Mark Chao

Mark Chao is a Taiwanese-Canadian actor known for his performances across television series and feature films. Born on September 25, 1984, he began his acting career in Taiwan before shifting his focus to mainland Chinese film and television productions. He has established himself as a prominent screen lead, headlining several major box-office hits and popular broadcast dramas.

Chao is the son of actor and television presenter Allen Chao. He pursued his post-secondary education in Canada, graduating from the University of Victoria with a double major in economics and sociology. Following the completion of his studies, he returned to Taiwan to begin working in the entertainment industry.

He made his professional acting debut in the 2009 television drama Black & White, playing Wu Yingxiong, a impulsive and principled police officer. The breakout performance brought him rapid fame and earned him the Best Actor award at the 44th Golden Bell Awards. He made his feature film debut the following year in Doze Niu's gangster drama Monga, which achieved both critical acclaim and commercial success, earning Chao the Best Newcomer honor at the Asian Film Awards.

After re-teaming with Niu for the 2012 ensemble film Love, Chao expanded his work beyond Taiwan. He starred in the romantic drama First Time alongside Angelababy and reprised his signature role in the film prequel Black & White Episode I: The Dawn of Assault. That same year, he starred opposite Gao Yuanyuan in Chen Kaige's Caught in the Web, winning the Best Actor award for the Hong Kong and Taiwan category at the Huabiao Awards. In 2013, he played an ambitious university student in Zhao Wei's directorial debut So Young and portrayed the title character Di Renjie in Tsui Hark's action mystery Young Detective Dee: Rise of the Sea Dragon.

Chao again returned to his cop role in the 2014 film sequel Black & White: The Dawn of Justice, securing the Best Actor award at the 16th Huading Awards. He subsequently starred as Hu Bayi in Lu Chuan's 2015 adventure film Chronicles of the Ghostly Tribe, an adaptation of the novel Ghost Blows Out the Light that performed strongly at the box office despite divided views regarding its book faithfulness. After appearing in the 2016 Chinese-French action feature The Warriors Gate, Chao made an eight-year return to television in the 2017 fantasy romance series Eternal Love. Although his initial casting faced public skepticism, his performance gained praise, driving a dramatic surge in his popularity and leading to numerous project offers.

His later credits include the 2018 Antarctic-set romantic film Till the End of the World, a reprise of his detective role in Detective Dee: The Four Heavenly Kings, and a appearance in Lou Ye's period drama Saturday Fiction. His work extended to the 2024 film Her Story. His industry prominence was highlighted by Forbes China Celebrity 100 rankings, where he appeared at 100th in 2011 and reached 36th in 2017.

In his personal life, Chao dated his Black & White co-star Ning Chang from 2009 to 2011, a relationship they publicly confirmed in 2014 on the talk show Kangsi Coming. After meeting on the set of Caught in the Web, Chao married actress Gao Yuanyuan in 2014. The couple welcomed their daughter, Rhea Chao, in June 2019.