Chan Chin-pang (; born 14 January 1977), better known as Ruco Chan, is a Hong Kong actor and singer.
Chan is the first TVB actor to win My Favourite TVB Actor at the StarHub TVB Awards for three consecutive years (2014, 2015, 2016), and is also the first actor to make two consecutive wins for Favourite TVB Actor at the TVB Star Awards Malaysia (2015, 2016). In 2016, Chan won the TVB Anniversary Award for Best Actor with his performance in the action drama A Fist Within Four Walls.
Early life Chan was born in Hong Kong with ancestral roots from Xiamen, Fujian. His father was a firefighter and his mother was a tailor. Influenced by his father at a young age, Chan developed a love for table tennis and joined the Hong Kong Table Tennis team after receiving rigorous training at the Jubilee Sports Academy when he was thirteen. He was the youngest player to represent Hong Kong in overseas competitions at the time.2008. "Ruco Chan's Eight-Year Battle". TVB Weekly, p. 110-112. After five years of committing to the sport, Chan left the team upon finishing his high school education exams. After graduation, Chan was accepted into a technical institution and, attracted by the 3,000 HKD monthly income, also joined TVB's Artiste Training Class. Being only seventeen at the time, Chan was required to have his parents' signed approval before signing a management contract with TVB. His father initially refused, but later gave in when TVB offered an automatic contract cancellation if Chan didn't do well in his classes. Chan graduated from TVB's Seventh Artiste Training Class of 1994.
Career Chan's television debut was in the serial drama Instinct in 1994, where he briefly appeared as the young friend of Ekin Cheng's character Pao Man-lung. Weeks later, he made a brief appearance in the sitcom A Kindred Spirit as the friend of Andy, portrayed by Hawick Lau, who was Chan's training class classmate. For the next three years, Chan performed in minor roles in over eighteen TVB television dramas. Chan left TVB in 1998 after signing a record deal with PolyGram. Prior to the release of his debut EP, Universal acquired PolyGram and Chan's contract with PolyGram became defunct. For the next few years, Chan won several small supporting roles in various Hong Kong films. When he had no filming jobs, he would work as a renovation worker, earning only 300 HKD per day.
In 2001, Chan signed with ATV to start working on television acting again. According to Chan, his first two years at ATV were "rough, uncomfortable, and filled with regret." Despite his past acting experiences in both television and film, ATV only gave him minor roles and spots in music videos. Chan's first major role was in the 2004 period drama Love in a Miracle, playing the main antagonist. He was then given a major supporting role in My Date with a Vampire III (2004). Besides performing in television dramas, Chan also made appearances in many variety shows, and hosted many gala ceremonies for ATV.
Unsatisfied with his career at ATV, Chan returned to TVB in 2008 and signed an eight-year management contract with the company. He was cast into supporting roles in several successful television dramas, such as The Threshold of a Persona (2009), Burning Flame III (2009), The Mysteries of Love (2010), Ghost Writer (2010), When Lanes Merge (2010), and Every Move You Make (2010), most of them being villainous roles. In 2011, Chan garnered media attention and critical acclaim for his portrayal of barrister Keith Lau in the television legal drama The Other Truth. He earned his first nominations for Best Actor and My Favourite Male Character at the 2011 TVB Anniversary Awards.
Chan's subsequent performances won him critical acclaim, most notably in Brother's Keeper (2013), Ruse of Engagement (2014), and Captain of Destiny (2015), the latter winning him the TVB Anniversary Award for Most Popular Male Character. He is the first actor to win My Favourite TVB Actor at the StarHub TVB Awards for three consecutive years (2014, 2015, 2016), and is also the first actor to make two consecutive wins for My Favourite TVB Actor at the TVB Star Awards Malaysia (2015, 2016). In 2016, Chan won the TVB Anniversary Award for Best Actor for A Fist Within Four Walls.
Personal life Chan began a romantic relationship with Miss Asia winner Eunis Yiu in 2008. They broke up in 2010.
In the next few years, there were rumours of Chan dating actresses, but none have resulted in quite as much media attention as his Brother's Keeper and All That is Bitter is Sweet partner Linda Chung and later, A Fist Within Four Walls and The Unholy Alliance partner Nancy Wu. Chan repeatedly denied these rumours and these rumours turned out to be false.
In 2016, while a guest judge for Miss Hong Kong, he met contestant Phoebe Sin and subsequently in March 2017, was photographed in a car with her on The Peak. The media highlighted this relationship and on 10 September 2018, Chan announced his engagement to Phoebe. They were married on 13 October the same year. On 10 November 2018, the couple announced that they were expecting their first child via Instagram. Their daughter Quinta Chan was born on 14 April 2019.
