Lau was born in Hong Kong in 1964. He joined the
TVB acting classes in 1983 and made his first appearance on television in the following year in the drama
Draw Out the Rainbow. Dark-skinned with no matinee-idol look, he struggled with minor roles until the immensely popular
stock market drama
The Greed of Man (1992), where he first achieved his
leading man status, and acted opposite
Adam Cheng. His wife,
Amy Kwok, who won the
Miss Hong Kong Pageant in 1991, is also a well-known former television actress and co-starred with him on
The Greed of Man. Lau starred in two series with
ATV in 1991 and again in 2000. Lau made his film debut in 1986 and since then has been cast in numerous roles. His critically acclaimed roles include acting opposite
Anita Yuen as a down-and-out musician in ''
C'est la vie, mon chéri (1993) and in a number of cop thrillers such as Big Bullet
(1996), Full Alert (1997), The Longest Nite (1998), Running out of Time (1999), Running Out of Time 2 (2001) and Mad Detective'' (2007). Lau is known for his versatility as an actor, having acted in a variety of genres. Lau joined
Milkyway Image production house in the mid-1990s. == Personal life ==