Tony Leung Chui-wai will star in the upcoming sequel comedy Monster Hunt 2. [Photo provided to China Daily]

Award-winning actor Tony Leung Chiu-wai will join the cast of the upcoming fantasy comedy Monster Hunt 2, marking his return to comedy after 14 years.

Leung, a Hong Kong cinema star, has won a number of awards, such as best actor at Cannes for In the Mood for Love in 2000, in a career spanning 35 years.

He appeared in a Beijing shopping mall to promote the movie on Wednesday, and was mobbed by screaming fans.

Speaking of his role, Leung says that it is a challenge to act in a heavy visual effects-studded movie.

Monster Hunt is a hybrid movie comprising live action and computer-generated imagery, and the sequel will resemble the first movie.

Besides Leung, the other stars joining the cast are singer-actress Li Yuchun, veteran actor Huang Lei, Taiwan actor Tony Yeung, and singer Wu Mochou.

The sequel will be directed by animator Raman Hui, who worked on the first film.

Jing Boran and actress Bai Baihe will reprise their roles as the human parents of the monster king in the new movie.

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