Sun Honglei

Sun was born in Harbin, Heilongjiang, on 16 August 1970. Sun developed an interest in acting and performances at a young age. He often skipped school to learn breakdancing on the streets and eventually gave up his studies entirely to pursue dancing 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, where he graduated in 1997. He has since gone on to star in numerous TV dramas and films, winning many awards for his stage work. Sun is probably best known to Asian cinema fans for his supporting performances in Seven Swords, Triangle 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.^[3][4][5]

In 1998, Sun played a minor character in the drama Never Close The Eye adapted from Hai Yan's novel of the same name.^[6] In 1999, Sun starred in his first film, The Road Home, and officially entered the film industry.

From 2001 to 2002, the TV dramas Like Fog, Like Rain, Like Wind and Behind the Glamour were broadcast successively, gradually making the audience familiar with his portrayal of the elder brother role.^[7][8] He gained further recognition with his role as a cold-blooded murderer in the crime drama Conquer.^[9]

Sun won his first major award at the Beijing College Student Film Festival with his role in the film Zhou Yu's Train.^[10]

In 2005, Sun co-starred in Tsui Hark's martial arts film Seven Swords.^[11]

In 2006, Sun headlined the television series Halfway Couple, which earned high ratings and acclaimed.^[12] Sun won the Best Actor at the Shanghai Television Festival for his performance.

In 2008, Sun starred alongside Zhang Ziyi in the arthouse film Forever Enthralled.^[13][14]

In 2009, Sun starred in the spy war drama Lurk which was a major hit in China.^[15] The series propelled him as one of the top television actors in China, earning him Best Actor accolades at the Shanghai Television Festival, Flying Apsaras Awards and China TV Golden Eagle Award. 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.^[16]

In 2010, Sun starred in the romantic comedy film If You Are the One 2 directed by Feng Xiaogang.^[17] The film was released on June 22 and topped the weekly box office chart in its first week with a revenue of 25 million yuan.^[18]

In 2011, Sun starred in the historical film The Warring States as military strategist Sun Bin.^[19][20]

In 2015, Sun starred in the youth film The Ark of Mr. Chow directed by Xiao Yang.^[21]

On January 15, 2016, the comedy-mystery film Royal Treasure, starring Sun Honglei, was released.^[22] The film's box office exceeded 100 million yuan within six days of its release.^[23]

In February 2021, Sun Honglei provided the voice for the character Haifangzhu in the film The Yinyang Master.^[24]

In October 2022, Literature and Art in the War of Resistance, the first original documentary drama by the China National Theatre Company, premiered at the National Centre for the Performing Arts Drama Theatre. Sun Honglei played the role of Mr. Jinshan and admitted in an interview that the role was quite a challenge.^[25]

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

Film

More information Year, English title ...

Year	English title	Chinese title	Role	Notes
1999	The Road Home	我的父亲母亲	Luo Yusheng / narrator
	Sorry Baby	没完没了	Drunk driver	cameo
2000	Happy Times	幸福时光	motel guest	cameo
2002	Zhou Yu's Train	怒江魂	Zeng Lama
2005	Manhole Cover	井盖儿	Tang Daxing	[26]
	Seven Swords	七剑	Fire-Wind (Fenghuo Liancheng)
2006	Invisible Target	上海红美丽	Cheng Xiwang	[27]
2007	Blood Brothers	天堂口	Brother Hong	cameo[28]
	Triangle	铁三角	Mo Zhongyuan	[29]
	Mongol	蒙古王	Jamukha / Zha Muhe	[30]
2008	Forever Enthralled	梅兰芳	Qiu Rubai
	The Underdog Knight	硬汉	Love Rival
2009	The Founding of a Republic	建国大业	reporter	cameo[31]
	My Fair Gentleman	窈窕绅士	Zeng Tiangao	[32]
	A Simple Noodle Story	三枪拍案惊奇	Zhang San	[33]
2010	If You Are the One 2	非诚勿扰2	Li Xiangshan
	Welcome to Shama Town	决战刹马镇	Tang Gaopeng	[34]
2011	The Warring States	战国	Sun Bin
2012	I Do	我愿意	Yang Nianhua	[35]
	Lethal Hostage	边境风云	Drug Dealer	[36]
2013	Drug War	毒战	Zhang Lei	[37]
	Silent Witness	全民目击	Lin Tai	[38]
2014	One Step Away	触不可及	Fu Jingnian	[citation needed]
	When a Peking Family Meets Aupair	洋妞到我家		[39]
2015	The Ark of Mr. Chow	少年班	Zhou Zhiyong
2016	Royal Treasure	极限挑战之皇家宝藏	Himself	[40]

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Television series

More information Year, English title ...

Year	English title	Chinese title	Role	Notes
2000	Never Close the Eye	永不瞑目	Jianjun
2000	Love Story in Shanghai	像雾像雨又像风	Ah Lai
2001	Police Family	警察世家	Liu Jianshe
2001	Black Triangle	黑三角	Cheng Jiang
2001	The Sun is not Downhill	太阳不落山	Lu Xianhe	[41]
2002	Behind the Glamour	浮华背后	Gao Jinlin	[42]
2003	Conquer	征服	Liu Huaqiang
	Walking Past Happiness	走过幸福	Chen Yan	[43]
	Loud Military Anthem	军歌嘹亮	Gao Dashan	[44]
2004	I Am Not A Hero	我非英雄	Chen Fei	[45]
2005	Rush Year 1937	刀锋1937	Zheng Shusen	[46]
2006	Fan's Mansion	范府大院	Guo Caisan	[47]
	Halfway Couples	半路夫妻	Guan Jun
2007	Greatest Worker	大工匠	Yang Laosan	[48]
2008	Landing, Please Turn On Your Phone	落地，请打开手机	Shen Kang	[49]
2009	Lurk	潜伏	Yu Zecheng
	The Road We Have Taken	人间正道是沧桑	Yang Liqing
2011	Men	男人帮	Gu Xiaobai	[50]
2014	A Hero	一代枭雄	He Futang	[51]
	The Young Doctor	青年医生	Liu Yibai	[52]
	The Legendary Sniper	二炮手	Zei Jiu	[53]
2016	To Be a Better Man	好先生	Lu Yuan	also Artistic Director[54]
2017	Game of Hunting	猎场	Liu Liangti	Cameo[55]
2019	Over the Sea I Come to You	带着爸爸去留学	Dad	[56]
2020	New World	新世界	Jin Hai	[57]
2021	Crime Crackdown	扫黑风暴	Li Chengyang

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