brothers Show]]''. He then moved from television to film. Hui's first work was in a film by [[Taiwan]]ese director [[Li Han-hsiang]] called ''[[The Warlord (film)|The Warlord]]'' (大軍閥 or "The Great Regime", 1972), where he played a farcical [[warlord]] in post-revolutionary China.

In 1974, he set up his own film company, the Hui Film Company, with [[Orange Sky Golden Harvest|Golden Harvest]], with his brothers [[Ricky Hui|Ricky]] and [[Samuel Hui|Sam]]. Between 1974 and 2000 he created more than 20 comedy films, five of which were Hong Kong's No. 1 box-office hit of the year.

The earliest Hui comedies combined episodic gags with the comedic appeal of Michael and his brothers. This usually involved the trio of actors—Michael, Sam and Ricky—pitting their wits against the odds to earn quick bucks and their livelihood. Set in modern-day Hong Kong, with upbeat soundtracks performed by Sam himself, these works became wildly popular amongst the working classes in the 1970s and early 1980s. ''[[Games Gamblers Play]]'' (1974), ''[[The Private Eyes (1976 film)|The Private Eyes]]'' (1976), ''[[The Contract (1978 film)|The Contract]]'' (1978) and ''[[Security Unlimited]]'' (1981) – the last of which won him the first [[Hong Kong Film Award for Best Actor]] – are often seen as the quintessential comedies made by the company. ''Games Gamblers Play'' was a huge success when first released and paved the way for [[Cantonese]] movies to hold their own against the colonial trend of [[Standard Chinese|Mandarin]] production.

In the 1980s, Hui developed a new brand of [[satirical]] comedy, one which capitalized on his deadpan comic timing, using a more character-driven storyline. Some of his more renowned works came during this period in the 1980s. Hui frequently acted out the archetypal "ne'er-do-well" driven on by a cash-mad Hong Kong society. Equally caustic and funny, they are set against the backdrop of present-day Hong Kong [[consumerism]]. He would make a rare North American film appearance as the [[Subaru]] mechanic/engineer with [[Jackie Chan]] in the [[Burt Reynolds]] comedy ''[[The Cannonball Run]]''. In ''[[Chocolate Inspector]]'' (1986), he plays a chocolate-eating inspector who must solve a kidnap case while his subordinate is involved in a [[Miss Hong Kong pageant]]. In ''[[Chicken and Duck Talk]]'' (1988), opposing restaurateurs come to blows to secure profits. ''[[Front Page (film)|Front Page]]'' (1990), which reunited the three brothers, lampoons the Hong Kong press, while ''[[The Magic Touch (film)|The Magic Touch]]'' (1992) satirizes the Chinese obsession with [[fortune-telling]] and wealth. ''[[Always on My Mind (film)|Always on My Mind]]'' (1993) continues in this vein of self-deprecating humour: Hui plays the head of a family, a news anchor, who will stop at nothing to grab money.

Hui continued acting and producing his own comedies, at a less prolific rate, in the 1990s and 2000s. He wrote a dozen screenplays, but none were produced because he felt dissatisfied.<ref>{{Cite AV media|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u0VN7o43xhY |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211212/u0VN7o43xhY| archive-date=2021-12-12 |url-status=live|title=【專訪】許冠文--創作歷程一路逆風|date=11 April 2018|last=|first=|type=|language=yue|publisher=[[am730]]}}{{cbignore}}</ref> ''[[Chinese Box]]'' (1997), directed by [[Wayne Wang]], remains Hui's only starring film in the West. He played a talented safe-cracker, who kidnaped a baby for money from triads but was kind-hearted and dignified, in the action-comedy ''[[Rob-B-Hood]]'' (2006), starring alongside Jackie Chan and [[Louis Koo]]. In 2006, he became the host of the quiz show ''[[Deal or No Deal (Hong Kong)|Deal or No Deal]]''. In 2016, he starred in the Taiwanese [[black comedy]] film, ''[[Godspeed (film)|Godspeed]]'', for which he is nominated the [[Golden Horse Award for Best Leading Actor]].

