Nie Yuan

In this Chinese name, the family name is Nie.

Nie Yuan (born 17 March 1978) is a Chinese actor best known for his numerous television performances, some of his more notable roles include: Qi Tianlei in Wrong Carriage, Right Groom (2000); Hu Fei in Fox Volant of the Snowy Mountain (2006); Li Ke in Carol of Zhenguan (2007); Zhao Yun in Three Kingdoms (2010), Tang Sanzang in Journey to the West (2011) and Qianlong Emperor in Story of Yanxi Palace (2018).^[1]

Nie Yuan
聂远
Born	(1978-03-17) 17 March 1978 (age 47) Zhenyuan County, Qiandongnan, Guizhou, China
Alma mater	Shanghai Theatre Academy
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1997–present
Agent	Huanyu Film
Spouses	Yang Guang ​ ​ (m. 2008; div. 2012)​ Qin Ziyue ​ (m. 2014)​
Children	1 daughter (b. 2014)
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese	聶遠
Simplified Chinese	聂远
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Niè Yuǎn Yue: Cantonese Jyutping Nip6 Jyun5
Website	http://www.nieyuan.net/

Early life

Nie was born in Zhenyuan County, Guizhou. His parents named his elder brother and him "Zhen" and "Yuan" respectively to remind them not to forget their hometown (Zhenyuan). When Nie recalled his adolescent days, he saw himself as a "youth-at-risk" then – he secretly joined the Guiyang Dance Class without informing his parents; when he was around 15 and 16 years old, he smoked, got into fights, and ran away from home. His worried parents sent him to enlist in the People's Liberation Army. Nie later enrolled in the Shanghai Theatre Academy after completing his service in the army. However, he behaved insolently in the academy and was almost expelled for poor conduct, but a teacher appealed for him to stay. After this incident, he became more mature and changed his rebellious ways.

Career

Nie first started acting when he was still in the Shanghai Theatre Academy. He was a "highly productive" actor, as he described in his own words, "In times when I was playing with my life, I could finish filming one episode in two days. I tried completing filming a 140 episodes television drama and one movie in a year. This can be taken as a record."^{[citation needed]}

In 2000, after graduating from the academy, Nie and his first girlfriend, actress Huang Yi, collaborated in the television drama Wrong Carriage, Right Groom. Nie did not receive much acclaim for his performance while in contrast, Huang Yi was very successful. In 2001, Nie worked on Tianxia Liangcang with director Wu Ziniu, and was noted for his outstanding performance.^[2] Following that, Nie acted in the period dramas Love Legend of the Tang Dynasty,^{[citation needed]} Eternity: A Chinese Ghost Story,^[3] Heroes of Sui and Tang Dynasties,^[4] Hanxue Baoma,^[5] Jingcheng Sishao,^[6] Han Women,^[7] and Carol of Zhenguan,^[8] and experienced a surge in popularity for his portrayal of good-looking young men dressed in ancient Chinese costumes.^[9]

In 2004, Nie was named by the Chinese media as one of the "Mainland's New Four Young Actors", along with Huang Xiaoming, Tong Dawei and Yin Xiaotian. That year, producer Zhang Jizhong was searching for someone to portray the lead character Yang Guo in his wuxia television series The Return of the Condor Heroes. Nie was a popular choice for "Yang Guo" and he participated in the audition as well, but eventually lost the role to Huang Xiaoming, who was not as popular as him then. Huang Xiaoming's performance in The Return of the Condor Heroes propelled him to fame, while in contrast, Nie did not advance much in his career. It was said that Nie and Huang developed a rivalry over the incident, but in a 2010 interview, Nie admitted that he did feel depressed when he lost the opportunity to act as Yang Guo, but also stated that his feud with Huang Xiaoming is not true.^[10]

In 2006, Nie starred in the wuxia drama Fox Volant of the Snowy Mountain.^[11]

From 2008 onwards, Nie's career took an upturn when he starred in the television series Three Kingdoms (2010) as military general Zhao Yun and Journey to the West (2011) as Tang Sanzang, adaptations of two of the Four Great Classical Novels of Chinese literature.^[12][13] He then acted in the films The Flowers of War as a soldier, The Last Supper as military general Xiang Zhuang, Avalokitesvara as Tang Emperor Li Yi, and Brotherhood of Blades as an eunuch.^{[14][15][16][17]}

Nie gained renewed recognition with his portrayal of Qianlong Emperor in the hit palace dramas Story of Yanxi Palace.

