John Woo

John Woo is a film director, producer, and writer. He was born on 1st May 1946. His hometown was in Guangzhou in China. At the age of five, he moved to Hong Kong due to the Revolution in China. Woo’s family’s financial condition was not stable. Therefore, he lived in a slum area near Shek Kip Mei. His dad was a teacher. His father suffered from tuberculosis. Woo’s mom was a worker on construction sites. In 1953, they had no home to live in because of a big fire at the Kip Mei. They managed to relocate with the help of some donations from management teams. By that time, crime and violence had increased.

Woo, at the age of three underwent a serious operation on his spinal cord. After the surgery, he was not able to walk correctly for up to eight years. He had his right leg shorter than the left one. Woo always wanted to become a Minister. Later, he discovered that he had the passion for acting in movies. He had a problem in speaking and had a shy nature. However, he found that acting in films is the best way to express your feelings and thoughts.

Woo did pictures like 'American Westerns' and 'The Wizard of Oz'. Later, he did the last scene of 'Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid'. Coming to his career, in 1969, he got employed at the Cathay Studios. He worked there as a script director. In 1971, Woo was a co-director in the Shaw Studios. Then, in 1974, he had his first directional debut and feature cinema titled as 'The Young Dragons'. Jackie Chan has choreographed Kung Fu in it. It was an action film. It was taken up by the Harvest Studio. Then, they directed martial art based photoplays. Woo directed 'Money Crazy' in 1977. He starred Ricky Hui, a comedian in Hong Kong. Then, he came up with the story presenting two brothers in 'A Better Tomorrow'. It had been an achievement for the Hong Kong movie industry. He directed heroic dramas like 'Chow Yu-Fat'. Later, his hit blockbuster was 'The Killer'. In 1992, he made his last motion picture in Hong Kong titled as 'Hard Boiled'.

Woo’s career in America started with his contract with the Universal Studios. He co-directed 'Hard Target'. In 2003, he made a TV series called 'The Robinsons: Lost in Space'. Later, he made 'Mission Impossible II', 'Paycheck', and 'Wind talkers'. He produced 'Reign of Assassins', 'The Crossing', and 'The Crossing 2'. He received the Best Film Award for 'A Better Tomorrow', Best Director for 'The Killer', and best editing for 'Bullet in the Head' and 'Hard Boiled'.

In 1976, John got married to Annie Woo Ngau Chun-lung. Angeles Woo, Oh Sang-side, and WU Yi Fang are their three children. Since 1993, Woo has been staying in the United States.