Jiang Wen | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 姜文 | |||||||||||
 Jiang in 2008 | |||||||||||
| Born | Jiang Xiaojun[1] (1963-01-05)5 January 1963 (age 63) Tangshan, Hebei, China | ||||||||||
| Alma mater | Central Academy of Drama | ||||||||||
| Occupations | Actor, screenwriter, film director | ||||||||||
| Years active | 1986–present | ||||||||||
| Spouses | |||||||||||
| Children | 3 | ||||||||||
| Parent(s) | Jiang Hongqi (father) Gao Yang (mother) | ||||||||||
| Relatives | Jiang Wu (brother) | ||||||||||
| Awards | Hong Kong Film Awards –Best Supporting Actor 1997The Soong Sisters Hong Kong Film Critics Society Awards –Best Director 2011Let the Bullets Fly Best Screenplay 2011Let the Bullets Fly Golden Horse Awards –Best Director 1996In the Heat of the Sun Best Adapted Screenplay 1996In the Heat of the Sun 2011Let the Bullets Fly Best Film Editing 2007The Sun Also Rises Hundred Flowers Awards –Best Actor 1986Hibiscus Town 1989A Woman for two | ||||||||||
| Chinese name | |||||||||||
| Chinese | 姜文 | ||||||||||
| |||||||||||
| Chinese name | |||||||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 姜小軍 | ||||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 姜小军 | ||||||||||
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Jiang Wen (born 5 January 1963) is a Chinese actor and filmmaker. As a director, he is sometimes grouped with the "Sixth Generation" that emerged in the 1990s.[2] His representative works includeIn the Heat of the Sun (1994),Devils on the Doorstep (2000),The Sun Also Rises (2007), andLet the Bullets Fly (2010). Jiang is also well known internationally as an actor, having starred withGong Li inZhang Yimou's debut filmRed Sorghum (1986), and more recently asBaze Malbus in theStar Wars filmRogue One (2016). He is the older brother of fellow actorJiang Wu.
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Jiang was born inTangshan to a family of military personnel. He relocated toBeijing at the age of ten. In 1973, he attended Beijing No. 72 Middle School, where he studied alongsideYing Da.[3] In 1980, he entered China's foremost acting school, theCentral Academy of Drama, graduating in 1984.
After graduation from acting school, Jiang was assigned to China Youth Art Institute as an actor.[3] That same year, he started acting both on the stage (with the China Youth Theater) and in films.
Jiang's debut role was in the filmThe Last Empress, portrayingPuyi.[4] He then starred inHibiscus Town directed byXie Jin; his role as an intellectual revolutionary earned him the Best Actor Award at theHundred Flowers Awards.[5] Jiang once again paired withHibiscus Town co-star in the filmChun Tao directed byLing Zifeng.[6] Jiang was cast inZhang Yimou's debut filmRed Sorghum.[7] He also performed in the France-Chinese filmTears of the Bridal Sedan and his first commercial filmThe Trial.
Jiang performed in many television series, becoming especially known for his role in the 1992 television seriesA Native of Beijing in New York (based on the novelBeijinger in New York. It made him one of the most popular Chinese actors of his generation.[8]
Hebei hae also starred inBlack Snow (1990),[9]Li Lianying: The Imperial Eunuch (1991),[10]The Emperor's Shadow (1996),[11] andThe Soong Sisters (1997). Apart fromRed Sorghum, Jiang also collaborated withZhang Yimou for the 1997 filmKeep Cool.
Jiang starred in several films in the early 2000s; namelyThe Missing Gun,Green Tea,My Father and I,Warriors of Heaven and Earth,Jasmine Women andLetter from an Unknown Woman.[12]
Jiang continued acted in television series, such asDa Qing Fengyun (2006), in which he playedHong Taiji.[citation needed] He also played notable historical figures,Mao Renfeng in the propaganda filmThe Founding of a Republic;[13] andCao Cao in the historical war filmThe Lost Bladesman.[14]
Jiang co-starred in theStar Wars anthology filmRogue One, released in December 2016. In the film, he portrays Baze Malbus, a native of the moon of Jedha who is drawn into the war against the Galactic Empire.[15]
Jiang is set to return to the small screen in the historical dramaCao Cao.[16]
Jiang wrote and directed his first film in 1994,In the Heat of the Sun, adapted from a novel byWang Shuo.[17] A tale set in theCultural Revolution, it won for its young lead actorXia Yu the Best Actor prize at theVenice Film Festival and garnered sixGolden Horse Awards inTaiwan.
