Fishmonger to crime boss: meteoric rise of humble Chinese actor, Zhang Songwen, whose gritty character rules fictional city as gangland kingpin
- Actor’s performance in ‘The Knockout’ invites comparisons with US greats Marlon Brando and ‘Breaking Bad’ actor, Bryan Cranston
- Late into acting, Zhang Songwen struggled to land prominent roles in his early years but has shot to mainland fame as gangland boss in hit TV crime drama
If you were to ask a young Chinese person what the hottest TV show of the year is and who their most popular choice as top actor is, their answers would probably be The Knockout and Zhang Songwen.
The police drama produced by the Chinese online video platform iQiyi tells the story of how law enforcement in the fictional city of Jinghai has been battling gangsters for 20 years.
The Knockout is the most popular TV series in the platform’s history.
A key – and popular – character in the series is gangland kingpin Gao Qiqiang, who is introduced initially as a fish vendor and becomes a gang boss who dominates the official and business world of the fictional city.
Video clips and classic lines relating to Gao have been widely circulated on Chinese social media.
Social media observers have praised the character as vivid and a rare entity in Chinese drama.
Some believe that the early Gao was reminiscent of the Joker character in Batman, while others said he looked like Marlon Brando’s Don Corleone in The Godfather.
However, many more see him as a Chinese version of Walter White, the main protagonist in the classic American crime drama series Breaking Bad.
Zhang has a somewhat similar experience to that of actor Bryan Cranston, who plays White: he started acting at an early age, but it was not until he starred in a popular crime drama that he became known to audiences.
The Chinese incarnation is Zhang Songwen, who, since his starring role in The Knockout has attracted more than 4 million followers on Weibo.
It has emerged that the 47-year-old is humble and loves life.
Zhang shares large portions of his life on Weibo, takes pictures of flowers and plants he sees, and patiently replies to comments on social media in a humorous tone.
According to Chinese media reports, Zhang was born in Shaoguan, a city in the southern province of Guangdong.
At 24, he heard about the Beijing Film Academy and quit his job to attend the most prestigious film school in China. After graduating, Zhang stayed at the school for eight years as an assistant teacher before starting his acting career.
From 2009 on, Zhang was only given minor roles and struggled financially.
Despite his acting skills being widely acknowledged, it was not until the 2019 film, A Shadow Play, by renowned director Lou Ye that he emerged in the public eye for his vivid portrayal of corrupt official, Tang Yijie.
By 2023, the actor cemented his fame with The Knockout, and has come to be regarded as an actor capable of outshining his fellow professionals even though he is not in the leading role.
However, fame has not changed Zhang.
On Weibo, Zhang still replies to online fans despite the huge number who populate his social media platforms.
He still rents the same small rural holding in the Shunyi district of Beijing, that he did when he was a “nobody”.
