Yuan Shanshan (, born 22 February 1987) also known as Mabel Yuan is a

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of va ...

actress and singer. She is noted for her roles as in the ''Gong'' series: ''

Palace II ''Palace II'' (Chinese: 宫锁珠帘, lit. ''Locked Beaded Curtain'') is a 2012 Chinese television series written and produced by Yu Zheng and directed by Lee Wai-chu. It is a sequel to the 2011 television series ''Palace''. The series was firs ...

'' (2012) and ''Palace III'' (2013); as well as ''Swordsman'' (2013) and ''

Jian Bing Man ''Jian Bing Man'' () is a 2015 Chinese superhero parody film. It was directed, written and also starring Da Peng, Mabel Yuan Yuan Shanshan (, born 22 February 1987) also known as Mabel Yuan is a Chinese actress and singer. She is noted for he ...

'' (2015).

Early life and education

Yuan Shanshan was born in a wealthy and highly educated family, to civil servants parents, in Xiangcheng District of

Xiangyang Xiangyang is a prefecture-level city in northwestern Hubei province, China and the second largest city in Hubei by population. It was known as Xiangfan from 1950 to 2010. The Han River runs through Xiangyang's centre and divides the city no ...

city,

Hubei Hubei (; ; alternately Hupeh) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, and is part of the Central China region. The name of the province means "north of the lake", referring to its position north of Dongting Lake. The prov ...

province on February 22, 1987. At the age of 6, she started to play the

violin The violin, sometimes known as a ''fiddle'', is a wooden chordophone (string instrument) in the violin family. Most violins have a hollow wooden body. It is the smallest and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in the family in regular ...

. In 2005, she attended

Beijing Film Academy Beijing Film Academy (BFA; ) is a coeducational state-run higher education institution in Beijing, China. The film school is the largest institution specializing in the tertiary education for film and television production in Asia. The academy h ...

from which she graduated in 2009.

Career

Yuan made her acting debut in ''A House's Maid'' in 2010, and was praised by co-star Zhao Wenxuan for her performance. Yuan Shanshan first came to the attention of the audience when she played a supporting role in the historical television series ''Qin Xianglian''. Under her co-star

Leanne Liu Liu Sue-Hua, also known as Leanne Liu, is a Golden Bell Award-winning Hong Kong actress. She first starred in Shaw Brothers films in Hong Kong, but moved to Taiwan in the 1980s to focus on her television career. She is particularly famous for ap ...

's recommendation, she then signed with Yu Zheng's Studio. After guest-starring in ''

Palace A palace is a grand residence, especially a royal residence, or the home of a head of state or some other high-ranking dignitary, such as a bishop or archbishop. The word is derived from the Latin name palātium, for Palatine Hill in Rome which ...

'', Yuan then got the role of

Empress Xiaoshengxian Empress Xiaoshengxian (12 January 1692 – 2 March 1777), of the Manchu Bordered Yellow Banner Niohuru clan, was a posthumous name bestowed to the consort of Yinzhen, the Yongzheng Emperor and mother of Hongli, the Qianlong Emperor. She was h ...

in second installment of Yu Zheng's 'Gong' series; which propelled Yuan to fame and earned her a Breakthrough Improvement award. Thereafter Yuan starred in several productions by

Yu Zheng Yu Zheng (; born 28 February 1978) is a Chinese screenwriter and producer who is noted for ''Palace'', which earned him a Best Screenwriter award at the 16th Asian Television Awards. Biography Early life Yu was born and raised in Haining, Zheji ...

such as ''Beauty Without Tears'' (2012), the third installment of Yu Zheng's 'Beauty' series; ''Beauty of the Emperor'' (2012); ''Swordsman'' (2013), adapted from

Jin Yong Louis Cha Leung-yung (; 10 March 1924 – 30 October 2018), better known by his pen name Jin Yong (), pronounced "Gum Yoong" in Cantonese, was a Chinese wuxia (" martial arts and chivalry") novelist and essayist who co-founded the Hong Kong d ...

wuxia ( ), which literally means "martial heroes", is a genre of Chinese fiction concerning the adventures of martial artists in ancient China. Although is traditionally a form of historical fiction, its popularity has caused it to be adapted f ...

novel ''

The Smiling, Proud Wanderer ''The Smiling, Proud Wanderer'' is a wuxia novel by Jin Yong (Louis Cha). It was first serialised in Hong Kong in the newspaper ''Ming Pao'' from 20 April 1967 to 12 October 1969. The Chinese title of the novel, ''Xiao Ao Jiang Hu'', literally ...

''; and '' Palace 3: The Lost Daughter'' (2014), the sequel of ''Palace II'' - all of the series were popular during their run and led to increased recognition for Yuan. She is also known for her role in the period romantic drama ''Love in Spring'' (2013). However despite her rising popularity, Yuan faced several backlash by haters on

Weibo Weibo may refer to: * Microblogging in China, or China-based microblogging services (), including: ** NetEase Weibo (), launched by NetEase ** People's Weibo (), launched by ''People's Daily'' ** Phoenix Weibo (), launched by Phoenix Television ** W ...

in regards to her miscast as the role of Ren Yingying in ''Swordsman''. In 2015, Yuan starred in the superhero parody film ''

'', which was a box office success and broke ten million admissions. Yuan won the Most Powerful New Actress award at the Weibo Movie Awards Night. She next starred in the South Korean-Chinese romantic comedy film ''So I Married an Anti-fan'' and recorded a duet with her co-star

Park Chan-yeol Park Chan-yeol (; born November 27, 1992), better known mononymously as Chanyeol, is a South Korean rapper, singer, songwriter, producer, actor and model. He is a member of the South Korean-Chinese boy group Exo, its sub-group Exo-K and sub-u ...

from boy band

Exo Exo ( ko, 엑소; stylized in all caps) is a South Korean-Chinese boy band based in Seoul formed by SM Entertainment in 2011 and debuted in 2012. The group consists of nine members: Xiumin, Suho, Lay, Baekhyun, Chen, Chanyeol, D.O., Kai ...

. For the film, Yuan won the Most Popular Actress award at the

Chinese American Film Festival Chinese American Film Festival (CAFF) is an American film festival held every November since 2006 in California (with events in Los Angeles and San Francisco, previously also in San Diego). History In 2005, the Chinese American Film Festival w ...

Filmography

Film

Television series

Discography

Singles

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Yuan, Shanshan 1987 births People from Xiangyang Beijing Film Academy alumni Actresses from Hubei 21st-century Chinese actresses Living people Chinese film actresses Chinese television actresses