Born in Guandong, Chen Kuan-tai was one of Shaw Brothers' first kung fu stars who was a true master of the martial arts in real life.

On screen, Chen consistently played the good guys, while off screen, he was a free spirit who was quick to offer his honest opinion. This is another reason why he was such an exceedingly popular star.

Chen’s first role was a bit part in The Boxer From Shantung (1972). At Shaw Brothers Studios, Chen completed 10 movies before leaving the studio in 1976. Most of these movies were action movies directed by the acclaimed Chang Cheh such as Four Riders (1972), The Savage Five (1974) and Men From the Monastery (1974) and co-starring other Shaw superstars such as Ti Lung, David Chiang and Alexander Fu Sheng. In 1974, he also starred in the film he is most recognized by Western audiences for: The Flying Guillotine.

In 1978, Chen triumphantly returned to the Shaw Brothers and starred in another 10 classics through the early 80s. These classics include Little Dragon Maiden (1983) co-starring the legendary Leslie Cheung and Weng Tsing-tsing and Opium and the Kung Fu Master (1984) co-starring Ti Lung and Liu Hsueh-hua.

Not satisfied with just being an actor, Chen also produced several movies at Shaw Brothers such as Sleazy Dizzy (1980) and Blood Stained Tradewinds (1990), both directed by Chu Yuan, and Forsaken Cop (1990), directed by Henry Fong.

Having starred in over 100 films, mostly with Shaw Brothers, Chen continues to work as an actor today in both film and TV. Most recently he starred as an aging kung fu hero in Gallants, the Best Picture winner at the 2011 Hong Kong Film Awards.

Filmography
(Films available in Celestial’s Shaw Brothers Film Library with year of production/ theatrical release)

The Boxer From Shantung (1972)
The Water Margin (1972)
Man Of Iron (1972)
Four Riders (1972)
Young People (1972)
Blood Brothers (1973)
All Men Are Brothers (1973)
Iron Bodyguard (1973)
Heroes Two (1973)
The Savage Five (1974)
Men From The Monastery (1974)
The Tea House (1974)
Five Tough Guys (1974)
The Flying Guillotine (1974)
The Bloody Escape (1974)
Lover's Destiny (1975)
Big Brother Cheng (1975)
The Big Holdup (1975)
The Imposter (1975)
Seven Man Army (1976)
Challenge Of The Masters (1976)
King Gambler (1976)
Big Bad Sis (1976)
Executioners From Shaolin (1976)
Crippled Avengers (1978)
The Master (1980)
Rendezvous With Death (1980)
Challenge Of The Gamesters (1981)
Notorious Eight (1981)
Ambitious Kung Fu Girl (1981)
Rolls, Rolls I Love You (1982)
Gang Master (1982)
Human Lanterns (1982)
Little Dragon Maiden (1983)
Return Of Bastard Swordsman (1984)
I will Finally Knock You Down, Dad (1984)