Known for his philanthropy as much as his movies, Louis Koo recently revealed that his charity work actually began after the Sichuan earthquake.
In a recent interview with Carol Cheng, the actor-producer said that he saw the devastation that occurred in the aftermath of the 2008 earthquake, which took the lives of 69,000 people and left at least 4.8 million people homeless.
“After the Sichuan earthquake, I visited the disaster area with an organisation. Looking down from the mountain, the ground was devastated. Some houses were still barely standing, while others had collapsed and were buried in the mud. I wondered how many people were trapped underneath,” he said.
“At that moment, I told the people there that when I came down from this mountain, I would do my best to help the residents here. That’s when I started my charity work.”
Louis’ charitable works have lasted for nearly two decades now. He has not only donated to build more than 139 schools in mountainous areas, but also quietly sponsored ailing colleagues and supported the Hong Kong film industry.
However, he rarely took the initiative to publicise his good deeds. His philanthropy in Chinese rural areas came to public knowledge only after blogs reported on his school building initiatives.”
