George Hu

George Hu
胡宇威

George Hu hosting during the 2015 DramaFever award ceremony
Background information
Chinese name 胡宇威
Pinyin Hú Yǔwēi (Mandarin)
Birth name George Hu
Origin Republic of China, (Taiwan)
Born (1982-07-24) July 24, 1982
New York City, New York
Other name(s) Geo
Occupation Actor, singer
Genre(s) Mandopop
Voice type(s) Baritone
Label(s) More! Entertainment Music 魔耳國際娛樂
Years active 2006-present
Associated acts Wu Hu Jiang
Website George Hu's Wretch blog
Polyland.asia
George Hu official Facebook

George Hu (Chinese: 胡宇威; pinyin: Hú Yǔwēi) born on July 24, 1982 in New York City, New York.[1] is an American actor and singer based in Taiwan. He speaks fluent Taiwanese, Mandarin, and English. He was formerly managed by media tycoon Yang Dengkui's First Media Corporation. Since 2011 he has been signed under Yang Dengkui's new management company Polyland International Entertainment (寶麗來國際娛樂).

Early life

George Hu was born and raised in New York City, New York on July 24, 1982 to parents of Taiwanese descent. Eldest of a 2 children family, he has a sister younger by 2 years, mother and father who all currently still reside in New York. At age 7 he began training in Chinese martial arts.[2] His mother who had martial arts training herself was a huge influence on him learning martial arts.[3] He studied under Master Marlon Ma at NY Wutang Chinese Martial Arts Institute where he learned the fighting style of the long fist, praying mantis, and baji. He participated in several martial arts competitions in the US and has won several competitions such as 1995 S. Henry Cho America Open, Shi Fu Yang Shu-Ton Martial Arts Association of Ohio Chinese Martial Arts Tournament, Huang Chien Liang U.S.C.K.F, and Wushu Kung Fu Federation. At age 17 he was appointed as an instructor at Wutang.[4] He attended St. John's University located in Queens, New York, graduating in 2004 with a bachelor's degree in Computer Graphic Design. While visiting family and friends in Taiwan after graduating from college he was scouted and asked to audition for a talent agency due to his boyish good looks and 5' 11" (180 cm) height.[5] Besides martial arts, he also enjoys playing the viola and electric guitar.

Acting career

2005: Move to Taiwan and learning Chinese

In March 2005 he signed under Yang Dengkui's First Media Holdings Corporation and moved to Taiwan to pursue a career in acting. He lived at his uncle's house and shared a bedroom with his cousin when he first moved to Taiwan. As he was unfamiliar with the Chinese language since he only spoke a few words and couldn't read or write Chinese he spent his entire first year in Taiwan learning basic Chinese and memorizing the lines to his first drama "Emerald on the Roof".

2006-2007: Acting debut

In 2006 he made his acting debut as the 2nd male lead alongside Wallace Huo in the idol drama "Emerald on the Roof". As his Chinese pronunciations wasn't fluent his voice was dubbed by a voice actor in the drama. His next drama, 2007's pre-war China comedy, romance, action drama "Love at First Fight" starred mostly the same cast from "Emerald On the Roof" with the addition of Hong Kong actress/singer Miriam Yeung as the female lead. His voice was once again dubbed in both Mandarin and Cantonese for this drama.

2007-2009: Collaboration with "Fahrenheit" members

In late 2007 he moved to more mainstream idol drama "Romantic Princess" playing Taiwanese boyband Fahrenheit members Wu Chun and Calvin Chen . This is the first drama his real voice can be heard. That same year he also had a minimal role in the 2nd installment of popular Taiwanese idol K.O. drama franchise "The X-Family" starring alongside the rest of the other Fahrenheit members. In early 2008 he once again played Wu Chun's younger brother in a supporting role for the idol drama "Hot Shot" working alongside popular Taiwanese idols Jerry Yan and Show Luo. In the summer of 2008 he starred alongside Rainie Yang and Jiro Wang from Fahrenheit in the idol drama "ToGetHer" as Jia Sen aka Ah Gan. The drama was aired in early 2009. For this role he had to play a 20-year-old college student and swimming captain with the mind of an 8-year-old boy, he also had to train his body to resemble a championship swimmer.

