# Ada Choi

Ada Choi Siu-fan (Chinese: 蔡少芬; born 17 September 1973) is a Hong Kong actress best known for her work, as the Empress in the Chinese television series Empresses in the Palace (甄嬛傳), and to a lesser extent, for her film work.

## Career

Choi was born in 1973 in Hong Kong to a Chaoshanese family. Her parents divorced when she was five years old. She speaks Cantonese, Mandarin, Teochew and English. In 1989, at the persuasion of her family, Choi participated in a modeling contest held by TVB at age 15. Two years later, she was a contestant in the 1991 Miss Hong Kong beauty pageant. During the semi-finals she placed first with an overall score of 483. She eventually finished as the second runner-up during the finals. As a result, she signed a contract with TVB and starting taking on acting jobs. She won the TVB Anniversary Award for Best Actress for her performance in Secret of the Heart (1998). Along with Maggie Cheung Ho-yee, Kenix Kwok, Flora Chan and Jessica Hsuan, Choi is known as one of the Top 5 "Fa Dans" (term used for actresses with high popularity) of TVB from the mid-1990s to mid-2000s. In 2009, she starred in Rebellion as a triad gang leader who chain-smokes and curses, a different type of role for Ada. In recent years, she has participated in numerous variety and reality shows as a regular cast member including Up Idol (2015), Run for Time (2015), My Dearest Ladies (2019) and Viva La Romance (2020).

## Personal life

On 12 January 2008, Choi married Chinese actor Max Zhang whom she had dated for more than four years. He was her co-star in a number of Zhouyi Media television productions including The Legend of Magic Mirror (2003) and Eight Charts (2005). They have two daughters, Zoe and Chloe, born in 2011 and 2013 respectively. In 2019, they announced on social media that they were expecting their third child. They welcomed their son, Joey Zhang Le'er aka Yudan in November 2019.

## Filmography and awards
### Television

| Year | Title | Role |
| 1992 | Revelation of the Last Hero | Ling Seung |
| 1993 | Racing Peak | Chung Oi Ling |
| 1993 | All About Tin | Gu Suet |
| 1993 | The Link | Chai Suet Yi |
| 1993 | The Buddhism Palm Strikes Back | Tin Heung |
| 1993 | The Movie About Stupid Mr. Lee | Fat Jak Fong |
| 1993 | Man of Wisdom | Seung Seung |
| 1994 | Shade of Darkness | Lo Siu Mei |
| 1995 | The Romance of the White Hair Maiden | Lin Ngai-seung |
| 1995 | Justice Pao | Mang Yu Yik / Suen Siu Nga |
| 1995 | The Fist of Law | Fa Gu |
| 1997 | File of Justice V | Lee Tung |
| 1998 | Healing Hands | Jackie Tong Chi Lai |
| 1998 | Secret of the Heart | Diana Suen Wah |
| 1999 | A Matter of Business | Wong Yuk Fan |
| 1999 | At the Threshold of An Era | Tin Ning |
| 1999 | Unnatural Born Killer | Tse Ngan Giu |
| 2000 | Healing Hands II | Jackie Tong Chi Lai |
| 2000 | At the Threshold of An Era II | Tin Ning |
| 2001 | Armed Reaction III | Wai Ying Chi |
| 2001 | On the Track or Off | Luk Wing Yee |
| 2002 | Where the Legend Begins | Yan Fuk |
| 2003 | Fate Twisters | Sheung Hei |
| 2003 | The Legend of Magic Mirror (水月洞天) | Dou Dou (豆豆) |
| 2003 | The Legend of Magic Mirror II | Dou Dou |
| 2004 | Armed Reaction IV | Wai Ying Chi |
| 2004 | To Catch the Uncatchable | Vivian Lee Wai Wai |
| 2005 | Seven Swordsmen (七劍下天山) | Flying Red Sash |
| 2005 | Eight Charts (八阵图) | Qian Xun |
| 2007 | Tian Xian Pei (天仙配) | Fourth Fairy (Guest star) |
| 2008 | Lei Hen Jian (淚痕劍 | Die Wu (蝶舞/琥珀) |
| 2008-2009 | The Gem of Life | Hong Nga-Sze (Jessica) |
| 2010 | Fly with Me | Leung Hau-chi (Yvonne) / Janet Bin |
| 2010 | Who's the Hero (勝者為王) | Tung Fa-shun (童花順) |
| 2011 | Xi Jin Du (西津渡) | Shao Yue'e (邵月娥) |
| 2012 | The Legend of Zhen Huan | Empress Xiaojingxian |
| 2012 | In Love with Power (山河恋·美人无泪) | Empress Xiaoduanwen |
| 2013 | Beauty at War | Bouamukchaai Sheung-ling |
| 2015 | Run for Time | Cast Member |
| 2017 | Oh My Grad | |
| 2018 | Woman in Love | |

### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1994 | Hail the Judge | Yu Yin | |
| 1994 | Fist of Legend | Hua's girlfriend | |
| 1995 | A Chinese Odyssey Part Two - Cinderella | Princess Iron Fan | |
| 1995 | The Golden Girls | Lulu Shum | |
| 1996 | Love and Sex Among the Ruins | Billie | Nominated - Golden Bauhinia Awards for Best Actress |
| 1996 | Once Upon a Time in Triad Society 2 | Deda | Nominated - Golden Bauhinia Awards for Best Supporting Actress |
| 1996 | Bloody Friday | Ada | |
| 1996 | Mystery Files | Foo Man Dik | |
| 1997 | Passionate Nights | | |
| 1997 | Walk In | May | |
| 1997 | Troublesome Night | Ken's love interest | |
| 1997 | Made in Heaven | Lily Wong | |
| 1997 | Ah Fai, the Dumb | Jody | |
| 1998 | T.H.E. Professionals | | |
| 1998 | Casino | | |
| 1998 | The Suspect | Annie Chung | |
| 1998 | Your Place or Mine! | Vivian Ng | Nominated - Hong Kong Film Critics Society Awards for Best Actress |
| 1998 | Rape Trap | Li Shan-Shan | |
| 1999 | The Doctor in Spite of Himself | Don | |
| 1999 | My Heart Will Go On | | |
| 2000 | Paramount Motel | Li Yuk-hing | |
| 2004 | The Miracle Box | Dr. Joanna Tse | |
| 2009 | Rebellion | Cheung Wah | Nominated - Hong Kong Film Critics Society Awards for Best Actress |
| 2010 | Just Another Pandora's Box | Princess Iron Fan | Guest star |
| 2013 | My Lucky Star | | |
| 2014 | Just Another Margin | | |
| 2014 | One Step Away | | |
| 2016 | S Storm | Wong Man-ling | |
| 2018 | Agent Mr Chan | | Guest star |
| 2019 | Assassins and the Missing Gold | | |
| 2025 | Legends of the Condor Heroes: The Gallants | Li Ping | |