He later starred as Lu Buwei in the historical drama The Legend of Haolan.^[18][19]

Nie participated in the period drama series “Legacy” which will premiere exclusively on WarnerMedia’s regional streaming service HBO Go at an unspecified date later in 2021. “Legacy” is a 1920s-set drama that chronicles the lives of the wealthy Yi family and three sisters who vie to inherit their father’s shopping mall business. In a time of upheaval and uncertainty, the three sisters set aside their differences to keep the business afloat and save their family.^[20]

Personal life

When he was in his third year at Shanghai Theatre Academy, Nie met actress Huang Yi and started a relationship with her. They also acted together as a couple in the television drama Wrong Carriage, Right Groom. They broke up later as they pursued their respective careers.^[21]

Around 2003, Nie started a new relationship, this time with Liu Yun, whom he first met when they were working together in the television series Hanxue Baoma. They were later paired up again in Dahan Jinguo (2004). Nie and Liu separated in 2006, and they did not want to mention anything about their relationship again.^[22]

On September 28, 2008, Nie married actress Yang Guang. Their wedding was held in Beijing and more than 300 guests were invited.^[23] They divorced in 2012.^[24]

In early 2014, Nie married actress Qin Ziyue, who had a minor role in Journey to the West (2011). Their daughter was born on May 8 of that year.^[25]

Filmography

Film

Year	English title	Chinese title	Role	Notes
2000		滕王阁传奇	Wang Bo	Television film
2000		刀锋	Fang Xiao	Television film
2002	Ghosts	凶宅幽灵	Jiang Hongbin	[26]
2004	Love Message	简讯一月追	Tan Qiang	Cameo
2005	The Road	芳香之旅	Liu Fendou	[27]
2005	Abao's Story	阿宝的故事	Luo Wei	[28]
2006	Hidden Tiger	卧虎	Policeman	[29]
2006	Eastern Legend	东方海盗传奇	Young Tang Lang	Cameo
2007		大爱无垠	Zhu Yibing
2007	Wonder Women	女人本色	Cheng Bicong	[30]
2008	Fit Lover	爱情左灯右行	Wu Dawei	[31]
2011	The Lost Bladesman	关云长	Han Fu	[32]
2011	The Founding of a Party	建党伟业	Chen Qimei	[33]
2012	The Flowers of War	金陵十三叉	Chinese soldier
2012	The Last Supper	王的盛宴	Xiang Zhuang
2013	Avalokitesvara	不肯去观音	Li Yi
2013	Return the Money	啊朋友还钱	Lu Dajun	[34]
2013	Target Locked	目标战	Lin Haonan	[35]
2014	Brotherhood of Blades	绣春刀	Zhao Jingzhong
2017	The Warriors	勇士	Yang Chengbin	[36]
2017	96 Hours	生死96小时	Zhao Yong
2018	The Blizzard	道高一丈	Song Chao	[37]
2018	Phantom from the Deep	古墓兽影	Wu Kui	[38]
2018	Endless Loop	黑暗迷宫		[39]
2018	Chinese Peacekeeping Forces	中国蓝盔	Chen Guoqiang	[40]
2019	For Love with You	一切如你		[41]
2019	Spy Wolf Chameleon	碟狼之变色龙		[42]
2019	Mao Zedong 1949	决胜时刻	Luo Ruiqing	[43]
2019	Towards The River Glorious	打过长江去		[44]

