Inside Michelle Yeoh’s long-term love for Hong Kong: Oscars’ best actress for Everything Everywhere All at Once worked with Jackie Chan and married a local millionaire, before Marvel and Bond gigs

Mar 17 , 2023

Michelle Yeoh got her first big break in Hollywood after starring in Hong Kong action films in the 1980s and 1990s. Photos: AP; Golden Harvest

Yeoh is basking in the afterglow of an Oscar win, but before joining Tinseltown, her early start began in Hong Kong action films like Yes, Madam and Police Story 3: Supercop with Jackie Chan

She quickly caught the eyes of Hollywood, joining Pierce Brosnan in Tomorrow Never Dies, then continued to thrive with Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, Memoirs of a Geisha and Crazy Rich Asians

Michelle Yeoh made history when she became the first Asian woman to win an Oscar for best actress for her role in 2022’s sci-fi action film Everything Everywhere All At Once. A defining moment in Hollywood, Yeoh’s success was celebrated globally – but especially in Malaysia and Hong Kong, after the actress mentioned both countries during her speech.

Michelle Yeoh arrives at the Vanity Fair Oscar party after the 95th Academy Awards in Beverly Hills, California, US, on March 13. Photo: Reuters

Hong Kong government minister Kevin Yeung responded to her win by congratulating her and saying, “Michelle Yeoh first made a name in the Hong Kong film sector, then moved on to the international stage with her exceptionally outstanding acting skills and hard work,” according to The Hollywood Reporter.

A couple try to match their hands shape with superstar Michelle Yeoh’s handprints, displayed on the Avenue of Stars at the harbourfront in Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong. Photo: Samantha Sin

Yeoh’s win marks a milestone for Asian stars in Hollywood and helps put Hong Kong films in the limelight more than ever before. After all, it’s where the talented kung fu mistress cut her teeth.

Here’s how her Hong Kong films helped her on her path to the momentous Oscar win:

Everything rises in the East

Malaysian-born actress Michelle Yeoh poses for photographers during the world premiere of her film The Touch in Hong Kong, in 2002. Photo: AP

Michelle Yeoh’s big journey to the Oscars started with her first step in Hong Kong when she was called by businessman Dickson Poon, the co-founder of D&B Films, to shoot a watch advert with Jackie Chan, per Hong Kong media.

Yeoh, who had won the Miss Malaysia beauty contest, was just a “pretty face” at that time with few acting credentials to her name, but the young rising star wanted to be more than just a beauty on screen, per an interview with The Independent.

She would later marry Dickson Poon, a reported millionaire and entrepreneur behind businesses like Harvey Nichols and Charles Jourdan, in 1988, but divorced after three years. Their marriage ultimately ended due to Yeoh’s inability to conceive, and the two remain on good terms, according to a recent interview with Bustle.

Cynthia Rothrock and Michelle Yeoh in a still from Yes, Madam! in 1985. Photo: Eureka Entertainment