In 2000, Jiang co-wrote and directed the black comedy filmDevils on the Doorstep. The film premiered at the2000 Cannes Film Festival and clinched theGrand Prix[18] but was subsequently banned in its home country;[19] said to undermine the country because it "seriously distorts Chinese history". Jiang himself was banned from making films for seven years.[20] In 2001 he was a member of the jury at the23rd Moscow International Film Festival.[21]
Jiang returned with his fourth featureThe Sun Also Rises in 2007; a fantasy realism film which contains a polyptych of interconnected stories in different time-zones; the film received positive reviews from critics but bombed at the box office.[22][23] He then collaborated with 10 other directors on the romance anthology filmNew York, I Love You.[24]
Jiang's fifth feature, a Western-styled action comedyLet the Bullets Fly set a box office record by becoming the fastest Chinese-language film to break RMB100m mark ($15.15m) in Chinese cinemas; and received critical acclaim.[25][26]
In 2013 he was named as a member of the jury at the70th Venice International Film Festival.[27]
In 2014, Jiang directed the action comedy filmGone with the Bullets, which screened at the65th Berlin International Film Festival.[28][29] In 2018, Jiang directed the Republican-era spy comedyHidden Man.[30] The film was China's submission to the91st Academy Awards.[31] These two films together withLet the Bullets Fly form his gangsterBeiyang trilogy.[32][33][34]
Jiang Wen's father is Jiang Hongqi, a veteran of theKorean War. Described as taciturn and bookish, he played a minor role in his son's 2011 film,Let the Bullets Fly. Jiang's mother Gao Yang — "a cheerful, extroverted woman" — worked as a piano teacher. Jiang Wen is the eldest son in the family; in addition to his younger brother, Jiang Wu, he has a younger sister, Jiang Huan.
Close to his family, Jiang has a deep bond with his parents: whenever he is on site for shooting or acting, he arranges for them to come to his workplace so that he can spend time with them. Each movie he makes, he saves the best seats for them and asks for their opinions. Even on artistic composition, he sometimes resorts to them for advice. It was his parents' endorsement on the original novel ofA Native of Beijing in New York that propelled Jiang into his performance. Later, during the filming of his first feature film,In the Heat of the Sun, Jiang again considered their evaluation ofXia Yu, before settling on him as the leading actor.[35]
Jiang met his first partner,Liu Xiaoqing during the production of his debut filmHibiscus Town. As he was 23 and she was 31, their relationship was controversial in the entertainment industry at that time, although it was reported that the crew was very supportive of their relationship. Liu Xiaoqing never confirmed the relationship, but only claimed that the media pressure was so suffocating that she once considered going abroad. Years later at one ceremony, DirectorXie Jin finally verified this rumor, revealing that they had actually lived together for three years. Liu and Jiang separated amicably in 1994.[36]
In 1995, Jiang began a relationship with Sandrine Chenivesse, a Doctor of Anthropology at theUniversity of Paris, researching philosophy and Taoism in China, at an artistic event. They married inParis in 1997 and had a daughter together, but the marriage remained discreet until their appearance on the red carpet of the 2000Cannes Film Festival. In 2005, Chenivesse announced their divorce, citing long-distance separation as the cause.[37]
In 2001, during the filming ofWarriors of Heaven and Earth, Jiang was introduced to cast memberZhou Yun, by fellow actressZhao Wei. Later, Jiang recommended Zhou to the cast ofThe Music Box, but each left the crew after a creative difference between Jiang and the directorChen Yifei. Jiang and Zhou married in 2005 and have two sons together.[38]
Acting roles
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 | The Last Empress | Puyi | |
| Hibiscus Town | Qiu Shutian | ||
| Tears of the Bridal Sedan | |||
| 1987 | Red Sorghum | My grandpapa | |
| 1989 | Chun Tao | Wen Chiang | |
| 1990 | Black Snow | Li Huiquan | |
| 1991 | Li Lianying: The Imperial Eunuch | Li Lianying | |
| 1993 | The Trail | Chinese policeman | |
| 1994 | In the Heat of the Sun | Ma Xiaojun (adult) | |
| 1996 | The Emperor's Shadow | Ying Zheng | |
| 1997 | Keep Cool | Bookseller | |
| The Soong Sisters | Charlie Soong | ||
| 2000 | Devils on the Doorstep | Ma Dasan | |
| 2002 | The Missing Gun | Ma Shan | |
| 2003 | Green Tea | Chen Mingliang | |
| My Father and I | Policeman | ||
| Warriors of Heaven and Earth | Lieutenant Li | ||
| 2004 | Jasmine Women | Mr. Meng | |
| Letter from an Unknown Woman | Writer / Mr. Xu | ||
| 2007 | The Sun Also Rises | Tang Yunlin | |
| 2009 | The Founding of a Republic | Mao Renfeng | |
| 2010 | Let the Bullets Fly | Zhang Mazi | |
| 2011 | The Lost Bladesman | Cao Cao | |
| 2014 | Gone with the Bullets | Ma Zouri | |
| 2016 | Rogue One: A Star Wars Story | Baze Malbus | |
| 2018 | Hidden Man | Lan Qingfeng | |
| 2021 | The Curse of Turandot | Khan | Cameo appearance |
| 2025 | You are the Best | Lang Guoren |
Feature film
| Year | Title | Director | Writer | Producer |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | In the Heat of the Sun | Yes | Yes | No |
| 2000 | Devils on the Doorstep | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| 2007 | The Sun Also Rises | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| 2010 | Let the Bullets Fly | Yes | Yes | No |
| 2014 | Gone with the Bullets | Yes | Yes | Executive |
| 2018 | Hidden Man | Yes | Yes | Executive |
| 2025 | You are the Best | Yes | Yes | No |
Short film
| Year | Title | Director | Writer | Producer |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | New York, I Love You | Yes | No | No |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1993 | Beijinger in New York | Wang Qiming | |
| 1997 | A Sentimental Story | Producer | |
| 2005 | Lotus Lantern | Chenxiang | |
| 2006 | Da Qing Fengyun | Hong Taiji |
