Calvin Li or Li Zonghan (; born 7 November 1976) is a

Chinese Chinese may refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people identified with China, through nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **Han Chinese, East Asian ethnic group native to China. **'' Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic ...

actor of

Manchu The Manchus (; ) are a Tungusic peoples, Tungusic East Asian people, East Asian ethnic group native to Manchuria in Northeast Asia. They are an officially recognized Ethnic minorities in China, ethnic minority in China and the people from wh ...

ethnicity. Li is noted for his roles as

Wu Yong Wu Yong is a fictional character in ''Water Margin'', one of the Four Great Classical Novels, Four Great Chinese Classical Novels. Nicknamed "Knowledgeable Star", he ranks third among the 36 Heavenly Spirits, the first third of the 108 Stars of ...

and Yang Zhenjiang in the television series and film ''

All Men Are Brothers ''Water Margin'' (), also called ''Outlaws of the Marsh'' or ''All Men Are Brothers'', is a Chinese novel from the Ming dynasty that is one of the preeminent Classic Chinese Novels. Attributed to Shi Nai'an, ''Water Margin'' was one of the ear ...

'' and ''Hushed Roar'' respectively.

Life

Early life

Li was born and raised in

Wuhan Wuhan; is the capital of Hubei, China. With a population of over eleven million, it is the most populous city in Hubei and the List of cities in China by population, eighth-most-populous city in China. It is also one of the nine National cent ...

Hubei Hubei is a province of China, province in Central China. It has the List of Chinese provincial-level divisions by GDP, seventh-largest economy among Chinese provinces, the second-largest within Central China, and the third-largest among inland ...

, his mother is a

Beijing Opera Peking opera, or Beijing opera (), is the most dominant form of Chinese opera, which combines instrumental music, vocal performance, mime, martial arts, dance and acrobatics. It arose in Beijing in the mid-Qing dynasty (1644–1912) and became ...

actress. Li graduated from

Central Academy of Drama The Central Academy of Drama () is a national public drama school in Beijing, China. It is affiliated with the Ministry of Education (China), Ministry of Education. The academy is part of the Double First-Class Construction. Information The sch ...

, majoring in acting. He is also a trained dancer. He is a member of the Manchu's

Aisin Gioro The House of Aisin-Gioro is a Manchu clan that ruled the Later Jin dynasty (1616–1636), the Qing dynasty (1636–1912), and Manchukuo (1932–1945) in the history of China. Under the Ming dynasty, members of the Aisin Gioro clan served as chie ...

clan.

Acting career

Li began his career as an advertising model after graduation. Li made his acting debut in the

historical History is the systematic study of the past, focusing primarily on the human past. As an academic discipline, it analyses and interprets evidence to construct narratives about what happened and explain why it happened. Some theorists categ ...

television series ''Zhuge Liang'', playing

Zhuge Zhan Zhuge Zhan (227 – November 263), courtesy name Siyuan, was a Chinese military general and politician of the state of Shu Han during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He was a son of Zhuge Liang, the first Imperial Chancellor of Shu. Earl ...

, the son of

Zhuge Liang Zhuge Liang () (181September or October 234), also commonly known by his courtesy name Kongming, was a Chinese statesman, strategist, and inventor who lived through the End of the Han dynasty, end of the Eastern Han dynasty ( 184–220) and t ...

. In 2010, Li played the character Wisdom and Monk Jian Hui in

John Woo John Woo Yu-sen ( zh, t= ; born 22 September 1946) is a Hongkongers, Hong Kong film director known as a highly influential figure in the action film genre. The recipient of various accolades, including a Hong Kong Film Awards, Hong Kong Film Award ...

's ''

Reign of Assassins ''Reign of Assassins'' is a 2010 ''wuxia'' film directed by Su Chao-pin and co-directed by John Woo. The film is shot in China and set during the Ming Dynasty. The film stars Michelle Yeoh, who plays an assassin who tries to return to a normal lif ...

'', a

wuxia ( , literally "martial arts and chivalry") is a genre of Chinese literature, Chinese fiction concerning the adventures of martial artists in ancient China. Although is traditionally a form of historical fantasy literature, its popularity ha ...

film starring

Michelle Yeoh Yeoh Choo Kheng (; born 6 August 1962), known professionally as Michelle Yeoh (), is a Malaysian actress. In a career spanning over four decades, Yeoh has appeared Michelle Yeoh filmography, in projects encompassing a wide array of genres, a ...