Filmography
Television dramas
+ Title Chinese title Year Role Notes Instinct 笑看風雲 1994 Peter Episode 19 Happy Harmony 餐餐有宋家 1994 Nick Man of Wisdom II 金牙大狀（貳） 1995 Cheung Hok-sau Sharp Shooters 廉政英雌 1995 News reporter A Kindred Spirit 真情 1995 Eric Episode 6 To Love With Love 水餃皇后 1995 Chu Tak-pak 15 episodes Down Memory Lane 萬里長情 1995 Chi-hung Episode 15 The Criminal Investigator O記實錄 1995 Wu Sai-kit Episode 15 The Condor Heroes 95 神鵰俠侶 1995 Sung Tak-fong Episode 23 Stepping Stone 總有出頭天 1995 On File of Justice IV 壹號皇庭IV 1995 Frankie Fan Episode 23 When a Man Loves a Woman 新同居關係 1995 Fong Sai-hoi 2 episodes (Eps. 10–11) From Act to Act 娛樂插班生 1995 Peter A Good Match From Heaven 天降奇緣 1995 Fong Sai-wah Detective Investigation Files II 刑事偵緝檔案II 1995 Hair stylistEpisode 21 Cold Blood Warm Heart 天地男兒 1996 Rookie Mutual Affection 河東獅吼 1996 Scholar Outburst 900重案追兇 1996 Au Lik-keung Wars of Bribery 廉政行動組 1996 Ah Sei State of Divinity 笑傲江湖 1996 Lau Fei Nothing to Declare 緝私群英 1996 Yeung Sau-chuen The Price to Pay 五個醒覺的少年 1996 Hung Once Upon a Time in Shanghai 新上海灘 1996 Deputy commander ICAC Investigators 1996 廉政行動1996 1996 Chan Chin-man One Good Turn Deserves Another 地獄天使 1996 Lai Tin-wong Show Time Blues 樂壇插班生 1997 Program host Mystery Files 迷離檔案 1997 Lai Ka-leung Against the Blade of Honour 圓月彎刀 1997 Sing Justice Sung 狀王宋世傑 1997 Extra The Disappearance 隱形怪傑 1997 Chai Before Dawn 愛在暴風的日子 1998 Extra The Hitman Chronicles 大刺客 1998 Aisin Gioro Yin-to The New Adventures of Chor Lau-heung 新楚留香 2001 Wen Liangyu 8 episodes (#17-22, 24) As You Wish 有求必應 2002 Kam Dor-bo Project Ji Xiang 吉祥任務 2002 Albert Yung Siu-lung Light of Million Hopes 萬家燈火 2003 Chiu Ko-hing Thunder Cops [暴風型警 2003 Chan Sing-yau Son from the Past 子是故人來 2004 Lam Ying (youth) Love in a Miracle 愛在有情天 2004 Chong Ning My Date with a Vampire III 我和殭屍有個約會III之永恆國度 2004 Ho Yau-cau / Destiny Happy Family 喜有此理 2005 Tsan-po / Ho-nam The Blind Detective 盲俠金魚飛天豬 2006 Jian Tailang Episodes 21-25 Legend of Fang De and Miao Cuihua 方德與苗翠花 2006 Tiger Lui Hong Kong Criminal Files 香港奇案實錄 2006 Kam Chin-yu 3 episodes (Eps. 16–18) Concubines of the Qing Emperor 大清後宮 2006 Yu Tai Walled Village 大城小故事 2007 Chan Heung-ching Stupid Child 笨小孩 2007 Ko See-lam Lead role Hong Kong Ghostbusters 靈舍不同 2007 Lau Chi-pang Lead role The King of Snooker 桌球天王 2009 Yau Yat-kiu (youth) The Threshold of a Persona ID精英 2009 Kelvin Mak Chi-hin Burning Flame III 烈火雄心3 2009 Kelvin Pang Chi-ban 9 episodes Cupid Stupid 戀愛星求人 2010 Frankie Chung Kin Pong The Mysteries of Love 談情說案 2010 Ben Wong Chi-ban 2 episodes (Eps. 14–15) Ghost Writer 蒲松齡 2010 Po Pak-ling When Lanes Merge 情越雙白線 2010 Tony Kwan Syu-yan 10 episodes Every Move You Make 讀心神探 2010 Chiu Man-hoi 4 episodes (Eps. 16–20) A Great Way to Care 仁心解碼 2011 Dr. Leo Fong Wing-chun Only You Only You 只有您 2011 Ng Siu-hoi 4 episodes (Eps. 4–6, 27) Grace Under Fire 女拳 2011 Lui Kong (youth) Episode 4 Relic of an Emissary 洪武三十二 2011 Zhu Quan, the Prince of Ning The Other Truth 真相 2011 Keith Lau Sz-kit 1st Male Lead Forensic Heroes III 法證先鋒III 2011 Jim Fong Sai-yau 10 episodes No Good Either Way 衝呀！