Hong Kong actor Louis Koo will be holding a meet and greet session with fans in KL on Jan 23. Photos: Handout
Hong Kong actor Louis Koo is no stranger to Asian cinema, boasting a career spanning over three decades.
Since making his showbiz debut in 1993, the 55-year-old has headlined films like The White Storm (2013), Paradox (2017), Twilight Of The Warriors: Walled In (2024) and more.
Yet beyond the box office triumphs, Koo remains grounded, cherishing each milestone while steadily pursuing his ambitions.
That sincerity was evident following the strong reception of his latest sci-fi epic Back To The Past, which raked in a record-breaking HK$11.54mil (RM6mil) on its opening day in Hong Kong and over RM7.3mil in its first five days in Malaysia.
Speaking to Malaysian media in Hong Kong, Koo expressed his appreciation for the support he has consistently received from audiences here.
“Malaysians have always been very supportive, and I hope the box office performance continues to grow.
“And if Malaysia's box office is really good, I hope to be able to come to Malaysia to meet the fans and personally wish them an early Chinese New Year greeting,” he added.
Koo is keeping that promise: the actor and his co-stars – Raymond Lam, Jessica Hsuan and Kevin Chu – are coming to Malaysia for a meet and greet on Jan 23, at Level 2, Centre Court, Pavilion Kuala Lumpur, at 6.30pm.
Setting the wheels in motion
Back To The Past – a continuation of the beloved 2001 TVB series A Step Into The Past – is more than just another acting credit for Koo.
For years, he has dreamed of adapting the project into a movie, though his aspirations were stalled by imperfect scripts and limited resources.
“This film is meant to evoke nostalgia... To remind audiences of the warmth of families eating while watching television together.
“Times may have changed, with most people now streaming on their phones, but I hope this movie can bring a sense of that shared nostalgia back,” he said.
It wasn’t until he founded his production company One Cool Group in 2013 and secured the rights to the original series in 2015 that the film was finally greenlit.
“Even then, reuniting the original cast was hard as most of them were busy with other projects.
“There are also many new characters with their own side plots, so I had to balance between the old favourites and fresh faces,” said Koo, who doubles as the film’s producer.
(left) Jessica Hsuan and Raymond Lam (right) are among the original cast members reprising their roles in 'Back To The Past'.The final line-up brought back familiar names like Lam, Hsuan, Sonija Kwok, Joyce Tang and Michelle Saram.
Filming began in 2019 and took three months.
Set 19 years after the original drama, Back To The Past sees Koo reprising his role as former inspector Hong Siu-lung.
Refusing to compromise on scale or quality, he reportedly invested over HK$300mil (RM155mil) in elaborate sets recreating ancient China.
When funds ran low, he turned to film mogul Charles Heung, who invested HK$20mil (RM10.4mil) to keep the project afloat.
Heung later shared on social media: “(Louis) told me he would be sleeping under a flyover if he kept losing money and encouraged me to support Hong Kong films.”
Although the movie would later face a six-year delay due to the pandemic and post- production issues, Koo has no regrets looking back.
“Getting everyone together again was truly a joy. It brought back a lot of memories as I was promoting and reviewing the film’s clips,” he said.
Power of wonder
Formerly a model, Koo rose to fame as an actor after landing his first leading role in the 1993 drama The Condor Heroes 95, starring opposite Carman Lee.
He gained further recognition after earning the Best Actor laurel at the TVB Anniversary Award in 1999 and 2001 for The Investigation Files IV and A Step Into The Past, respectively.
From there, his career continued to rise.
Koo has often mentioned that he never imagined reaching the heights he enjoys today.
Koo doubles as the executive producer for 'Back To The Past'.He entered the industry driven purely by curiosity – a trait that still fuels both his career and his outlook on life.
Even when discussing his latest film, he finds himself captivated by the “what ifs” of technology.
“I’ve always imagined what technology would be like in the future... Maybe 20 years from now. A few years ago, if someone told us how artificial intelligence would be today, we wouldn’t have believed it,” he said.
Beyond acting, Koo has also discovered a passion for the work behind the camera – a role he now considers even more meaningful than performing in front of it.
“Creating and producing a film is very different from just acting in one and has even greater significance to me now,” he told Hong Kong’s Prestige magazine.
Vision beyond action
When it comes to creating films, Koo – who served as the lead star and executive producer of the military sci-fi blockbuster Warriors Of Future (2022) – strives to move beyond the typical Hong Kong action-flick formula.
He believes the Hong Kong film industry can gain global recognition only by producing stories that resonate with audiences everywhere, not just at home.
This philosophy underpins his commitment to making a film adaptation of A Step Into The Past, which he calls Hong Kong’s “first time-travelling series”.
While the movie still delivers its fair share of action, Koo told Malaysian media he made conscious efforts to emphasise the sci-fi elements.
Koo personally finds producing to be a more meaningful task than acting.“When we were shooting the movie, we focused more on the mode of time travel rather than weapons and combat,” he explained.
“Although there’s still action, the story also highlights modern technology.”
On the topic of technology and time travel, Koo was asked what he would do if he could go back 20 years.
To this, the actor said he would personally thank the late author Wong Yi, whose eponymous novel inspired A Step Into The Past and gave Koo the stepping stone to adapt it into a movie.
“It’s thanks to him that the drama and movie exist. I was lucky to have enjoyed a meal with him before we started shooting the film,” he added.
As for the possibility of a sequel, Koo candidly said it all depends on the film’s box office performance.
“There are plans for potential spin-offs, but it ultimately depends on the movie’s performance at the box office and audience support. If the response is strong, a sequel will definitely be considered.”
Back To The Past is showing at cinemas nationwide.
