The Most Famous
FILM DIRECTORS from Hong Kong
This page contains a list of the greatest Chinese Film Directors. The pantheon dataset contains 1,581 Film Directors, 9 of which were born in Hong Kong. This makes Hong Kong the birth place of the 32nd most number of Film Directors behind Israel and Belgium.
Top 9
The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the most legendary Chinese Film Directors of all time. This list of famous Chinese Film Directors is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity.
1. James Wong (1959 - )
With an HPI of 52.19, James Wong is the most famous Chinese Film Director. His biography has been translated into 18 different languages on wikipedia.
James Wong (born April 20, 1959) is an American television producer, writer, and retired film director. Wong is best known for co-writing episodes of the Fox science fiction supernatural drama series The X-Files with his writing partner, Glen Morgan. Morgan and Wong are founders of the Hard Eight Pictures and co-created Space: Above and Beyond. Wong also directed the films Final Destination (2000) and Final Destination 3 (2006) in the Final Destination film series, The One (2001), starring Jet Li, and Dragonball Evolution (2009).
2. Johnnie To (1955 - )
With an HPI of 49.78, Johnnie To is the 2nd most famous Chinese Film Director. His biography has been translated into 24 different languages.
Johnnie To Kei-fung (born 22 April 1955) is a Hong Kong filmmaker. Popular in his native Hong Kong, To has also found acclaim overseas. Intensely prolific, To has made films in a variety of genres, though in the West he is best known for his action and crime movies, which have earned him critical respect and a cult following, which includes American filmmaker Quentin Tarantino. To's biggest international successes include Breaking News, Election, Election 2 (a.k.a. Triad Election), Exiled, Mad Detective and Drug War; these films have appeared in a number of international film festivals, been distributed theatrically in France and the United States, and been widely sold to foreign countries. His films, often made in collaboration with the same group of actors, screenwriters and cinematographers, frequently explore themes of friendship, fate and the changing face of Hong Kong society. Sometimes described as "multifaceted and chameleonic" due to his ability to switch tones and genres between movies, To is nonetheless seen as having a consistent style, which involves mixing subdued realism and social observation with highly stylised visual and acting elements. To has cited King Hu as the director who has influenced his work the most. To heads the Hong Kong-based production company Milkyway Image with his frequent co-director Wai Ka-Fai.
3. Corey Yuen (1951 - )
With an HPI of 49.43, Corey Yuen is the 3rd most famous Chinese Film Director. His biography has been translated into 20 different languages.
Corey Yuen (Chinese: 元奎; pinyin: Yuán Kuí; Cantonese Yale: Yuen4 Kwai1; born Ying Gang-ming (殷元奎); 16 December 1951) is a Hong Kong film director, film producer, action choreographer, and former actor. Yuen was a member of the Peking Opera Schools and one of the Seven Little Fortunes. As an actor, Yuen is perhaps best known as Rubber Legs' student in 1979 kung fu comedy film Dance of the Drunk Mantis. As an action director, Yuen gained fame in American cinema beginning with 1998 film Lethal Weapon 4, followed by the 2000 blockbuster X-Men and six of Jet Li's American works: Romeo Must Die, Kiss of the Dragon, The One, Cradle 2 the Grave, War, and The Expendables.
4. Wayne Wang (1949 - )
With an HPI of 48.15, Wayne Wang is the 4th most famous Chinese Film Director. His biography has been translated into 17 different languages.
Wayne Wang (traditional Chinese: 王穎; simplified Chinese: 王颖; pinyin: Wáng Yǐng; Jyutping: Wong4 Wing6; born January 12, 1949) is a Hong Kong-American film director, producer, and screenwriter. Considered a pioneer of Asian-American cinema, he was one of the first Chinese-American filmmakers to gain a major foothold in Hollywood. His films, often independently produced, deal with issues of contemporary Asian-American culture and domestic life. His best known works include Dim Sum: A Little Bit of Heart (1985), Eat a Bowl of Tea (1989), the Amy Tan literary adaptation The Joy Luck Club (1993), Chinese Box (1997), and A Thousand Years of Good Prayers (2007). Other films include the Harvey Keitel and William Hurt–starring comedy Smoke (1995), the family film Because of Winn-Dixie (2005), the romantic comedies Maid in Manhattan (2002) and Last Holiday (2006), and the controversial erotic drama The Center of the World (2001). He is the recipient of numerous accolades, including a Bodil Award, a Silver Bear, two Golden Shells, with BAFTA Award, Sundance Grand Jury, Golden Lion, and César Award nominations.
