Christopher Lee pips younger brother for Best Actor at Golden Bell Award
Home-grown actor Christopher Lee won his fourth Golden Bell Award in Taipei on Oct 19, beating out his younger brother in the same category.
The Malaysia-born star, 53, took home Best Actor in a Miniseries or Television Movie for the legal drama Port Of Lies. His younger brother, Frederick Lee, 48, was nominated for the same award for his performance in the television film Night Blindness.
When Christopher’s name was announced at the ceremony, which is Taiwan’s most prestigious awards show recognising TV and radio works, Frederick escorted his brother to the stage.
Christopher began his buoyant acceptance speech by yelling out “Holy Mazu!”, a phrase referencing the sea goddess Mazu that his public defender character in Port Of Lies uses often.
He then thanked his family, making special mention of his brother.
“Thank you for entering the acting industry, and I’ll be the one escorting you up here next time,” he said.
Christopher also gave a shoutout to his Singaporean actress-wife Fann Wong, 53, and their 10-year-old son.
“To my wife, Fann, you are my lucky star. Thank you for loving me so much, I love you very much too. Thanks for taking such good care of our son so I have the opportunity to take on acting projects overseas with peace of mind. Thank you to my adorable son, Zed. I can leave home to film with such ease because you’re a good, sensible kid.”
This is Christopher’s fourth Golden Bell. He previously won Best Supporting Actor in a Television Series in 2022 for the thriller Danger Zone (2021); Best Leading Actor in a Miniseries or Television Film in 2021 for his turn as a construction worker in Workers (2020); and Best Leading Actor in 2014 in family drama A Good Wife (2013).
In a backstage interview posted on the awards’ YouTube page after his win, he said he would gift the prize money of NT$100,000 (S$4,095) to Frederick in a hongbao. Frederick married his long-time girlfriend in September.
He added that Frederick has always been a supportive brother to him. “It’s nice to have a companion in this industry who I can discuss work with. It’s a form of happiness and fate. I’m a blessed man because both my wife and my brother are in the same industry as me.”
Frederick told The Straits Times over text messaging on Oct 20 that he is not disappointed to have missed out on the win. “I was looking forward to my brother winning because he put up such an excellent performance in Port Of Lies. He is truly deserving,” he wrote.
Christopher told ST that he celebrated his win with the Port Of Lies team in an after-party that Frederick attended as well.
In Singapore, Fann and Zed watched the ceremony live from their home.
She posted on Instagram photos and videos of herself and her son rejoicing and blowing kisses at the screen when Christopher’s win was announced.
She wrote: “Holy Mazu, hubby, how are you so outstanding?”
Many local celebrities including Mark Lee, Sharon Au, Priscelia Chan, Kate Pang, Hayley Woo and Quan Yifeng congratulated him in the comments section of the post.
Another home-grown star who had her day in the sun was Singaporean singer-songwriter Tanya Chua, 49.
She won Best Original Song for Finland, which is part of the soundtrack of the drama series Imperfect Us. It was the first time she wrote and scored an entire soundtrack for a series. This was her first Golden Bell Award after 27 years in the entertainment industry.
She added that Finland was written near the end of the Covid-19 pandemic. “The song represents the distance people keep from others as a way of protecting themselves, just like what we all did during the pandemic. With this win now, I want to wish everyone well, as we can finally open up our hearts to love and be loved properly.”
At the end of the speech, she urged more directors to seek her out for collaborations. “I was saying to (Taiwanese rocker) Luantan Ascent just now that as we’ve been in the industry for such a long time, sometimes it might feel like we have run out of inspiration to write songs. But I actually do still have lots of inspiration, so directors, let’s work together if there’s a chance.”
The Golden Bell Awards was held on Oct 12, 18 and 19 for radio, variety and drama works respectively. In the drama category, Port Of Lies won big, clinching major awards such as Best Miniseries and Best Writing.
For TV series, the family drama Living, produced by Taiwanese actress Ruby Lin, was the undisputed winner. It took home trophies like Best Television Series, Best Directing, Best Actor for Wu Kang-jen, Best Actress for Yang Kuei-mei and Best Supporting Actor for Joseph Cheng.
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