Ekin Cheng
Encyclopedia
Ekin Cheng is a Hong Kong
actor and Cantopop
singer. Early in his career he used the name Dior (because that was what it sounded like when his younger sister tried to call him 第二哥) as a first name. He has also been referred to as Noodle Cheng, (鄭伊麵) after a popular noodle product with a similar name. Currently Ekin is the name used.
's Martial Arts school, but did not like it and switched to their acting school. After that he began to get a number of TV roles. The latest TVB series he participated in was Always Ready
, working with Charmaine Sheh
, Bowie Lam and Linda Chung
.
(1992) and at the time he was still called by the name Dior Cheng. He changed his name to "Ekin" before his breakout role in the Young and Dangerous
series as Chan Ho-nam. The film was first meant to glorify the triad life, but after about the third film, the story focused more on the characters and explored the truth about the Hong Kong triads. It became so popular that it launched Cheng and co-star Jordan Chan to superstar status. And because of its incredible success, it is said to have made many youngsters at that time fond of the triad life, thus making teens throughout Asia
join the triads. It also started a trend for triad films around that time and is considered to be a classic. The film led to six sequels, all starring Cheng, and a lucrative working partnership with director Andrew Lau
. Together they went on to make The Storm Riders
, which was the highest-grossing Hong Kong movie at the time and the first film to utilize a truly large number of special effects. They also worked together on The Legend of Speed, a film about a street racer who would follow his father's footsteps of becoming a racing god, A Man Called Hero
a movie adaption of the famous comic, about a martial arts master in America The Duel
starring Cheng, Andy Lau, and a few other famous stars, and the comedy Women From Mars. In 2001, he acted in a movie titled Born to be King
. This is the last installment of a triad movie series Young & Dangerous.
Cheng has branched out in the roles he has taken, including more comedy like earlier in his career with My Wife is 18
with Charlene Choi and Six Strong Guys with singers Hacken Lee, Andy Hui and George Lam. But he still does action-oriented films like The Twins Effect
where he acts with rising pop superstars Twins and Tokyo Raiders
where he is cast with Tony Leung and Kelly Chen. My Wife is 18 tells the story of an arranged marriage between 30-year-old Cheng and 18-year-old Charlene Choi. The significant age difference between the two is the source of the comedy. Six strong guys tells the story of Cheng and his other five friends who tell funny stories of the modern Hong Kong man. The Twins Effect is an action film about the feuds between vampires and humans who share the same world. Toyko Raiders is about international thievery in Toyko. He also play as Ming in the legend of zu mountain the movie.
Recently, Cheng returned to the movie scene (having taken a break in 2005 to work on the Ultraman
TV series in Thailand
). He had a brief appearance in My Name is Fame
as himself. Soon after that he starred in Heavenly Mission, a triad/cop thriller starring alongside Stephen Fung
and Alex Fong
(this is not the swimmer Alex Fong.). He has completed a Pang Brothers film called The Forest of Death
, which was released in March 2007. His serial filmed in Mainland China based on the life of martial arts master Huo Yuanjia
with former Young & Dangerous co-star Jordan Chan
is currently in syndication. Current projects include a sequel to The Storm Riders
, also directed by Pang Brothers and The Legend of Kamui being filmed in Japan. Cheng's latest film with Shawn Yue
, Rule Number 1 directed by Kelvin Tong, won Best Actor Awards for both Cheng and Yue.
Cheng's golden age was during the Young and Dangerous era. At the turn of the century his popularity declined and he has been criticized as being merely an accidental superstar. He has also been criticized by some as being a wood-like actor with little expression or feeling in his work. Despite these criticisms, Cheng has continued to make movies throughout his career and currently is once again enjoying considerable success.
. But in the 2000s, he signed with EEG
, a juggernaut company owned by Albert Yeung
. Under this company he was 'frozen' and not allowed to put out any records. But as is a custom with EEG, he made several movies with other EEG stars. As of 2004, his contract with EEG ended and he returned to BMG briefly where he released a new record before signing with BMA. As of 2009, Cheng has once again returned as an artist of Sony BMG. Through the course of his career, he has made several hits. Though many criticise Cheng for not having a voice capable of singing harder or higher-noted songs. And though his music career has been going smoothly, his most-acclaimed music came during the Young and Dangerous age. The theme song for Young and Dangerous 1 "Age of Friendship" is considered his best. Though he and Jordan Chan both sing a separate version, it was Cheng who sang it first.
In 2007, Cheng made a guest appearance at a Leo Ku
concert and received popular applause from the audience. He also represented Hong Kong in the 2009 Asia Song Festival
, performing two songs. Since his last concert held 11 years ago, E-kin plans to hold his coming back concert during 18–19 December 2009 in Hong Kong.
