Andy Lau, Who Was The Last Person Leslie Cheung Called Before He Died, On Why He Didn’t Attend The Star's Funeral Almost 2 Decades Ago

On April 1, 2003, Hongkong showbiz icon Leslie Cheung killed himself by jumping off the 24th floor of the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Hongkong.

His wake was held at Hong Kong Funeral Home six days later, where his celeb friends such as Chow Yun Fat, Anita Yuen, Edison Chen and Tony Leung came to pay their final respects. 

Even Cantopop diva Anita Mui, who was stricken with cancer and was so heartbroken by her pal's death she couldn't stop crying, turned up to say goodbye to Leslie.

Yet to the surprise of many, Andy Lau, who was also very close to Leslie, did not show up at the wake. So what happened? 

Andy and Leslie were really close friends

Andy once revealed that he was the last person Leslie called before he committed suicide. 

“The last phone call he made when he was alive was to me," said the Heavenly King. "I deeply regret not being able to pick up the call."

So why wasn’t he at his friend's wake?

At that time, Andy said that he “was shooting a movie and was not informed” about the news. 

Leslie’s fans obviously didn’t buy Andy's explanation and were furious at him. 

There was even speculation that Andy, who is known to be very superstitious, skipped the wake because someone had told him that the date of Leslie’s funeral clashed with his horoscope. 

Leslie and Andy in the 1996 movie Shanghai Grand

Andy would finally reveal why he wasn't at the funeral years later in an interview.

Looking back at his friendship with the late star, Andy said that Leslie was more than just a good friend, he was also his mentor. 

"When it came to his sudden passing, I couldn't accept it for a while. I didn't attend the funeral because I wanted him to live in my heart forever," said Andy.

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