Koo’s Studio Fights Back Over HK$149m Suit

Quick take

A film company suing Louis Koo for HK$149 million has a problem, says Koo's studio. That company was dissolved almost three years ago. One Cool Film says the lawsuit left that fact out — and it's fighting back.

Who's Louis Koo?

Koo, 55, is one of Hong Kong's best-known film stars. He's appeared in more than 110 local productions since he broke out as a TV actor in the late 1990s.

This isn't the first debt claim against Koo or his production ventures. It is, however, the largest sum involved so far.

What's the fight actually about?

One Cool Film Production is Louis Koo's production company. On Friday, it posted a statement on social media.

The statement responds to a lawsuit filed Wednesday by Sino Hero Ventures, a firm registered in the British Virgin Islands. Sino Hero wants HK$149 million (US$19 million).

One Cool says the lawsuit is "incomplete." Its key claim: Sino Hero was struck off the corporate register and dissolved almost three years ago. During that time, One Cool says it couldn't even reach anyone authorized to speak for the company.

In plain terms: One Cool is arguing the company suing it may not have legally existed as a functioning entity for years.

One Cool also accuses Sino Hero of breaking confidentiality rules by revealing details of their private agreement. It says some of that material is protected by legal privilege — in other words, it's the kind of information lawyers are normally barred from disclosing. One Cool says it will pursue the matter through lawyers.

Where did the HK$149 million come from?

The dispute traces back to 2019. Sino Hero lent Koo and One Cool Film HK$70 million that September.

The loan carried 12% annual interest, rising to 18% if the loan went into default. It was due back a year later.

The repayment deadline got pushed back twice — once by a year, once by about four months. But by early 2024, One Cool had only repaid HK$13.2 million. After Sino Hero kept demanding payment, One Cool paid another HK$700,000 last month.

With interest piling up, Sino Hero says the total owed now exceeds HK$149 million.

Bottom line: One Cool says the company suing it technically stopped existing years ago — and is using that to challenge the whole HK$149 million claim. Neither the dissolution claim nor Sino Hero's side has been independently verified yet, and Sino Hero hasn't responded publicly.