2006 saw the publication of Cheng's first book, 'Looking Into Ekin's Eyes'. This book was very successful and is now in its third edition. In 2007 a Japanese version of the book was published.
Throughout his career Cheng has been featured in many magazines, and photo books, including an autobiography in Yes Idol Magazine (1997).
Hong Kong people
Hong Kong people refer to people who originate from Hong Kong. The term has no legal definition in Hong Kong. Rather, terms such as Hong Kong permanent resident and Hong Kong resident are used...
actor and Cantopop
Cantopop
Cantopop is a colloquialism for "Cantonese popular music". It is sometimes referred to as HK-pop, short for "Hong Kong popular music". It is categorized as a subgenre of Chinese popular music within C-pop...
singer. Early in his career he used the name Dior (because that was what it sounded like when his younger sister tried to call him 第二哥) as a first name. He has also been referred to as Noodle Cheng, (鄭伊麵) after a popular noodle product with a similar name. Currently Ekin is the name used.
Television
Cheng began acting in commercials when he was in high school, the most well-known being for Hi-C Lemon Tea. After high school, he enrolled in TVBTelevision Broadcasts Limited
Television Broadcasts Limited, commonly known as TVB, is the second over-the-air commercial television station in Hong Kong. It commenced broadcasting on 19 November 1967...
's Martial Arts school, but did not like it and switched to their acting school. After that he began to get a number of TV roles. The latest TVB series he participated in was Always Ready
Always Ready
Always Ready is a TVB modern drama series broadcast in November 2005.The series is centered around the Government Flying Service , which is responsible for search and rescue , air ambulance, firefighting and assisting in police operations...
, working with Charmaine Sheh
Charmaine Sheh
Charmaine Sheh Sze-man is a Hong Kong TVB actress.Sheh is best known for her roles in TVB dramas, including Return of the Cuckoo, Country Spirit, Perish in the Name of Love, Angels of Mission, War and Beauty, The Dance of Passion,The Drive of Life, Maidens' Vow, Forensic Heroes II,Beyond the Realm...
, Bowie Lam and Linda Chung
Linda Chung
Linda Chung Ka-yan is a Canadian TVB actress and singer based in Hong Kong. She entered the industry in 2004 when she won the 2004 Miss Chinese International Pageant. She is now an actress under TVB and a singer under the Star Entertainment label...
.
Film
His first film was Girls Without Tomorrow 1992Girls Without Tomorrow 1992
Girls Without Tomorrow 1992 is a 1992 Hong Kong film directed by David Lam Tak Luk and Wong Chi. It is a sequel to the 1988 film Girls Without Tomorrow.-Cast and roles:* Pauline Chan - Eva...
(1992) and at the time he was still called by the name Dior Cheng. He changed his name to "Ekin" before his breakout role in the Young and Dangerous
Young and Dangerous
The Young and Dangerous film series is a collection of Hong Kong films about a group of triad young members, detailing their adventures, dangers and growth in a Hong Kong triad society...
series as Chan Ho-nam. The film was first meant to glorify the triad life, but after about the third film, the story focused more on the characters and explored the truth about the Hong Kong triads. It became so popular that it launched Cheng and co-star Jordan Chan to superstar status. And because of its incredible success, it is said to have made many youngsters at that time fond of the triad life, thus making teens throughout Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
join the triads. It also started a trend for triad films around that time and is considered to be a classic. The film led to six sequels, all starring Cheng, and a lucrative working partnership with director Andrew Lau
Andrew Lau
Andrew Lau Wai-Keung is a Hong Kong cinematographer and filmmaker. Lau began his career in the 1980s and 1990s, serving as a cinematographer to filmmakers such as Ringo Lam, Wong Jing and Wong Kar-wai. In the 1990s, Lau decided to have more creative freedom as a cinematographer by becoming a film...
. Together they went on to make The Storm Riders
The Storm Riders
The Storm Riders is a 1998 Hong Kong film based on the manhua series Fung Wan by artist Ma Wing-shing. Directed by Andrew Lau, it starred Ekin Cheng as Wind and Aaron Kwok as Cloud. The plot involves two children, Whispering Wind and Striding Cloud, who become powerful warriors under the evil Lord...
