Despite his status as the current box office king, Dayo Wong has never forgotten the fact that he used to be a “box office poison”.
The actor, who appeared at an audience appreciation event in Guangzhou to celebrate the success of his Chinese New Year film, “Night King,” recounted the bitter memories of having one box office bomb after another for years of his acting career.
“Everybody knows I used to be a box office poison… 20 years is not a short time. If you struggle for 8, 9, or 10 years without success, do you still hope for a miracle in the 11th year? What about the 12th? But there really is a miracle,” he said.
Dayo also used his experience to encourage the audience, saying, “Sometimes you don’t need to look too far ahead in life. Just take it one step at a time and slowly a blue sky will appear.”
It is noted that for a long time, audiences preferred watching him in television dramas and stand-up comedy shows, but were unwilling to buy tickets to his movies. His early film, “Pink Bomb”, only grossed about HKD 50,000 while his self-written, directed, and starring film, “Fighting to Survive”, only earned HKD 170,000. Later, he even sold his house to make “The Grand Grandmaster”, which, although achieved some box office success, did not receive good reviews.
However, his luck began to change in 2022, when his comedy movie, “Table for Six” became a box office hit, followed by a string of successes from “A Guilty Conscience,” “The Last Dance,” to now “Night King,” which has now surpassed HKD 70 million at the Hong Kong and Macau box office.
(Photo Source: Cinema Online, HK01)