Main cast •
Gallen Lo as
Lee Kei (李奇) -
based on Lui Kei (呂奇) :Yuen's best friend and former classmate. He is an unemployed young man who likes to leech off of others. Homeless and jobless, he moves into Yuen's home and lives with his family. A chance encounter with swindler Fung Yan-gwan leads him to become a movie extra. Due to his good looks, Lee Kei gets offered bigger roles, but his stardom reaches a stalemate when he becomes more selective in his roles. He has an obvious crush on Siu Fong-fong initially dislikes Cheng Po-chu, as he often encounters bad things whenever she is around him. However, after seeing her kindness and innocence, he changes his opinion of her, and they grow closer. •
Francis Ng as
Tse Yuen (謝源) -
based on Patrick Tse (謝賢) :A kind, simple-minded young man with few ambitions in life except to marry his one true love, Jan. He gets fired as a
dim sum restaurant waiter after upsetting his boss' daughter, who has a crush on him. When his best friend, Lee Kei, was offered to work as a movie extra, the jobless Yuen tags along. A lucky encounter with a famous director gets Yuen cast in his first lead role in a major feature film, costarring with the popular Siu Fong-fong. Yuen is a bad actor, but with advice from Fong-fong, he makes it through his first leading role. •
Jessica Hsuan as
Siu Fong-fong (邵芳芳) -
based on Josephine Siao (蕭芳芳) :An independent young women who likes to read, she is also a screen idol but outside of work she hides her movie star persona and helps out at her uncles
dai pai dong. She likes Tse Yuen, but after hearing Yuen criticize her, she starts to hate him and fools him, often confusing him with her dual identity. But after realising his devotion to his girlfriend she starts to befriend him, and eventually falls for him. •
Maggie Cheung Ho-yee as
Cheng Po-chu (程寶珠) -
based on Connie Chan (陳寶珠) :A popular Hong Kong screen idol. She is naive and innocent due to her overly protective stage mom. She has a weakness for chocolate and food because of the strict diet her mother puts her on. She develops a crush on Tse Yuen, but her heart gets broken after she discovers Yuen and Siu Fong-fong's relationship. Because of this, she and Lee Kei become unlikely friends and they become soulmates.
Tse family •
Lau Kong as
Tse Suen (謝信) :Tse Yuen's father. He is a righteous man who constantly instill integrity in his son. •
Yan Pak as
Chan Dai-kam (陳帶金) :Tse Yuen's kind mother. Tse Suen's wife. •
Natalie Wong as
Tse Fei-yin (謝飛燕) :Tse Yuen's younger sister. She works at a factory. Kiu Fung likes her but she likes Lee Kei.
Tse household tenants • Jay Leung as
Leung Yuk-wah 梁玉嬅 -
based on Tina Ti (狄娜) :A night club hostess-prostitute who later becomes a soft-porn actress named Dik Wah (狄嬅). •
Peter Lai as
Fung Yan-gwan (馮仁昆) :A swindler with connections to the film industry. After swindling Lee Kei out of HK$10 he is forced to get him a job as a film extra when he finds out they live in the same apartment. • Chiu Hung as
Dai Sek-gwong (大隻廣) :A sidewalk peddler who sells food with his wife. Chang Gai-ying's husband. •
Yu Mo-lin as
Chang Gai-ying (倀雞英) :A sidewalk peddler who sells food with her husband. Dai Sek-gwong's wife. • Tse Man-hin as
Small kid Cheung (細路祥) :A pre-adolescence boy who rents the top of a bunk bed at the Tse home. He works as a shoeshine boy.
Tsang family • Leung Bo-ching as
Tsang Fung-giu (曾鳳嬌) :Siu Fong-fong's mother who is also her manager. • Chun Wong as
Tsang Siu-dong (曾小東) :Siu Fong-fong's uncle and the owner of the dai pai dong she helps out when she is out of her movie star persona. • Lily Liew as
Nun jie (銀姐) :The Tsang household maid.
Cheng family • Choi Kwok-hing as
Cheng Sum (程森) :Cheng Po-chu's father who is aware that his wife Luk Cheung-mei is too overbearing on their daughter. •
Alice Fung So-bor as
Luk Cheung-mei (陸薔薇) :Cheng Po-chu's mother. She is an overbearing stage mother who puts her daughter on a strict diet and controls every aspect of her life. •
Kenneth Chan as
Cheng Ka-kit (程家傑) :Cheng Po-chu's older brother. • Chan Yin-hong as
Ho jie (好姐) :The Cheng household maid.
