Chen Kun was born in Chongqing. He was raised by his maternal grandmother before reuniting with his mother at 11. His parents divorced soon after Chen's second younger brother was born, and Chen began working part-time in high school to support his mother. He started as a typist at the municipal office and later as a solo singer at night clubs. He showed early talent in singing and was strongly recommended by his vocal trainer and mentor to join the China Oriental Song and Dance Ensemble (now China National Song and Dance Ensemble) in Beijing in 1995. In 1996, he was admitted to the Beijing Film Academy, where he majored in acting.[5][6]
Acting
1999–2004: Debut and rising popularity
Chen debuted in the 1999 film The National Anthem.[7] He rose to prominence with a series of hit television dramas Love in Shanghai (2001), Pink Ladies (2002) and The Story of a Noble Family (2003), the last of which was adapted from the novel of the same name by Zhang Henshui.
Chen then starred in A West Lake Moment (2005), playing a love-seeking and idealistic young man who is not easily satisfied. He was nominated as Best Actor for his performance at the Golden Horse Awards.[8] He next starred in The Music Box (2006),[9] which earned him the Best Actor accolade at the Shanghai Film Critics Awards for capturing his screen character's years of arduous life and as well as his struggles and joys.[10]
Chen rose to international prominence with The Knot (2007). He described the role as a "big challenge" to him, as he had to portray the maturing process of his character over 20 years.[8] The film was a huge success and garnered 8 nominations at the 16th Golden Rooster Awards, including Best Actor for Chen.[11] He also won Best Actor at the 2007 Huabiao Film Awards.[12] He next starred in Gordon Chan's horror-adventure film Painted Skin (2008),[13] which won him the Best Actor award at the Hundred Flowers Awards.[14]
To commemorate the 60th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China, Chen participated in the patriotic tribute The Founding of a Republic (2009). He played Chiang Ching-kuo, and was praised by the media and critics alike for his excellent portrayal of a passionate nationalist who was unable to prevent the fall of his party.[15] He then played his first antagonist role in Jiang Wen's gangster film Let the Bullets Fly (2010).[16] In 2010, Chen established his own agency K Pictures (Dongshen Tonghua).
Chen starred in wuxia film Flying Swords of Dragon Gate directed by Tsui Hark in 2011. His dynamic portrayal of two distinct characters; the cold and cruel Yu Huatian and the witty and humorous Feng Lidao, won him Best Actor nominations at the Asian Film Awards and Hundred Flowers Awards.[17] The dual roles marked a turning point in Chen's popularity and acting career, and has become one of his most representative works to date.[18][19]
Chen played the role of Qian Xuesen in the biopic of the author released in 2012.[20] He received critical acclaim for his capturing his character's growth from young to old, and was awarded the Best Actor award at the Shanghai Film Critics Awards for the second time.[21] The same year, he starred in Painted Skin: The Resurrection, the sequel to Painted Skin.[22] The film grossed over 700 million yuan ($109.8 million), becoming the highest-grossing Chinese-language movie of all time then.[23]
Chen then starred in Bends,[24] which was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival.[25] Chen won the Best Actor award at the 2013 International du Film de Femmes de Sale held in Morocco.[26] Chen was crowned as the "Weibo King" at the 2013 Sina Weibo Night for his popularity on the micro-blogging site.[27]
In 2016, Chen starred alongside Bai Baihe in crime caper film Chongqing Hot Pot.[30] The film received acclaim and positive word-of-mouth, grossing 152 million yuan in four days.[31] He also made a special appearance in the romantic comedy Beautiful Accident opposite his Rest on Your Shoulder co-star Gwei Lun-mei.[32] The same year, Chen co-produced and starred in his first television variety Twenty Four Hours. The first episode was broadcast on January 21 on Zhejiang Television and ranked first in ratings.[33]
2017–present: Return to television
In 2018, Chen starred in the period spy drama Lost in 1949 (also known as The Double, 脱身) as twin brothers from First Cuts Features' CEO and show runner Tang XiRu (唐郗汝) and Wang QiNan (汪启楠).[34] He also starred in the costume drama The Rise of Phoenixes as a calculating and ambitious royal prince. These two dramas, co-produced by Chen, marked his return to the small screen after a decade, only to mixed reviews and low ratings.[35][36] He also starred in fantasy film The Yinyang Master (2021), adapted from Ohmyoji game.[37]
Apart from acting, Chen is also an established singer. He frequently performs theme songs for his television series and has released three full-length studio albums.