2009-2010: First leading role and music career

In early 2009 till early 2010 he starred in his first leading role for the 3rd installment of the K.O. drama franchise "K.O.3an Guo" as a modern version of Chinese historical general Guan Yu. The drama was filmed as it aired. During the beginning filming period of "K.O.3an Guo" he was involved in a traffic accident while on his way to the film set. His left leg was injured, he relied on crutches or a wheelchair to get around for 3 month, because of his injury he was not able to perform much of his martial arts stunts for the early episodes of the drama. Also due to the popularity of the drama he and his co-stars were later formed into a five-member boy band called "Wu Hu Jiang" or "Tiger Team" in English.

2010-2011: Difficult times and change of management

Most of 2010 and early 2011 was a difficult year for Hu. His band "Wu Hu Jiang" ceased activity due to restructuring of their management company and he received little to none filming offers. His only work during this period was in a minor role for the idol drama "Me & My Brothers". Due to the minimum work offers he received during this time his father had said to him that if he wanted to quit show business and return to New York it will be fine with his family, but he persisted and signed with Yang Dengkui's new management company Polyland International Entertainment in 2011.[6] His first role under Polyland's management was as the lead in 2011's "Hayate the Combat Butler" based on the popular Japanese manga of the same name. His leading lady for this drama was popular Korean actress Park Shin-hye from Korean drama "You're Beautiful" fame.

2012-2013: Turning point and popularity rising

The turning point in his career came in late 2012 starring as the male lead alongside Annie Chen as the female lead in SETTV's romance drama "Love, Now". In an interview for LETV he stated that he had accepted the project during the early stages of development and without even knowing the story line or seeing a script to the project in order to re-establish his presence in Taiwan since he had been filming dramas in Mainland China for the past year.[7] He received a lot of notice for his role as Lan Shi-da a cold but caring business family man. His pairing with Annie Chen was so well received that SETTV decided to pair them up again as a couple less than 3 month after "Love, Now" ended in 2013's "Love Around".

His fame continued to rise in late 2013 after starring in the joint mainland China and Taiwan historical drama "Lan Ling Wang" as the lead character's younger half brother An De Wang. He's voice was dubbed for his mainland China dramas since he still cannot pronounce Chinese Mandarin with hundred percent fluency and still maintains a foreigner accent when speaking Chinese Mandarin. His popularity in Taiwan also continued to rise after his 2nd successful collaboration with Annie Chen in the drama "Love Around".

2014-Present: Movie debut & Love Cheque Charge

After production of "Love Around" ended Hu took a few months off from acting, only focusing on advertisement work and to prep for his film debut. In March 2014 Hu began filming in Mainland China for his film debut, "Where the Wind Settles 風中家族", a film about China during World War II wartime period. The later half of the movie will be filmed in Taiwan depicting early Kuomintang rule in Taiwan. Hu will be playing a Chinese soldier who flees to Taiwan after the Communist party takes over China. To prep for the role he had to go through a strict diet in order to lose over 10Lbs from his regular weight of 70 kg (155Lbs).[8][9]

After Where the Wind Settles finished filming in mid 2014, Hu accepted the lead to star in SETTV's weekly drama Love Cheque Charge, a romantic fantasy comedy about a man who is haunted by the ghost of the man he was asked to deliver a message to his girlfriend before he died.

Music career

2009-2011: Wu Hu Jiang

In 2009 due to the popularity of "K.O.3an Guo" George, alongside co-stars Benji, Bo Yan, Shao Xiang and Si Wei Hong Zheng were formed into a five-member boy band called "Wu Hu Jiang" (武虎將 / Tiger Team). The leader of the group was Benji with George as the spokesperson for the group. The group received moderate success and won the Best New Artist Award at Channel V's 14th Annual Global Chinese Chart And Asian Influence awards. Due to the members busy schedules with individual projects and restructuring of their agency the group's activities as a band ceased sometime in 2011 and officially disbanded in 2013. The group have never officially released an album.