Television series

Year	English title	Chinese title	Role	Notes
1998		百年浮沉	Pei Yexiang
1999		嫂娘	Yunlin
1999	Smart Kid	机灵小不懂	Zhengde Emperor
1999	Love Letter	情书	Lü Bin	Cameo
2000	Wrong Carriage, Right Groom	上错花轿嫁对郎	Qi Tianlei
2000		夏日恋语录	Dali	Cameo
2000		夺命网路	Xu Bo	Cameo; alternative title Ai Buxuyao Chengnuo (愛,不需要承諾)
2001		天下粮仓	Qianlong Emperor
2001		如影随形	Zuo Xiaobing	Cameo
2001	Love Legend of the Tang Dynasty	大唐情史	Bianji
2001		非常情网	Tian Jiang
2001	Lü Bu and Diaochan	吕布与貂蝉	Cao Cao	Alternative title Diewu Tianya (蝶舞天涯)
2002	Four Marshals	四大名捕斗将军	Wuqing
2002	The Eight Hilarious Gods	笑八仙	Da'erguai
2002		军港之夜	Xiao Ming	[45]
2003	Eternity: A Chinese Ghost Story	倩女幽魂	Qiye
2003	Heroes of Sui and Tang Dynasties	隋唐英雄传	Luo Cheng
2003	High Flying Songs of Tang Dynasty	大唐歌飞	An Qingxu
2003		龙凤奇缘	Fu Jun
2003	Life Concern	人命关天	Chen Tianhua	[46]
2003		青天衙门	Lin Youqing	Cameo
2004		汗血宝马	Zhao Xizhu
2004		京城四少	Tiedan
2004	Han Women	大汉巾帼	Fu Shen
2004		凌云壮志包青天	Wang Chao	Cameo
2004		谁主中原	Chongzhen Emperor
2004	The 100th Bride	第100个新娘	Xiaogang	[47]
2004	Carol of Zhenguan	贞观长歌	Li Ke
2005	Eonian Hero	逐日英雄	Ouyang Hanqiang	[48]
2005		殷商传奇	Zu Mawang	Cameo[49]
2005	Leave like the Wind	像风一样离去	Fan Yifeng	[50]
2006	Fox Volant of the Snowy Mountain	雪山飞狐	Hu Fei
2006	Red Streamer	红幡	Zhang Ziqing	[51]
2006	Met As Strangers, Once Acquainted	相逢何必曾相识	Zhou Xinyan	Cameo
2006	Ming Dynasty	大明天下	Mu Yunzhou	Cameo[52]
2006	Drifting Life	人间浮沉	Wu Shu
2006	Project A	A计划	young Tang Lang	Cameo
2006		男人的天堂	Zhong Shan
2007		戴着面具跳舞	Suona	[53]
2007	Flags of Our Fathers	父辈的旗帜	Zhong Hao	[54]
2007		天下兄弟	Liu Dong	[55]
2009	Shooting from Behind	枪声背后	Ye Zhenglong	[56]
2010	Three Kingdoms	三国	Zhao Yun
2010	Hi Neighbourhood	嗨！芳邻	Gardener	[57]
2011	Journey to the West	西游记	Tang Sanzang
2012	Sheath Knife	刀出鞘	Liu Yunxiang	[58]
2014	Deng Xiaoping at History's Crossroads	历史转折中的邓小平		Cameo
2014		花红花火	Chen Sanpao	[59]
2015	Flying Swords of Dragon Gate	龙门飞甲	Zhao Huai'an	[60]
2015	The Legend of Xiaozhuang	大玉儿传奇	Hong Taiji	[61]
2016	Will of Steel	心如铁	Long Ma	[62]
2017		东方有大海	Deng Shichang	[63]
2018	Hidden Dragon	潜·龙	Yang Youxin	[64]
2018	Story of Yanxi Palace	延禧攻略	Qianlong Emperor
2019	The Legend of Haolan	皓镧传	Lü Buwei	[65]
2019	The Plough Department of Song Dynasty	大宋北斗司		Cameo
2019	Can't Hide The Sun	掩不住的阳光		[66]
2019	The Listener	心灵法医	Ming Chuan	[67]
2019	Yanxi Palace: Princess Adventures	金枝玉叶	Qianlong Emperor
2020	Knock on the Happiness Door	幸福还会来敲门	Huang Zili	[68]
2020	The Heritage	传家	Xi Weian	[69]
2021		前行者	Tang Xianping	[70]
2022	Left Right	亲爱的小孩	Xie Tianhua	[71]
	The Wind Blows From Longxi	风起陇西	Feng Ying	[72]
	Stories of Lion Rock Spirit	狮子山下的故事	Xie Fei	[73]
		风云战国之枭雄	Tian Dan	[74]
	Our Ten Years	我们这十年	Fang Xingui	[75]
2023	Calming Waves	定风波	Su Shi	[76]
2023	Only for Love	以爱为营	Guan Xiangcheng	[77]
2024		山花烂漫时	Zhou Shanqun	[78]
2024		暗夜与黎明	Zheng Yang	[79]

Discography

English title	Chinese title	Notes
"Love You Til the End"	愛你愛到底	Theme song of Red Streamer; performed together with Hu Ke
Legend	傳說	Ending theme song of Fox Volant of the Snowy Mountain
"Whose Bride Are You"	你是誰的新娘	Opening theme song of Leave like the Wind

Awards

Year	Award	Category	Nominated work	Result	Ref.
2009	12th Golden Phoenix Awards	Society Award	—	Won
2018	5th The Actors of China Award Ceremony	Best Actor (Web series)	Story of Yanxi Palace	Won	[80]