Sun Honglei (; born 16 August 1970) is a Chinese actor.

Early life

Sun was born in

Harbin Harbin (; mnc, , v=Halbin; ) is a sub-provincial city and the provincial capital and the largest city of Heilongjiang province, People's Republic of China, as well as the second largest city by urban population after Shenyang and largest c ...

Heilongjiang Heilongjiang () Postal romanization, formerly romanized as Heilungkiang, is a Provinces of China, province in northeast China. The standard one-character abbreviation for the province is (). It was formerly romanized as "Heilungkiang". It is th ...

, on 16 August 1970. Sun developed an interest in acting and performances at a young age. He often skipped school to learn

breakdancing Breakdancing, also called breaking or b-boying/b-girling, is an athletic style of street dance originating from the African American and Puerto Rican communities in the United States. While diverse in the amount of variation available in t ...

on the streets and eventually gave up his studies entirely to pursue

dancing Dance is a performing art form consisting of sequences of movement, either improvised or purposefully selected. This movement has aesthetic and often symbolic value. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoi ...

as a career, eventually performing with a modern dance troupe for several years. Later, Sun became a popular local nightclub singer and host before going into acting. In 1995, Sun attended the

Central Academy of Drama The Central Academy of Drama (), abbreviated Zhong Xi (), is a drama school in Beijing, China. It is a Chinese state Double First Class University Plan university identified by the Ministry of Education of China. The school is the first theatre ...

, where he graduated in 1997. He has since gone on to star in numerous

TV drama In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-ge ...

s and

film A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmospher ...

s, winning many awards for his stage work. Sun is probably best known to Asian cinema fans for his supporting performances in ''

Seven Swords ''Seven Swords'' is a 2005 ''wuxia'' film produced and directed by Tsui Hark, starring Donnie Yen, Leon Lai, Charlie Yeung, Sun Honglei, Lu Yi and Kim So-yeon. An international co-production between Hong Kong, China, South Korea and the Netherla ...

'', ''

Triangle A triangle is a polygon with three edges and three vertices. It is one of the basic shapes in geometry. A triangle with vertices ''A'', ''B'', and ''C'' is denoted \triangle ABC. In Euclidean geometry, any three points, when non- colline ...

'' and '' Blood Brothers''. Since October 2011, Sun has played the starring role in the popular Chinese series 'Nanren Bang' (男人帮), portraying urban romantic life from a male perspective.

Acting career

In 1998, Sun played a minor character in the drama ''Never Close The Eye'' adapted from Hai Yan's novel of the same name. In 1999, Sun starred in his first film, '' The Road Home'', and officially entered the film industry. Sun rose to fame for his role in the youth television series ''

Love Story in Shanghai ''Love Story in Shanghai'', also known as ''Symphony of Rain'', is a 2001 Chinese period television drama series directed by Zhao Baogang, set in 1930s Shanghai. The show was broadcast on 14 national networks almost simultaneously beginning in late ...

'' directed by Zhao Baogang. He gained further recognition with his role as a cold-blooded murderer in the crime drama ''Conquer''. Sun won his first major award at the

Beijing College Student Film Festival Beijing College Student Film Festival, first held in 1993, is an annual event organized by Beijing Normal University and Beijing Municipal Bureau of Radio, Film and Television. It is held in April or May, and is one of the biggest film festivals i ...

with his role in the film '' Zhou Yu's Train''. In 2005, Sun co-starred in Tsui Hark's martial arts film ''

''. In 2006, Sun headlined the television series ''Halfway Couple'', which earned high ratings and acclaimed. Sun won the Best Actor at the

Shanghai Television Festival The Shanghai Television Festival (), abbreviated STVF, also known as the Shanghai International Television Festival is the first and one of the largest television festivals in East Asia. Held since 1986, STVF has become one of the most influential ...

for his performance. In 2008, Sun starred alongside Zhang Ziyi in the arthouse film ''

Forever Enthralled ''Forever Enthralled'' () is a Chinese biographical film directed by Chen Kaige; the film marks Chen's eleventh feature film as a director. ''Forever Enthralled'' follows the life of Mei Lanfang, one of China's premiere opera performers. It stars L ...

''. In 2009, Sun starred in the spy war drama '' Lurk'' which was a major hit in China. The series propelled him as one of the top television actors in China, earning him Best Actor accolades at the

, Flying Apsaras Awards and

China TV Golden Eagle Award The China TV Golden Eagle Award (), commonly known in China as the Golden Eagle Awards, is one of three main national award ceremonies recognising excellence in the Chinese television industry. The award is presented by the China Television Artists ...

. The same year, he starred in the epic historical drama '' The Road We Have Taken'' based on the award-winning novel of the same name by Jiang Qitao; which earned high acclaim when it aired. In 2010, Sun starred in the romantic comedy film '' If You Are the One 2'' directed by Feng Xiaogang. In 2011, Sun starred in the historical film '' The Warring States'' as military strategist Sun Bin. In 2015, Sun starred in the youth film ''

The Ark of Mr. Chow ''The Ark of Mr. Chow'' () is a 2015 Chinese period youth drama film directed by Xiao Yang. It was released on June 19, 2015. Cast *Sun Honglei as Zhou Zhiyong *Zhou Dongyu as Zhou Lan * Dong Zijian as Wu Wei *Wang Yuexin as Mai Ke *Zhao Lixin as ...

'' directed by Xiao Yang.

Personal life

On 1 October 2014, Sun announced he and Wang Jundi () are tying the knot and the wedding was held in Paris. Their daughter was born on 16 December 2017.

Filmography

Film

Television series

Awards

References

External links

*
Sun Honglei Biography @ LoveHKFilm.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sun, Honglei Male actors from Heilongjiang 1970 births Male actors from Harbin Living people Central Academy of Drama alumni Chinese male stage actors 20th-century Chinese male actors 21st-century Chinese male actors Chinese male film actors Chinese male television actors Best Supporting Actor Asian Film Award winners