, which was the highest-grossing Hong Kong movie at the time and the first film to utilize a truly large number of special effects. They also worked together on The Legend of Speed, a film about a street racer who would follow his father's footsteps of becoming a racing god, A Man Called Hero
A Man Called Hero
A Man Called Hero is a 1999 Hong Kong film based on the manhua series Chinese Hero: Tales of the Blood Sword by artist Ma Wing-shing. Directed by Andrew Lau, the film starred Ekin Cheng, Shu Qi, Kristy Yang, Nicholas Tse and Yuen Biao. The film's theme song Tin Sat Ku Hsing was performed by Ekin...
a movie adaption of the famous comic, about a martial arts master in America The Duel
The Duel
The Duel can refer to:In literature:* "The Duel" , short story by Giacomo Casanova* "The Duel" , poem by Eugene Field* "The Duel" , short story by Anton Chekhov...
starring Cheng, Andy Lau, and a few other famous stars, and the comedy Women From Mars. In 2001, he acted in a movie titled Born to be King
Born to be King
"Born to Be King" is the second episode of The Black Adder, the first series of the BBC sitcom Blackadder.- Plot :In autumn 1486, King Richard IV departs on a Crusade...
. This is the last installment of a triad movie series Young & Dangerous.
Cheng has branched out in the roles he has taken, including more comedy like earlier in his career with My Wife is 18
My Wife Is 18
My Wife is 18 is a 2002 Hong Kong film. It won "best comedy film 2002" in Hong Kong.-Plot:...
with Charlene Choi and Six Strong Guys with singers Hacken Lee, Andy Hui and George Lam. But he still does action-oriented films like The Twins Effect
The Twins Effect
The Twins Effect, also known as Vampire Effect in the United States, is a 2003 Hong Kong film directed by Dante Lam and Donnie Yen. The film was derived from Cantopop group Twins, starring both members Charlene Choi and Gillian Chung in the leading roles. Co-stars include Edison Chen and Ekin Cheng...
where he acts with rising pop superstars Twins and Tokyo Raiders
Tokyo Raiders
Tokyo Raiders is a 2000 Hong Kong action film set in Hong Kong and Tokyo, directed by Jingle Ma and starring Tony Leung Chiu Wai, Ekin Cheng and Kelly Chen. The success of the film led to the making of its sequel, Seoul Raiders, in 2005...
where he is cast with Tony Leung and Kelly Chen. My Wife is 18 tells the story of an arranged marriage between 30-year-old Cheng and 18-year-old Charlene Choi. The significant age difference between the two is the source of the comedy. Six strong guys tells the story of Cheng and his other five friends who tell funny stories of the modern Hong Kong man. The Twins Effect is an action film about the feuds between vampires and humans who share the same world. Toyko Raiders is about international thievery in Toyko. He also play as Ming in the legend of zu mountain the movie.
Recently, Cheng returned to the movie scene (having taken a break in 2005 to work on the Ultraman
Ultraman
is Japanese television series that first aired in 1966. Ultraman, the first and best-known of the "Ultra-Crusaders," made his debut in the tokusatsu SF/kaiju/superhero TV series, , a follow-up to the television series Ultra Q...
TV series in Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
). He had a brief appearance in My Name is Fame
My Name is Fame
My Name Is Fame is a 2006 Hong Kong comedy-drama film starring Lau Ching-Wan as a has-been actor and newcomer Huo Siyan as an aspiring actress and his apprentice....
as himself. Soon after that he starred in Heavenly Mission, a triad/cop thriller starring alongside Stephen Fung
Stephen Fung
Stephen Fung Tak-Lun is a Hong Kong based actor, singer, model, writer and film director.-Biography:Fung's mother, Julie Sek Yin, was a famous Shaw Brothers actress...
and Alex Fong
Alex Fong Chung-Sun
Alex Fong Chung-Sun is an actor in the Hong Kong TV and film industry. He was born on March 17, 1963 in Macau.-Films:*2011 Overheard 2*2011 The Founding of a Party*2011 The Lost Bladesman*2010 Love Is The Last Word...
(this is not the swimmer Alex Fong.). He has completed a Pang Brothers film called The Forest of Death
Forest of Death (film)
Forest of Death is a 2007 Hong Kong horror film directed and co-written by Danny Pang.-Plot:Police detective Ha Chun-Chi is investigating a rape and murder that took place in a mysterious forest that has also been the scene of many suicides...
, which was released in March 2007. His serial filmed in Mainland China based on the life of martial arts master Huo Yuanjia
Huo Yuanjia
Huo Yuanjia was a Chinese martial artist and co-founder of Chin Woo Athletic Association, a martial arts school in Shanghai...
with former Young & Dangerous co-star Jordan Chan
Jordan Chan
Jordan Chan Siu-Chun is a Chinese actor and musician from Hong Kong.Chan got his start by enrolling in the TVB Dancers' Training Class in 1985. Soon after graduation, he joined a few of the studio's troupes that would accompany popular singers during their live performances...
is currently in syndication. Current projects include a sequel to The Storm Riders
The Storm Riders
The Storm Riders is a 1998 Hong Kong film based on the manhua series Fung Wan by artist Ma Wing-shing. Directed by Andrew Lau, it starred Ekin Cheng as Wind and Aaron Kwok as Cloud. The plot involves two children, Whispering Wind and Striding Cloud, who become powerful warriors under the evil Lord...
