Michael Fitzgerald Wong a.k.a. Wong Man-tak (Chinese: 王敏德; pinyin: Wáng Mǐndé) is a Chinese-American actor based in Hong Kong.
He is fluent in English, but not in Chinese, which is reflected in many of the characters he has portrayed. His most notable film is the 1998 film Beast Cops, which won a Hong Kong Film Award with Wong in the lead role. As of 2025, he has appeared in over a hundred films, mainly in the Hong Kong film industry.
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Early life
Michael Wong was born and raised in Troy, New York, the son of restaurateur, William Wong, and an American artist of Dutch and French descent, Connie Van Yserloo (d. 2024). His brothers, Russell Wong and Declan Wong, would also become actors in the Hong Kong film industry. After finishing high school, he left to go to Hong Kong to try his luck in acting. One of his first jobs was as a stunt double for the actor Sam Hui in the film Aces Go Places
There were a number of significant factors against Wong's eventual success in the Hong Kong film industry, including an inability to speak Cantonese Chinese, no formal training in acting and no background in martial arts. He also lacked an entry into the tightly knit Hong Kong film industry.
