Nicholas Tse

Nicholas Tse Ting-fung (born 29 August 1980) is a Hong Kong actor, martial artist, singer, songwriter, entrepreneur and chef.

Tse was born at St.Teresa’s Hospital in Ma Tau Wai, Kowloon on 29 August 1980 to famous Hong Kong actor Patrick Tse (謝賢) and actress Deborah Lee (狄波拉).

His younger sister is Jennifer Tse.

Tse moved to Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada at eight years old.

He attended St. George's School, Vancouver, but moved with his family to Hong Kong.

Nicholas later attended Hong Kong International School for one year before dropping out due to low grades in grade 10.

For a year he lived in Phoenix, Arizona, but was expelled for his poor academic performance.

He studied music in Japan before returning to Hong Kong.

He currently holds Hong Kong citizenship after giving up Canadian citizenship as part of the Chinese government crackdown on the entertainment industry.

He received a musical award during the 1999 Jade Solid Gold Top 10 Awards with his popular song "非走不可" (No Choice But To Leave), recorded on 27 September 1993.

In 1995, at age 14, Tse attended a series of concerts at the Hong Kong Coliseum from Faye Wong, who was entering the prime of her career at age 24.

He became, in his own words, obsessed with the pop star; the two would become romantic partners decades later.

Tse initially entered the entertainment industry in 1996 as a singer.

He learned martial arts from Philip Ng, Andy On, and Sammo Hung, stunts from Jackie Chan, and martial arts for the screen and television from Chung Chi Li.

In 1996, Tse was singing at a party for a family friend when he was discovered by Albert Yeung, the head of Emperor Entertainment Group.

In 1997, Tse signed a record deal with EEG under the Fitto label and released his first album, My Attitude.

The album was ranked 3rd on the top selling CD chart of IFPI.

In the same year of his debut, he won the most popular new artist award.

Tse made his film debut in 1998 with the crime film Young and Dangerous: The Prequel, for which he received the Hong Kong Film Award for Best New Performer for his performance.

Tse achieved mainstream success in 1998 with songs like "早知" (Knew It Would Be Like That) and "如果只得一星期" (If There's Only One Week) and became a prominent heartthrob in the entertainment industry.

Tse's most notable films have included Young and Dangerous: The Prequel (1998), Gen-X Cops (1999), Time and Tide (2000), and Invisible Target (2007).

He also lent his voice to the Chinese animation film Lotus Lantern (1999).

In 2000, Tse released the album with the main hit single "活著 VIVA", which was regarded as his most popular song ever, and furthered his career significantly.

After the release of this song, he became widely regarded as an A-list singer.

In 2001, he released the album "玉蝴蝶" (Jade Butterfly), which included two hit songs, "玉蝴蝶" and "潛龍勿用".

In 2002, Tse received the World's Best Chinese Artist award at the 2002 World Music Award for the success of his Jade Butterfly album.

Tse has also acted in romance films including Tiramisu (2002) and Jade Goddess of Mercy (2003).

In 2003, Tse founded Post Production Office Limited, a special effects company in Hong Kong which provides services for movies, video games, and advertisements.

The company grossed over one billion Hong Kong dollars, and has since been sold.

He also collaborated with Jackie Chan in New Police Story (2004).

Late in his career, he ventured into comedic roles in Enter the Phoenix (2004), A Chinese Tall Story (2005), and McDull, the Alumni (2006).

In the Hong Kong translated version of A Bug's Life (蟲蟲特工隊), Tse did the voice dubbing for the character Flik.

He also participated in a documentary produced by Television Broadcasts Limited called On the Road II (向世界出發II), made in Cambodia in 2007.

Tse's performance in Bodyguards and Assassins (2009), earned him an Asian Film Award at the 4th Asian Film Awards for Best Supporting Actor, and in 2011, Tse received a Hong Kong Film Award for Best Actor at the 30th Hong Kong Film Awards for The Stool Pigeon (2010), beating fellow actors Chow Yun-fat, Jacky Cheung, Tony Leung Ka-fai, and Nick Cheung.

Tse had a love for martial arts at a young age, but he formally learned martial arts for the screen from stunt leader Jackie Chan and Chung Chi Li for films such as, Gen-X-Cops and Invisible Target.

He worked with Donnie Yen for martial arts film, Dragon Tiger Gate.

He still practices martial arts for the screen and exercise.

He's also a Wing Chun practitioner, being trained by fellow co-star and friend Philip Ng alongside co-star and friend Andy On.

Tse has starred in two TVB Hong Kong local dramas, Aiming High (撻出愛火花) and The Monkey King: Quest for the Sutra (齊天大聖孫悟空).

In 2011, he won the Hong Kong Film Award for Best Actor for his performance in the film The Stool Pigeon, making him the first person ever to have won all of the following three Hong Kong Film awards: Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor and Best New Performer.