Chen made his debut as a singer in 2004 with the album Osmosis.[39] He then released his second album Make It Come True Again,[40] winning him Most Popular Male Vocalist at the MTV Asia Awards. To promote his third album Mystery&Me, he held his first solo concert in Beijing in February 2010.[41] He wrote the lyrics to the single "Power to Go", which he released for a philanthropy program to advocate environmental awareness and protection.[42]
Others
Since 2011, Chen set up a series of public charities named "Power to Go", aimed to encourage people to simply go outside and walk, in an effort to improve their health and spirit.[43] The events were held on separate occasions in Qinghai and Tibet.[44][45]
Chen is also a keen writer, having published and co-authored several books. His first book Suddenly Walked to Tibet (突然就走到了西藏) was published in 2011, and contains a collection of autobiographical essays.[46] It was a huge commercial success, and Chen became the first and only actor to make it on to China's Writers Rich List.[47] In 2012, he co-authored the book Heading East, in the Direction of Peace (往西，宁静的方向), the first in a series of five books promoting the charity program. In 2014, he published Strange Aquarius (鬼水瓶录), a short-story collection that takes inspiration from his Weibo posts and life story.[48]
Endorsements
In 2012, Chen Kun's wax figure entered the Madame Tussauds Museum in Shanghai and became the second wax figure of a famous Chinese actor in the museum's collection.[49] He has also been designated as China's Goodwill Ambassador by UNICEF.[50]
In 2014, he became the product ambassador of Huawei's honorary brand in China.[51]
In 2015, Chen became the global ambassador of the Giorgio Armani brand and the luxury watch brand Baume & Mercier.[52]
In 2017, he became the spokesperson for the skin care brand Fresh in China and the brand spokesperson for Motorola's new flagship mobile phone moto in 2018[53]
Personal life
Chen disclosed in his autobiography that he suffered from depression between 2003 and 2007.
While Chen has never had a public relationship, he mentioned on The Jin Xing Show that he had a girlfriend when he was 16 or 17 years old, describing it as a situation where "she loved me, but I didn't love her very much." He also mentioned an earlier, "undeveloped" first love.[54]
Chen is unmarried but has a son, Chen Zunyou (Alex Chen), nicknamed Youyou, born in 2002. The birth mother's identity remains unknown. The earliest mention of Chen's son appeared in a Yangtze Evening Post report in October 2003, which stated that "Chen Kun adopted an abandoned child." In 2007, Southern Metropolis Weekly published a report titled "Neighbors Reveal: Chen Kun Has a Five-Year-Old Illegitimate Son Nicknamed 'Youyou'," after which the speculation that the child was Chen's biological son intensified.[55][56] Chen's uncle instead said, "The child should be Chen Kun's younger brother's. At that time, Chen Yu (Chen Kun's younger brother) was not yet married, but he had a child and no job. Chen Kun has a very good relationship with his younger brother, so he adopted the child."[57]
Chen Kun at Baume et Mercier event in Beijing (October 12, 2016).
Chen was appointed as one of the goodwill ambassadors for China-ROK Exchange Year in 2007.[86] He was also appointed as UNICEF Ambassador for China.[87]
In 2012, Chen became the second Chinese male celebrity to have a wax figure of himself displayed at Madam Tussaud in Shanghai.[88]
In 2014, he became the product ambassador of Huawei's Honor brand in China.[89]
In 2023, he was named as Burberry's global brand ambassador, with his appointment marking a milestone for the brand in the Chinese market.[92][93]
References
^Zhou Shengnan (周盛楠) (2022). 陈坤的松弛感 [Chen Kun's sense of relaxation]. Global People (in Chinese). 481. Chaoyang District, Beijing: People's Daily: 91–93. ISSN1673-6176.
^Chen Chen (尘尘); Jie Yu (解语); Yuan Yi (袁艺) (2008). "Chen Kun: Harvest Season of the Sour Teenager" 《陈坤：酸涩少年的收获季节》. 《青年文摘》 [Youth Literary Digest] (in Chinese). Beijing: China Youth Press. pp. 48–54. ISBN978-7-5006-6471-0.
^Beijing Review Volume 52 2009 p.42 "Ten years ago, while still a student in the Beijing Film Academy, Chen Kun was selected to play Nie Er, composer of the People's Republic's national anthem, in a tribute film. He said the experience of playing again in a tribute film benefited ..."
In 2010, the list started to include Chinese celebrities born in Hong Kong, Taiwan, and other countries. Prior to that it only included celebrities born in mainland China.
