ZHAO Wei
ZHAO WEI is one of the most influential Chinese actresses in the world. She is the only person who has won Best Actress, Most Popular Actress and Best Singer awards from fi lm, TV and music industries. She has 15 Best Actress awards for her roles in films, 9 Best Actress awards for her roles in TV shows, and the total sales of her albums reached 9,000,000. Zhao has more fan websites than any other female celebrity in China.
Zhao became an Asian superstar overnight in 1998-1999 for starring as Xiaoyanzi in the TV series My Fair Princess. Her film Shaolin Soccer (2001) was the highest-grossing Chinese film in France and Italy. Her film So Close (2002) ranked top in Chinese DVD sales in France and her TV series Romance in the Rain was the most popular Chinese TV drama in France. Zhao’s 2004 fi lm Jade Goddess of Mercy was well received at the Berlin Film Festival and earned her the Most Popular Award from the Verona Film Festival in Italy.
She won Best Actress for her performance in A Time To Love (2005) from the Shanghai International Film Festival. Zhao has appeared in high-profile films like Red Cliff (2008) and Painted Skin (2008) and is acknowledged by many directors from Hong Kong and abroad. In 2009, she played Mulan in Mulan: Rise of a Warrior and became the first actress from China to star in a female-driven fi lm that grossed over $10 million at the box office. In 2006, People Magazine selected Zhao as one of the “100 Most Beautiful People.”
In 2013, Zhao’s directing debut So Young grossed over $116 million with a $5 million budget, making her the highest-grossing female director in China.