A clash of ‘kings’ in Cold War 2

“These are not rules set by me – these are set by Mrs Chow (who is his manager too). Her first condition is how much money are you paying Chow Yun-fat, but for me I just want a good role.

“For Mrs Chow, it’s about the working hours, what time is lunch, what benefits are there, will there be a bonus to buy a bag after the movie?” said Yun-fat, who kept a straight face as he continued joking, “These are important [criteria] and are in the contract – Will you buy a plane for fat-gor too? I’m serious.”

But seriously, he agreed to the special-appearance role of Kan Ngo-wai (Oscar) in the sequel because he was excited by the prospect of working with Aaron and Tony (Leung Ka-fai), as both of them “acted so well” in the first movie, said Yun-fat.

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While Eddie had no chance to spar his acting skills against “fat-gor”, having little to no scenes with the latter, the same can’t be said for Aaron, who reprises his role as Sean Lau, the newly-instated Chief Police Commissioner.

Flanked by four and three-time Best Actor winners Tony and Yun-fat on his left and right, respectively, in the official movie poster, the ‘heavenly king’ shared that while he is “respectful” towards them, there is no stress on set because “work is work”.

The 51-year-old does, however, have a fair share of fanboy moments on set and said his heart would “skip a beat”, like that of a fan meeting his idol, whenever he sees Yun-fat.

Well, we can hardly blame him.

Cold War 2 opens in theatres July 8.

Read on to find out why Eddie wants to be like Tony Leung (Ka-fai) and why he enjoys taking on unconventional acting roles.

Toggle: You have collaborated with Tony Leung (Ka-fai) in a few films, how similar are the both of you?
Eddie: We’re both similar in terms of certain perspectives we have. And also because Tony (Ka-fai ge) is someone who has been there, done that, I’d look to him for tips in acting and in life too. I do hope to be like him someday – become an equally outstanding actor, someone who makes sure he has time for family (accompany my mum) and work and, of course, win acting awards while I’m at it too. (Laughs)

We noticed you’ve been taking on more intense roles of late, are you trying to change your image?
I’m fine with anything… [Most of the time] I just happen to encounter roles that are worth fighting for [and] I wanted to do it because I needed to show the audience a different side of me through my performance. If I choose to do similar roles like everyone else, people might not notice me. But because I decided to take on unconventional roles – be it big or small roles, whether I had to learn kung fu, which is something not much younger actors are willing to do, it has allowed me to gain a new skill and these skills will bring me far because I may require them for another role or movie in the future.

Isn’t it tiring to constantly push your limits?
Of course I am tired, but do what makes you happy. If you always choose a non-tiring job, everyone does that too and you’d easily fall into a comfort zone – and if you are in it for a long time, that’s it… Sometimes it’s not a bad idea to take a risk and make a mistake too. You may encounter an entirely different experience and may carve out something else for yourself.

Will you be working in the direction of taking on more villainous roles in future?
I took up the role in the first movie because although I don’t have many scenes in it, I wanted the chance to work with these ‘best actors’. I am happy to be in the sequel too and I do hope to have more opportunities to do such roles. I feel that it is like a rite of passage for a lot of great actors – the ones that I really look up too – who have all acted in such villainous roles. That’s how one becomes a good actor (laughs). I will work hard and hope to present an even more attractive and interesting villainous character in future.