Li Chengru: Chinese Actor's Journey from Business Failure to Stardom

Li Chengru is a nationally famous Chinese actor, but before he gained fame as an entertainer, he was a self-made businessman who lost his entire US$13 million in foreign currency trading.

Beijing-born Li, 71, is famous for many classic roles, such as police officer Da Zeng in one of China’s first crime dramas, The VI Group of Fatal Case, and a psychopath who delivers a sharp monologue about the real estate market in Feng Xiaogang’s 2001 film Big Shot’s Funeral.

Li was the youngest son of 11 children born to his parents, who ran a silk shop. He was two years old in 1956 when his father died, with the family business already having failed. Li grew up eating wild vegetables and other people’s leftover food. His mother worked at railway construction sites, and sent her older children to learn Peking opera.

Li was assigned to a clothing factory after leaving secondary school. One day he met actor Dong Xingji while watching a play, and became his apprentice. The experience sparked Li’s passion for acting. He took a test to enter the amateur acting training class of the Beijing Film Academy at the age of 26.

Li’s teacher told him he had a face that would not make him famous before he turned 40. The prophecy came true. Li could not find an acting job, so instead he sought backstage opportunities.

He impressed Yang Jie, director of the classic 1986 TV series Journey to the West, with his writing skills, and became a script supervisor.

Li toured China in search of impactful locations for the drama. He said this adventurous experience benefited his later life as a businessman and actor.