Award-winning actress Fish Liew (Liao Ziyu) has rapidly solidified her status as an indispensable force in Hong Kong cinema, culminating in a recent wave of critical acclaim and numerous high-profile projects, including her third collaboration with screen legend Dayo Wong in the upcoming Lunar New Year blockbuster, The Night King. Following her historic first win for Best Actress at the Hong Kong Film Critics Society Awards and a nomination for Best Actress at the 44th Hong Kong Film Awards, Liew is publicly reflecting on the emotional and physical gauntlet she ran after moving to the city in 2012 to pursue her acting dream.
In a candid appearance on the YouTube channel Meaningful alongside director Patrick Kong (Yip Nim-Sum), Liew shed light on the initial challenges—the “cold” realities—of establishing herself in Hong Kong.
The Cost of a Breakout Role
Arriving in 2012, Liew first found work primarily as a model. Determined to secure an acting opportunity a year later, she accepted a role that demanded extreme vulnerability: full nudity. This pivotal, yet personally challenging, debut came in the Teddy Robin-produced film, A Complicated Story (2013), a performance that earned her a nomination for Best New Performer at the 33rd Hong Kong Film Awards.
Liew recounted the profound emotional difficulty inherent in the role, specifically detailing a scene requiring her to be stripped to her undergarments by a gang. “The film had a very demanding condition: I had to be completely naked,” the actress shared. “I struggled greatly in that moment, but subconsciously, I had already committed to it.”
The physical hardship mirrored the emotional toll. During one sequence, Liew was required to lie on a cold floor, screaming and struggling against her on-screen attackers. She recalled the brutal cold of the set. Yet, the immediate aftermath—the sudden rush of crew members to wrap her in towels once the cameras stopped—provided a moment of clarity. “In that moment, I realized, ‘Wow, I am making a film,'” she stated, suggesting that the artistic commitment transcended the immediate discomfort. For Liew, the greatest fear was not the nudity itself, but the dread of moving to Hong Kong only to find no opportunities at all.
Mastering the Art of Transformation
Despite the initial accolades, Liew experienced a period of professional uncertainty, navigating several years of lesser-known projects, including Sh*e Remembers, He Forgets. The tide finally turned when her role in Sisterhood (2016) garnered a Best Supporting Actress nomination at the 36th Hong Kong Film Awards, signaling a significant career shift.
Now, she tackles the visually demanding role of a cabaret madam in The Night King, opposite Dayo Wong. Having previously worked with Wong on A Golden *Bauhinia and the mega-hit A Guilty Conscience, Liew needed to embody a specific type of alluring femininity for this maternal character.
Liew admitted the transformation was challenging: “I thought I was quite good at walking in high heels, but in my very first scene, the director joked I looked like I was marching.” Achieving the required “sultry and elegant” appearance demanded intensive preparation, including up to three hours in the makeup chair per day to effectively sculpt her features to project a softer femininity.
Reflecting on her recurring co-star, Dayo Wong, Liew praised his inherent on-set magnetism. “He is an immensely charismatic actor; when he is on set, everyone invariably looks toward him,” she observed. Having witnessed three distinct iterations—the vulnerable patriarch in Table for Six, the morally righteous lawyer in A Guilty Conscience, and the smooth-talking rogue in The Night King—Liew highlighted Wong’s immersive method acting. “He maintains the character’s persona throughout the filming process. For The Night King’s ‘Brother Huan,’ an almost flippant, charming vagrant, Wong completely adopts that energy during the production period.”
An Unexpected Fan History
Liew is currently managed under the agency led by screen icon Louis Koo. She revealed a charming personal history predating their working relationship: as a child, she had a long-term, daily routine of stopping by a specific billboard featuring Koo modeling eyewear.
“Every day after school, I would see that poster,” Liew confessed. “I would talk to the poster in my heart, telling him about my day at school. I did this for several years.” Although she later met her idol at an after-party upon arriving in Hong Kong, she was too overwhelmed to ask for a photograph. Now, as one of his contracted artists, Liew has kept her childhood admiration a secret from Koo, perhaps waiting for him to discover the depth of her fandom through this very interview.
