Hailed in the Los Angeles Times as "The Coolest Actor in the World," the endearingly plebeian yet strikingly handsome Chow has been a fixture of Hong Kong film and TV since the 1970s. He is best known by American and British cultists as a hard-boiled action hero specializing in portrayals of honorable hitmen, gangsters, thieves and trigger-happy cops. In Asia, Chow is a superstar, with extensive credits in a variety of genres including romances, both period and contemporary; dramas; slapstick comedies and supernatural thrillers. He is that rare Hong Kong star who has won admiration of both the common folk and the cineastes by segueing smoothly from commercial to arty fare. Chow is most convincing playing good-humored "Joes" characterized by self-sacrificing loyalty and a lack of self-consciousness. Even when he plays criminals, Chow is rarely truly bad. If he plays the romantic lead, he rarely gets the girl. Hong Kong audiences love to see him suffer before overcoming incredible odds.