5. Benny Chan (1961 - 2020)
With an HPI of 48.07, Benny Chan is the 5th most famous Chinese Film Director. His biography has been translated into 17 different languages.
Benny Chan Muk-sing (simplified Chinese: 陈木胜; traditional Chinese: 陳木勝; pinyin: Chén Mùshèng; 24 October 1961 – 23 August 2020) was a Hong Kong filmmaker. Chan was nominated for Best Director six times at the Hong Kong Film Awards, include Big Bullet, Heroic Duo, New Police Story, Connected, The White Storm and Raging Fire. His last film, Raging Fire, posthumously earned him Best Director award at the 40th Hong Kong Film Awards and the film went on to win Best Film award at the ceremony.
6. Ringo Lam (1955 - 2018)
With an HPI of 47.77, Ringo Lam is the 6th most famous Chinese Film Director. His biography has been translated into 18 different languages.
Ringo Lam Ling-Tung (simplified Chinese: 林岭东; traditional Chinese: 林嶺東; pinyin: Lín Lǐngdōng, 8 December 1955 – 29 December 2018) was a Hong Kong film director, producer, and screenwriter. He was known for his action and crime films produced during the Hong Kong New Wave, many of them comprising entries in the heroic bloodshed subgenre. He was nominated for six Hong Kong Film Awards, winning Best Director for his 1987 film City on Fire, which he followed with other similar films that shared a dark view of Hong Kong society, collectively known as the "On Fire" cycle. Lam's other notable films include Aces Go Places IV (1986), Prison on Fire (1987), Undeclared War (1990), Twin Dragons (1992, co-directed with Tsui Hark), and Full Contact (1992). Many of his films starred Chow Yun-fat. He also directed several films in the United States, beginning with 1996's Maximum Risk, with Jean-Claude Van Damme,with and Jean-Claude Van Damme. He would continue working on film productions in both Hong Kong and two more American productions with Damme until 2003. In 2016, he won the Hong Kong Film Critics Society Award for Best Director for his Wild City, his first film in 8 years. His final film, a segment in the omnibus Septet: The Story of Hong Kong, was released posthumously in 2020, two years after his death.
7. Ronny Yu (1950 - )
With an HPI of 46.26, Ronny Yu is the 7th most famous Chinese Film Director. His biography has been translated into 19 different languages.
Ronny Yu Yan-Tai (Chinese: 于仁泰) is a Hong Kong film director, producer, and movie writer. He has worked on both Hong Kong and American films. He is mostly known for his work in the American horror genre, such as Bride of Chucky (1998) and Freddy vs. Jason (2003).
8. Stanley Tong (1960 - )
With an HPI of 43.39, Stanley Tong is the 8th most famous Chinese Film Director. His biography has been translated into 17 different languages.
Stanley Tong (Chinese: 唐季禮; pinyin: Táng Jìlǐ; born 7 April 1960) is a Hong Kong film director, producer, stunt choreographer, screenwriter, entrepreneur and philanthropist.
9. Peter Chan (1962 - )
With an HPI of 42.58, Peter Chan is the 9th most famous Chinese Film Director. His biography has been translated into 16 different languages.
Peter Ho-sun Chan (born 28 November 1962), also known as Peter Chan, is a Hong Kong filmmaker.
Pantheon has 9 people classified as film directors born between 1949 and 1962. Of these 9, 7 (77.78%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living film directors include James Wong, Johnnie To, and Corey Yuen. The most famous deceased film directors include Benny Chan and Ringo Lam. As of April 2022, 1 new film directors have been added to Pantheon including Benny Chan.
Living Film Directors
Go to all Rankings
James Wong
1959 - Present
HPI: 52.19
Johnnie To
1955 - Present
HPI: 49.78
Corey Yuen
1951 - Present
HPI: 49.43
Wayne Wang
1949 - Present
HPI: 48.15
Ronny Yu
1950 - Present
HPI: 46.26
Stanley Tong
1960 - Present
HPI: 43.39
Peter Chan
1962 - Present
HPI: 42.58