瘦薪兵團 2012 Alex Mo Nga-lik 1st Male Lead Three Kingdoms RPG 回到三國 2012 Zhou Yu 8 episodes Reality Check 心路GPS 2013 Summer Ha Yat-cheung 1st Male Lead Slow Boat Home 情越海岸線 2013 Kevin Ching Lai-wing (Fit Wing) 2nd Male Lead Brother's Keeper 巨輪 2013 Sam Kiu Tin-seng 1st Male Lead Outbound Love 單戀雙城 2014 Luk Kung-tsz 1st Male Lead Ruse of Engagement 叛逃 2014 Carson Chong Yau-ching 1st Male Lead ICAC Investigators 2014 廉政行動2014 2014 Officer Kelvin Chan Kwok-yan Episode 4: "Goal Tricks" All That Is Bitter Is Sweet 大藥坊 2014 Ting Yat-yuen 1st Male Lead Eye in the Sky 天眼 2015 Cheng Nik-hang 2nd Male Lead Captain of Destiny 張保仔 2015 Man-ho, the Eleventh Prince / Bowie 1st Male Lead ICAC Investigators 2016 廉政行動2016 2016 Officer Chan Kwok-yan (Batman Sir) 1st Male Lead A Fist Within Four Walls 城寨英雄 2016 Chiu Yeung (Chor Au-kuen)/ Chiu Mang-san 1st Male Lead Brother's Keeper II 巨輪II 2016 Sam Kiu Tin-seng 5 episodes Burning Hands 乘勝狙擊 2017 Chak Koon-yat 1st Male Lead The Unholy Alliance 同盟 2017 Ko Tsz-kit 1st Male Lead Succession War 天命 2018 Heshen 1st Male Lead Sinister Beings 逆天奇案 2021 SIP Hui Chun-sum (Sum Sir) 1st Male Lead The Righteous Fists 鐵拳英雄 2022 Po Ching-wan (Ting Sam-ping) / Po Tin-ha 1st Male Lead Childhood In A Capsule 童時愛上你 2022 Charlie Sheung Cha-lai 2nd Male Lead My Mom, My Ping Pong 母親的乒乓球 2022 Kwok Yat 1st Male Lead Against Darkness 黯夜守護者 2022 Sergeant Ko Fai 1st Male Lead I’ve Got The Power 超能使者 2022 Chung Hau-nin 1st Male Lead Mission Run 廉政狙擊·黑幕 2022 But Wing-hang Guest Appearance The Invisibles 隱形戰隊 2023 Hong Shing-tin Special Appearance Speakers of Law 法言人 2023 Taxi driver Special Appearance Secret Door 隱門 2023 Ray Chong Chi-kiu 1st Male Lead From Hong Kong to Beijing 香港人在北京 2023 Tsui Kong-yan 1st Male Lead Sinister Beings (Sr.2) 逆天奇案II 2024 SIP Hui Chun-sum (Sum Sir) 1st Male Lead The Queen of Castle 巨塔之后 2025 Rex Tai Tak-kiu 1st Male Lead War of the Roses 玫瑰戰爭 2026 Ho Kar-chun 3rd Male Lead
Film + Year Title Role Notes 1995 Killer's Code 1996 Big Bullet Chiu Sai-wing (aka E.U. Strike Force) Fifteen Candles Nina (aka They Don't Care About Us) Mongkok Story Gump1997 Tough Guy Chan Pang Ghost Story "Godmother of Mongkok" Brother Cup Noodle1998 Shanghai Affairs Bond Lao Rape Trap Chan Chi-pang 1999 Trust Me U Die Kelvin Oh! My Dad! Chan Chi-pang Evil Fade Cheung Lok-ming2000 Diamond Hill May's brother Marooned Sonny Phantom Call 2001 Ghost Office Wong Yan-tung 2002 Distinctive Reporter2003 Fate Fighter Cook News Heart CEO 2016 Line Walker: The Movie Tung Pak-ho Cantonese voice over
Ruco Chan at douban.com
Discography 1998: Blue 1998: Chui Ho Kwan Hai () CD1, Track 9: "Wan Ha La" ()
Soundtrack appearances