Organized by the [[Hong Kong Arts Development Council]] (HKADC), the 15th Hong Kong Arts Development Awards was held on Oct 30, 2021. Hui was one of the recipients of the Award for Outstanding Contribution in Arts, for his active involvements in filmmaking as a director, a screenwriter and actor.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.hkadc.org.hk/en/whats-on/press-release/the-15th-hong-kong-arts-development-awards-commends-outstanding-artists-and-organisations|title=The 15th Hong Kong Arts Development Awards Commends Outstanding Artists and Organisations|access-date=30 May 2021|archive-date=28 January 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220128042319/https://www.hkadc.org.hk/en/whats-on/press-release/the-15th-hong-kong-arts-development-awards-commends-outstanding-artists-and-organisations|url-status=live}} Hong Kong Ars Development Council. 2021-05-30</ref>

==Filmography==
[[File:Michael Hui Koon Man 2005.JPG|thumb|Hui in 2005]]
[[File:Michael Hui 20240331.jpg|thumb|Hui in 2024]]

=== Acting roles ===
{{inc-film|date=October 2021}}
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|+
!Year
!Film title in English
!Film title in Chinese
!Role
!Notes
|-
|1972
|''[[The Warlord (film)|The Warlord]]''
|大軍閥
|
|
|-
|1973 ||''The Happiest Moment'' || 一樂也 || Ren Letien/Chief Supt/Md Fuyu/Xiao Liu ||
|-
|1973
|''[[Sinful Confession (film)|Sinful Confession]]''
|聲色犬馬
|
|
|-
|1974
|''Scandal''
|醜聞
|
|
|-
|1974
|''[[Games Gamblers Play]]'' 
|鬼馬雙星
|Man
|
|-
|1975
|''[[The Last Message]]'' 
|天才與白痴
|Tim
|
|-
|1976
|''[[The Private Eyes (1976 film)|The Private Eyes]]''
|半斤八兩
|Wong Yeuk-sze
|
|-
|1978
|''[[The Contract (1978 film)|The Contract]]''
|賣身契
|Sit Chi-man
|
|-
| 1981
| ''[[The Cannonball Run]]''
| 砲彈飛車
| Driver
|
|-
| 1981
| ''[[Security Unlimited]]''
| 摩登保鑣
| Chow Sai-cheung
|
|-
| 1984
| ''[[Teppanyaki (film)|Teppanyaki]]''
| 鐵板燒
|
| 
|-
| 1985
| ''[[Mr. Boo Meets Pom Pom]]''
| 智勇三寶
| Mr. Boo
| 
|-
| 1986
| ''[[Happy Ding Dong]]''
| 歡樂叮噹
| 
| 
|-
| 1986
| ''[[Chocolate Inspector]]''
| 神探朱古力
| Inspector Chu Koo-lik
| 
|-
| 1988
| ''[[Chicken and Duck Talk]]''
| 雞同鴨講
| Hui
| 
|-
| 1989
| ''[[Mr. Coconut]]''
| 合家歡
| Ngan Kwai-Na
| 
|-
| 1990
| ''[[Front Page (film)|Front Page]]''
| 新半斤八兩
| Hui
| 
|-
| 1991
| ''[[The Banquet (1991 film)|The Banquet]]''
| 豪門夜宴
| Michael Hui
| 
|-
| 1992
| ''[[Hero of the Beggars]]''
| 丐世英雄
| 
| 
|-
| 1992
| ''[[The Magic Touch (film)|The Magic Touch]]''
| 神算
| Hui Wai-kuk
| 
|-
| 1993
| ''[[Always on My Mind (film)|Always on My Mind]]''
| 搶錢夫妻
| 
| 
|-
| 1995
| ''[[Wealthy Human Realm]]''
| 富貴人間
| 
| 
|-
| 1997
| ''[[Chinese Box]]''
| 
| Chang
| 
|-
| 2000
| ''[[Funny Business (film)|Funny Business]]''
| 創業玩家
| 
| 
|-
| 2004
| ''[[Fantasia (2004 film)|Fantasia]]''
| 鬼馬狂想曲
| Grand Wizard
| 
|-
| 2004
| ''[[Three of a Kind (2004 film)|Three of a Kind]]''
| 煎釀叄寶
| Dragon Lone
| 
|-
| 2006
| ''[[Rob-B-Hood]]''
| 寶貝計劃
| The landlord
| 
|-
| 2012
| ''[[The Bounty (2012 film)|The Bounty]]''
| 懸紅
| Cho Sai Fung's bounty hunting mentor
| 
|-
| 2014
| ''[[Delete My Love]]''
| Delete愛人
| Rich Ma
| 
|-
| 2016
| ''[[Godspeed (film)|Godspeed]]''
| 一路順風
| Old Hui
| 
|-
| 2018
| ''Agent Mr Chan''
| 棟篤特工
| 
| 
|-
| 2021
| ''[[All U Need Is Love]]''
| 總是有愛在隔離
| 
| 
|-
| 2023
| ''[[Where the Wind Blows]]''
| 風再起時
| George Lee
| 
|-
|rowspan="2"| 2024
| ''[[The Last Dance (2024 film)|The Last Dance]]''
| 破·地獄
| Master Man
| 
|-
| ''[[The Prosecutor]]''
| 誤判
| Grand Judge
| 
|-
| TBD
| ''[[Raging Havoc]]''
| 怒火漫延
| 
|-
|}