Law Si Film Studio actors •
Jerry Lamb as
Kiu Fung (喬峰) :An
Oxford University educated young man who is from a wealthy family. He works as a film extra so when he mentions his privileged background everyone thinks he is delusional. He likes Tse Yuen's younger sister Tse Fei-yin but she doesn't like him because of his looks and thinks he is lying about his wealthy background. •
Kingdom Yuen as
Yam Kin-wai (任建威) -
based on Yam Kim-fai (任劍輝) :A Cantonese opera singer who likes to play male characters. Bak Yuk-sin is her opera partner and constant companion. •
Florence Kwok as
Bak Yuk-sin (白玉仙) -
based on Bak Sheut-sin (白雪仙) :A Cantonese opera singer who is the constant partner and companion of Yam Gin-wai. She and Gin-wai like to play mahjong with Cheng Po-chu and Siew Fong-fong's mothers. • Ken Lok as
Tsui Gei (徐基) :A matinee idol actor who is a womanizer. He fancies Cheng Po-chu's innocence and naiveness and tries to take advantage of her. • Samuel Yau as Actor (演員)
Law Si Film Studio staff • Albert Law as
Boss Law (羅老闆) :The film studio owner. • Ceci So as
Mrs. Law (羅太) :The film studio owner's wife. •
Johnson Law as
Lung Gon (龍干) :A film director who directs Tse Yuen's first leading role. • Bruce Li as
Director Lee (李導演) :The first director to hire Tse Yuen and Lee Kei as film extras. • Sunny Tai as
Assistant Director (左源) :Assistant director to Director Lee. • Lee Lung-kei as
Cho Fat-wah (曹發華) -
based on Cho Tat-wah (曹達華) :A film director and actor with a gambling problem. • Law Gwok-wai as
Lee Ciu (李超) :Owner of the canteen at the film studio. He is only nice to the big name stars.
Extended cast •
Joyce Tang as
Chan Yuk-chun (陳玉珍) :Tse Yuen's love interest. The daughter of the herbal tea shop owner downstairs from Yuen's home. Yuen's has been in love with her for a longtime but too shy to approach her. Her father is an addictive gambler who physically abuses her. When she and Yuen start dating her father is highly against their relationship because of Yuen's poor background. Just when Yuen is working hard to save money to marry her she and her father flee Hong Kong in order to escape her father's gambling debt. She later marries someone else that treats her kindly. • Cheng Fan-sang as
Single eye Bou (單眼保) :Ah Jan's abusive father and owner of the herbal tea shop downstairs of Tse Yuen's home. He does not approve of his daughter dating Yuen because of his poor background. Due to his heavy gambling debts, him and his daughter are forced to flee Hong Kong. • Karsin Bak as
Wong Lan-hing (王蘭卿) -
based on Lydia Shum (沈殿霞) but name is similar to Cantonese opera singer Tam Lan-hing (譚蘭卿) :The fat daughter of the dim sum restaurant owner Tse Yuen worked at in the beginning. She has a huge crush on Yuen and uses her authority as his boss's daughter to drag him on dates with her. When Yuen bluntly rejects her, he is fired from the restaurant. • Wong Son as
Wong Bak-man (王百萬) :Owner of the dim sum restaurant Tse Yuen worked at in the beginning. He spoils his daughter Wong Lan-hing and lets Tse Yuen off the hook at her request even though he is aware that Yuen is an inefficient worker. • Ma Ching-yee as
Yu Sau-chau 于秀秋 -
based on Yu So-chow (于素秋) • Kwan Ho-wai as
Ah Choi (阿財) • Yu Tin-wai as
Commissioner (部長) • Fung Siu-san as
Lin Jo (蓮組) • English Tang as
Nga Dou (亞杜) • Ng Wai-san as
Factory girl (工廠妹) • Chan Chor-kiu as
Factory girl (工廠妹) • Lui Wing-yee as
Factory girl (工廠妹) • Joseph Yeung as
Ng Gor-chi (吳佐治) • Chan Min-leung as
Brother On (安哥) • Tam Yut-ching as
Kam Dil-tung (金吊桶) • Sun Yan-ming as
Small time burglar (小偷) • Ling Hon as
Watch repairman (錶佬) ==Reception and Sequel==