TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Korean-American actor Sung Kang, also known as Han Leu, has been drawing lots of attention in the Taipei area for his month-long film shoot for the new Luc Besson film, "The Weekend Escape."
Last week, a group of fans camped outside his hotel in the Neihu area, hoping for a glimpse of the actor known for driving orange and black sports cars in top grossing films such as "Fast & Furious: Tokyo Drift."
In person, Sung Kang is soft-spoken and warm-hearted. His generosity was on display as he handed out bottles of water to fans braving the summer heat to meet him, as documented in a recent TikTok post by a fan.
"Some of these fans had been there for two or three days, so I had to go out and meet them," said Sung Kang on a visit to the I-Mei offices* on Monday (Aug. 7).
He said being generous and gracious to fans is part of his personality. "Everywhere I go, I want to help the local children. This gives my work a little more meaning."
Contrary to his film depiction, Kang is not an adrenaline-fueled street racer, but instead a devoted car builder and restorer who found his passion for automobiles early on in life.
"I don’t race. My wife would actually divorce me if I got involved in racing."
Instead of causing carnage on local streets and racetracks, Kang said he’s passionate about being a "caretaker" of automobiles and the craft of restoring older model race cars that would otherwise end up in the junkyard.
"When I was a teenager, I had a neighbor who restored old cars to factory-perfect standards, including sourcing the original fabric for the seats and all of the original parts. Whenever I had free time, I would go over to his garage, and he would teach me how to rebuild those cars."
This passion has stayed with Kang, as he has rebuilt nearly a dozen cars so far, all housed in different garages owned by friends. Kang said that all of the cars are workable and ready to drive.
"I like to make my cars accessible or fulfill a purpose. I want to share the story of a particular car with other people. And to be honest, a person really only needs one car."
Kang’s restored cars have even been used in a few films, such as "Fast & Furious X," which made use of his yellow 1972 Datsun 240Z driven by a female character along with an orange Alfa-Romeo coupe.
"I like all my cars to have a race pedigree, or what I call an "underdog." It may be inexpensive when purchased, but we put a lot of work into it, sometimes even a newer engine, but always from the same family," said Kang.
What Kang is most proud of is building a 1972 Ford Maverick with three high school students from the Los Angeles area. Kang worked with the students to rebuild and modify the car, which was eventually auctioned. Funds from the sale were then used to pay for the college education of the three students.
More importantly, Kang believes that the time spent working together in an automotive garage is a valuable lesson for young students who learn the same traits, such as concentration and dedication, that were taught to him by a kindly neighbor in his youth.
* I-Mei Foods is the parent company of Taiwan News