2014-Present: Debut album

In 2014 Hu signed with music company "More! Entertainment Music" for his self-titled debut album. The album was published by Sony Music Taiwan. The first single from his album is Do Not Say Good Bye (別說Good Bye). The music video for Do Not Say Good Bye (別說Good Bye) starred his good friend and former Hayate the Combat Butler co-star Tia Li.

Personal life

George Hu has been rumored since December 2012 to be in a relationship with his "Love, Now" and "Love Around" co-star Taiwanese actress model Annie Chen whom he met during filming of "Love,Now".[10] News of the two dating in real life first started circulating when it was reported that Hu was exclusively carpooling Chen in his personal car to and from filming locations everyday, the two holding hands backstage during SETTV 2013 New Years countdown show, and both were caught at a movie theater together.[11] The two have been caught numerous times by gossip news photographers on private outings together. Sightings of the two by Taiwanese netizens has also been posted on the internet claiming to have witnessed them dining alone together and acting like a loving couple.[12] In February 2014 the two admitted to going on a trip together to Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida USA during their vacation time off when reports of fans overseas recognizing them were published. When questioned by reporters about their private relationship both have neither admitted or denied being in a relationship together, both would only say they are "good friends, good good friends, who enjoy each others company", although Chen has stated in interviews that if the other party is willing to go public with the relationship she is willing too also.[13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20]

Injuries

On January 14, 2009 while on his way to the film set of "K.O.3an Guo" he was injured in a car accident when a taxi after running a yellow traffic light collided with his motorbike.[21][22] He described the accident as being in the movie "The Matrix" after he was thrown mid air from his bike and landed on the ground heavily. He received minor cuts and grazes on his legs and suffered a fractured left shin. For a month he depended on crutches and a wheelchair for movement. Surgery was not needed and he recovered with no further complications.

During the Summer of 2011 his right lower front leg suffered a minor gash while filming a bike paddling scene for the drama "Summer Fever".[23] The wound has left a scar on his right front lower leg that is still visible in his later works when not covered with makeup.[24]

In 2013 while filming the constant baseball batting cage scenes in "Love Around" Hu sustained a back injury. It was last reported that he had been seeking treatment for over two months and was also going through acupuncture sessions to try to heal his injury.[25]

In October 2015, Hu suffered multiple injures while training for a film project. While training with heavy vehicle equipment, Hu suffered four broken ribs, a dislocated shoulder, a torn ligament in his right shoulder and showed signs of a collapsed lung. He was rushed to a hospital near the Pingxi district.[26]

Television series

Year Network Chinese Title English Role Character
2006 GTV 屋頂上的綠寶石 Emerald on the Roof 2nd Male Lead Nie Kai (聶凱)
2007 FTV 武十郎 Love at First Fight 2nd Male Lead Lei Sheng Da (雷聲大)
2007 CTV 公主小妹 Romantic Princess 3rd Male Lead Nan Feng Lin (南風璘)
2007 GTV 終極一家 The X-Family Supporting Role Shen Xing Zhe (神行者) / Qiang Ling Wang (槍靈王)
2008 CTV 籃球火 Hot Shot Supporting Role Wu Ji Wei (無極威)
2009 CTV 愛就宅一起 ToGetHer 2nd Male Lead Wei Jia Sen (魏加森)
2009 FTV/GTV 終極三國 K.O.3an Guo Male Lead Guan Yu (關羽)
2010 Astro 我和我的兄弟~恩 I, My Brother Supporting Role Dennis
2011 FTV 旋風管家 Hayate the Combat Butler Male Lead Ling Qisa (凌奇颯)/ Hayate Ayazaki
2011 FTV 新兵日記之特戰英雄 Rookies diary season2 Supporting Role Zheng Qiang (鄭強)
2012 CTV 戀夏38℃ Summer Fever Male Lead Lin Ming Kuan (林明寬)
2012 SETTV 真愛趁現在 Love, Now Male Lead Lan Shi De (藍仕德)
2013 TTV 真愛黑白配 Love Around Male Lead Zhou Zhen (周震)
2013 CCTV 新神探联盟 Xin Shen Tan Lian Meng 3rd Male Lead Zhan Chao (展超)
2013 JZTV 蘭陵王 Prince of Lan Ling 3rd Male Lead An De Wang (高延宗)
2014 PTS 為愛旅行 For The Love Of Travel Skit Male Lead Li Zhen Kai (李振凱)
2014 SETTV/TTV 幸福兌換券 Love Cheque Charge Male Lead He Bu Fan (何不凡)
2016 CUTV 幸福又見彩虹 Happiness Meets Rainbow Male Lead Du Van (杜凡)
2016 CTV/SETTV 那刻的怦然心動 Art In Love Male Lead Tao Yu Fei (陶予飛)
2016 戀人的謊言 Girls Lies Male Co-lead Yu Qi Ran (于奇然)

