KB News Desk
Oscar winner to accept the honor at October’s opening ceremony, her first Busan appearance in 15 years
Actor Michelle Yeoh will receive the Asian filmmaker of the year award at the 31st Busan International Film Festival, organizers announced Thursday.
Presented annually since 2003, the award recognizes film professionals or organizations that have made exceptional contributions to Asian cinema. Past recipients include Iranian director Jafar Panahi (2025), Japanese filmmaker Kiyoshi Kurosawa (2024) and Hong Kong stars Chow Yun-fat (2023) and Tony Leung Chiu-wai (2022).
The Malaysian star rose to prominence in Hong Kong action cinema with “Yes, Madam!” (1985), “Police Story 3: Supercop” (1992) and “Wing Chun” (1994) before crossing over to Hollywood in the James Bond film “Tomorrow Never Dies” (1997) and Ang Lee’s “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon” (2000).
More recent credits include “Crazy Rich Asians” (2018), “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings” (2021) and “Wicked” (2024).
Yeoh made Oscar history in 2023 when she won best actress for “Everything Everywhere All at Once” (2022), becoming the first Asian to win the category.
The role also brought her top honors at the Screen Actors Guild Awards and the Golden Globes that awards season. Earlier this year, she became the first Asian woman to receive the Honorary Golden Bear at the Berlin International Film Festival.
Yeoh’s ties to the Busan festival date back to 2002, when she visited the city for the Pusan Promotion Plan, now known as the Asian Project Market.
Several of her films have screened at the festival since, including “Far North” (2007), “Reign of Assassins” (2010), “The Lady” (2011), “Master Z: Ip Man Legacy” — the closing film of the 2018 edition — and “Everything Everywhere All at Once.” This year marks her first trip to the festival since “The Lady” in 2011.
This year, four of her films will screen in a special program: “Reign of Assassins,” “Everything Everywhere All at Once” and the 2026 short “Sandiwara,” along with her latest feature, “It’s My Time.”
The award will be presented at the opening ceremony on Oct. 6. The festival runs through Oct. 15 at venues across the city.