===Films directed, written or produced===
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|+
! Year
! Film
! Director
! Writer
! Producer
! Notes
|-
| 1974
| ''[[Games Gamblers Play]]''
| {{Yes}}
| {{Yes}}
| 
| 
|-
| 1975
| ''[[The Last Message]]''
| {{Yes}}
| {{Yes}}
| 
| 
|-
| 1976
| ''[[The Private Eyes (1976 film)|The Private Eyes]]''
| {{Yes}}
| {{Yes}}
| 
| 
|-
| 1978
| ''[[The Contract (1978 film)|The Contract]]''
| {{Yes}}
| {{Yes}}
| 
| 
|-
| 1981
| ''[[Security Unlimited]]''
| {{Yes}}
| 
| 
| 
|-
| 1984
| ''[[Teppanyaki (film)|Teppanyaki]]''
| {{Yes}}
| {{Yes}}
| 
| Shot in the Philippines
|-
| 1986
| ''[[Happy Din Don]]''
| {{Yes}}
| {{Yes}}
| 
| 
|-
| 1986
| ''[[Chocolate Inspector]]''
| 
| {{Yes}}
| {{Yes}}
| 
|-
| 1988
| ''[[Chicken and Duck Talk]]''
| 
| {{Yes}}
| 
| 
|-
| 1989
| ''[[Mr. Coconut]]''
| 
| {{Yes}}
| 
| 
|-
| 1990
| ''[[Front Page (film)|Front Page]]''
| 
| {{Yes}}
| {{Yes}}
| 
|-
| 1992
| ''[[The Magic Touch (film)|The Magic Touch]]''
| {{Yes}}
| {{Yes}}
| {{Yes}}
| 
|-
| 1993
| ''[[Allways On My Mind (film)|Allways On My Mind]]''
| 
| 
| {{Yes}}
| 
|}

==Awards and nominations==
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:left;"
! Year 
! Award
! Category 
! Nominated work 
! Result 
|-
| [[1st Hong Kong Film Awards|1982]]
| [[Hong Kong Film Awards]] 
| [[Hong Kong Film Award for Best Actor|Best Actor]]
| ''[[Security Unlimited]]''
| {{Won}}<ref>{{cite web |title=List of Awardees of The 1st Hong Kong Film Awards |url=https://www.hkfaa.com/winnerlist01.html |publisher=Hong Kong Film Awards |access-date=18 April 2023 |archive-date=14 January 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250114103829/https://www.hkfaa.com/winnerlist01.html |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
| [[40th Hong Kong Film Awards|2022]]
| [[Hong Kong Film Awards]] 
| [[Hong Kong Film Award for Lifetime Achievement|Lifetime Achievement Award]]
| -
| {{Won}}<ref>{{cite web |title=The 40th Hong Kong Film Awards |url=https://www.hkfaa.com/winnerlist40.html |publisher=Hong Kong Film Awards |access-date=18 April 2023 |archive-date=3 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230403012609/https://www.hkfaa.com/winnerlist40.html |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
| [[41st Hong Kong Film Awards|2023]]
| [[Hong Kong Film Awards]] 
| [[Hong Kong Film Award for Best Supporting Actor|Best Supporting Actor]]
| ''[[Where the Wind Blows]]''
| {{Won}}<ref>{{cite web |title=The 41st Hong Kong Film Awards |url=https://www.hkfaa.com/winnerlist41.html |publisher=Hong Kong Film Awards |access-date=18 April 2023 |archive-date=17 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230417152454/https://www.hkfaa.com/winnerlist41.html |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
|}

==See also==
{{Portal|Hong Kong|Biography|Film|Comedy}}
* [[Cinema of Hong Kong]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Ccat}}
* {{Official website}}
* {{IMDb name}}
* [https://www.fareastfilms.com/?feature_post_type=interview-with-michael-hui Interview] at FarEastFilms.com

{{Best Actor HKFA}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hui, Michael}}
[[Category:1942 births]]

[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:20th-century Hong Kong male actors]]
[[Category:21st-century Hong Kong male actors]]
[[Category:Alumni of the Chinese University of Hong Kong]]
[[Category:Chinese emigrants to British Hong Kong]]
[[Category:Chinese University of Hong Kong people]]
[[Category:Hong Kong film directors]]
[[Category:Hong Kong film producers]]
[[Category:Hong Kong male comedians]]
[[Category:Hong Kong male film actors]]
[[Category:Hong Kong screenwriters]]
[[Category:Male actors from Guangzhou]]
[[Category:Members of the Selection Committee of Hong Kong]]
[[Category:New Hong Kong Alliance politicians]]
[[Category:People from Panyu District]]
[[Category:Screenwriters from Guangdong]]
[[Category:Writers from Guangzhou]]