Filmography

Year Country English Chinese Title Character
2013 Taiwan version Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs 2 食破天驚2 Flint Lockwood 富林 拉伍 (voice dubbing)
Filming Taiwan Where the Wind Settles[27] 風中家族

Discography

Studio Album
# English Title Chinese Title Release Date Label
1st George Hu 胡宇威 14 October 2014 Sony Music TW[28]

Music video appearances

Publications

George Hu - GEO Photobook

Hardcover Image
Author George Hu 胡宇威
Country Taiwan
Genre photobook, biography
Published 2013 Shui-Ling Culture & Books 水靈文創
Media type Print hardback
Pages 152
ISBN 9789868999411
Shot by star photographer Zeng Jing Fu and styled by internationally renowned stylist Liu Da Jiang, George's self-titled 152-page photobook briefly details his struggles and early days in Taiwan to his current rise in the Asian entertainment circle.[29]

Endorsements

References

  1. ↑ (Chinese) George Hu's profile Retrieved 2010-12-17
  2. ↑ http://ent.appledaily.com.tw/enews/article/entertainment/20131107/35420438
  3. ↑ http://ent.appledaily.com.tw/enews/article/entertainment/20110423/33338103/
  4. ↑ (English) Wu-tang official webpage
  5. ↑ (English) appledaily.com news
  6. ↑ (Chinese) George Hu TW Cosmopolitan interview Retrieved 2014-02-16
  7. ↑ (Chinese) LETV interview Retrieved 2012-12-29
  8. ↑ (Chinese) dieting for film role. Retrieved 2014-3-31
  9. ↑ (Chinese) 風中家族 cast press conference. Retrieved 2014-3-31
  10. ↑ (Chinese) George Hu & Annie Chen nownews.com Retrieved 2014-02-14
  11. ↑ (Chinese) George Hu & Annie Chen yahoo.com news Retrieved 2014-02-16
  12. ↑ (Chinese) George Hu & Annie Chen chinayes.com news Retrieved 2014-02-14
  13. ↑ (Chinese) George Hu & Annie Chen appledaily news Retrieved 2014-02-14
  14. ↑ (Chinese) George Hu & Annie Chen appledaily news Retrieved 2014-02-14
  15. ↑ (Chinese) George Hu & Annie Chen shcaoan.com news Retrieved 2014-02-14
  16. ↑ (Chinese) George Hu & Annie Chen ipiao.com news Retrieved 2014-02-14
  17. ↑ (Chinese) George Hu & Annie Chen chinatimes news Retrieved 2014-02-14
  18. ↑ (Chinese) George Hu & Annie Chen ettoday news Retrieved 2014-02-14
  19. ↑ (Chinese) George Hu & Annie Chen ettoday news Retrieved 2014-02-14
  20. ↑ (Chinese) Annie Chen chinayes.com news Retrieved 2014-02-14
  21. ↑ (English) news Retrieved 2013-12-26
  22. ↑ (English) George Hu blog entry Retrieved 2013-12-26
  23. ↑ (Chinese) yes.com news Retrieved 2013-12-26
  24. ↑ (Chinese) George Hu blog entry Retrieved 2013-12-26
  25. ↑ George Hu back injury.Retrieved 2014-3-31
  26. ↑ George Hu breaks 4 ribs while training for new film.Retrieved 2016 July 23
  27. ↑ fb page. Retrieved 5-13-14
  28. ↑ George Hu debut album. Retrieved 11-06-2014
  29. ↑ kinokuniya.com 15 October 2013. Retrieved 2014-01-19
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