Jung Woo-sung Jung Woo-sung (; born April 22, 1973) is a South Korean actor. Jung started his career as a fashion model, rising to stardom with the gangster film ''Beat'' (1997). He went on to establish himself as a versatile actor, playing leading roles in a ...

Wang Xueqi Wang Xueqi (; born 19 March 1946) is a Chinese film actor whose career has spanned over 25 years. He was often cast in early Fifth Generation films, such as Chen Kaige's ''Yellow Earth'' (1984) and '' The Big Parade'' (1986), Huang Jianxin's '' ...

Barbie Shu Shi-yuan "Barbie" Hsu ( zh, c=徐熙媛, p=Xú Xīyuán, Hsü Hsi-yuan; 6 October 1976 – 2 February 2025), also known by her stage name Big S ( zh, p=Dà S, labels=no, s=大S), was a Taiwanese actress, singer, and television host. She debuted ...

Shawn Yue Shawn Yue Man-lok (born 13 November 1981) is a Hong Kong actor and singer. A former model, he has starred in many films, such as ''Jiang Hu (2004 film), Jiang Hu'', ''Infernal Affairs II'', the ''Love in the Buff'' film series, ''Mad World (film) ...

, and

Kelly Lin Kelly Lin or Lin Hsi-Lei () is a Taiwanese actress and model who has appeared mainly in Hong Kong city films. Biography Lin was born in Taiwan in 1973. She moved to Santa Barbara, California, with her family at the age of 12. She graduated from ...

. That same year, he also participated in Alan Mak and

Felix Chong Felix Chong Man-keung (, born December 27, 1968) is a Hong Kong screenwriter A screenwriter (also called scriptwriter, scribe, or scenarist) is a person who practices the craft of writing for visual mass media, known as screenwriting. The ...

's ''

The Lost Bladesman ''The Lost Bladesman'' is a 2011 historical war and biopic action film loosely based on the story of Guan Yu crossing five passes and slaying six generals in the 14th-century historical novel ''Romance of the Three Kingdoms''. A Hong Kong-Chines ...

'' as Qin Qi, a subordinate of

Cao Cao Cao Cao (; ; ; 15 March 220), courtesy name Mengde, was a Chinese statesman, warlord, and poet who rose to power during the end of the Han dynasty (), ultimately taking effective control of the Han central government. He laid the foundation f ...

's general

Xiahou Dun Xiahou Dun () (died 13 June 220), courtesy name Yuanrang, was a Chinese military general and politician serving under the warlord Cao Cao during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China.''Sanguozhi'' vol.9. He served for a few months under Cao Cao ...

. In 2011, Li co-starred with

Huo Siyan Huo Siyan (born October 23, 1981) is a Chinese actress. Biography Huo was born in a middle-class family in Beijing. Both her parents were university dons. She made her debut in an advertisement during 11th grade in school, and entered showbiz a ...

and

Charlie Young Charles Young is a fictional character played by Dulé Hill on the television serial drama ''The West Wing''. For the majority of the series, he is the Personal Aide to President Josiah Bartlet. Creation and development The character of Cha ...

in the

suspense film Thriller film, also known as suspense film or suspense thriller, is a broad film genre that evokes excitement and suspense in the audience. The suspense element found in most films' plots is particularly exploited by the filmmaker in this genre. ...

''Sleepwalker'' as Eric, he received positive reviews. At the same year, Li starred as

in the historical television series ''

'', adapted from

Shi Nai'an Shi Nai'an (, –1372) was a Chinese writer from the Yuan and early Ming periods. ''Shuihu zhuan'' ('' Water Margin''), one of the Four Great Classical Novels of Chinese literature, is traditionally attributed to him. There are few reliable ...

's classical novel ''

Water Margin ''Water Margin'' (), also called ''Outlaws of the Marsh'' or ''All Men Are Brothers'', is a Chinese novel from the Ming dynasty that is one of the preeminent Classic Chinese Novels. Attributed to Shi Nai'an, ''Water Margin'' was one of the e ...

'', the series was one of the most watched ones in mainland China in that year. In 2012, Li was nomination for the Newly Improved Actor Award at the

Chinese American Film Festival Chinese American Film Festival (CAFF) is an American film festival held every November since 2006 in California (with events in Los Angeles and San Francisco, previously also in San Diego). History In 2005, the Chinese American Film Festival w ...

for his performance as Yang Zhenjiang in ''Hushed Roar''.

Works

Film

Television

Drama

Awards

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Li, Calvin 1976 births Male actors from Wuhan Living people Central Academy of Drama alumni Chinese male film actors Chinese male television actors 21st-century Chinese male actors Manchu male actors