, also directed by Pang Brothers and The Legend of Kamui being filmed in Japan. Cheng's latest film with Shawn Yue
Shawn Yue
Shawn Yue is a Hong Kong actor and singer. A former model, he has starred in many films such as Jiang Hu and Infernal Affairs II and has established himself as a recognized face in Hong Kong cinema.- Background :...
, Rule Number 1 directed by Kelvin Tong, won Best Actor Awards for both Cheng and Yue.
Cheng's golden age was during the Young and Dangerous era. At the turn of the century his popularity declined and he has been criticized as being merely an accidental superstar. He has also been criticized by some as being a wood-like actor with little expression or feeling in his work. Despite these criticisms, Cheng has continued to make movies throughout his career and currently is once again enjoying considerable success.
Music
Cheng had a successful music career with BMGBMG
Bertelsmann Music Group, , was a division of Bertelsmann before its completion of sale of the majority of its assets to Japan's Sony Corporation of America on October 1, 2008. It was established in 1987 to combine the music label activities of Bertelsmann...
. But in the 2000s, he signed with EEG
Emperor Entertainment Group
Emperor Entertainment Group is one of the largest entertainment groups in Hong Kong founded by Albert Yeung Sau-Shing in and established in Wan Chai in 1986, along with Music Icon Entertainment Limited and Emperor Motion Picture Group, EEG operates under the major conglomerate Emperor Multimedia...
, a juggernaut company owned by Albert Yeung
Albert Yeung
Albert Yeung , born in 1944 with ancestry in Chaozhou, Guangdong, China, is a well known entrepreneur in Hong Kong. He is now the Chairman of Emperor Group.-Early years:...
. Under this company he was 'frozen' and not allowed to put out any records. But as is a custom with EEG, he made several movies with other EEG stars. As of 2004, his contract with EEG ended and he returned to BMG briefly where he released a new record before signing with BMA. As of 2009, Cheng has once again returned as an artist of Sony BMG. Through the course of his career, he has made several hits. Though many criticise Cheng for not having a voice capable of singing harder or higher-noted songs. And though his music career has been going smoothly, his most-acclaimed music came during the Young and Dangerous age. The theme song for Young and Dangerous 1 "Age of Friendship" is considered his best. Though he and Jordan Chan both sing a separate version, it was Cheng who sang it first.
In 2007, Cheng made a guest appearance at a Leo Ku
Leo Ku
Leo Ku Kui Kei is a famous China and Hong Kong artist, Cantonese and Mandarin pop singer, actor, host, cartoonist, MV Director and Producer, and designer; he is one of the highest visibility and Greater China Pop Male Artist, a major figure in popular music culture. Leo had earned the "Ten...
concert and received popular applause from the audience. He also represented Hong Kong in the 2009 Asia Song Festival
Asia song festival
Asia Song Festival, aka A-Song-Fe or ASF, is an annual Asian pop music festival held in South Korea, since 2004. It is hosted by Korea Foundation for International Culture Exchange and features artists from Asian countries...
, performing two songs. Since his last concert held 11 years ago, E-kin plans to hold his coming back concert during 18–19 December 2009 in Hong Kong.
Radio
In the 1990s, Cheng also starred in a number of radio dramas.Others
In 2002 Cheng was asked to be the official Ocean Environment Ambassador. The Chief Secretary of HKSAR, Anthony Tsang presented the appointment letter. At the same press conference WWF also asked Cheng to be their Ambassador with a special interest in the marine environment. In this capacity he traveled to WWF's Whale Shark conservation site in 2007. TVB's Jade Channel aired the documentary.2006 saw the publication of Cheng's first book, 'Looking Into Ekin's Eyes'. This book was very successful and is now in its third edition. In 2007 a Japanese version of the book was published.
Endorsements
Cheng has been asked by numerous companies to endorse their products. The most notable are Canon IXUS, Seiko, Shiseido JS and HTC. In 2008, Kingsoft featured Cheng in their popular online game The First Myth 2 (封神榜II) as "Er Lang Shen" (二郎神) a character in the game.Throughout his career Cheng has been featured in many magazines, and photo books, including an autobiography in Yes Idol Magazine (1997).