The entertainment world in Hong Kong and across Asia is marking the end of an era with the death of the veteran performer Benz Hui. Known affectionately as the “King of Supporting Actors,” Hui died in the early hours of Tuesday at a hospital in Hong Kong, aged seventy-six. Local media reports indicate his passing was due to complications caused by cancer.
A Familiar Face for Decades
Hui, whose birth name was Hui Shiu-hung, may not have been a name instantly familiar to every household, yet his face was one of the most recognizable in Asian entertainment. His I.M.D.B. page lists more than two hundred acting credits, a sprawling body of work that spanned over five decades, covering the heyday of Hong Kong television and film from the nineteen-seventies to the nineties.
He specialized in a versatile array of roles. He was often cast as a hardened cop or a gangster, but was equally memorable as the lovable sidekick or the grumpy uncle figure. His prominence in these vital, supporting roles earned him his famous moniker.
Notable roles included “Chung Sir,” a police superintendent in the 2002 film “Love Undercover.” Later in his career, a character he played as a triad boss in a 2014 movie was so memorable that it earned him the nickname Foon-hei Gor, or Brother Foon-hei, which was then adopted by the public. His English nickname, “Benz Hui,” also came about after he started driving a Mercedes Benz to work.
An Illustrious Family Background
Despite his enduring celebrity, many of his viewers would have been unaware of his family’s distinguished pedigree. According to Chinese reports, Hui was descended from a wealthy salt merchant family in China. One of his ancestors served as an important minister in the court of the famed Empress Dowager Cixi. Another family member was the partner of Lu Xun, often referred to as the godfather of modern Chinese literature.
Hui was once asked about these extraordinary family connections. He offered a characteristically modest reply: “Every tree has dead branches, and every large tribe has beggars. I am both a dead branch and a beggar, as I am really not as great as them.”
This humility contrasts sharply with the outpouring of grief from his peers. Actress Shu Qi wrote on Weibo, “May you have a peaceful journey.” The singer and actress Miriam Yeung Chin-wah posted on Instagram, “I’m thankful that I was lucky to meet you at the starting point of my career.” For many fans online, his passing felt like the end of an era, with one user on RedNote writing, “This is a sad day for everyone who grew up with TVB.”
Hui is survived by his wife, Angeli Lung, and his daughter, Charmaine Hui, and a son-in-law, Shane Sim. He had been hospitalized after falling critically ill the previous day, with celebrities including actors Bosco Wong and Michael Miu seen visiting him at the hospital. Actress Charmaine Sheh, who considered Hui a father figure, reportedly broke down in tears when asked about his condition and rushed to the hospital, cancelling a planned trip to Beijing.
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