# Mo Tzu-yi

Morning Mo Tzu-yi (Chinese: 莫子儀; born 23 June 1981) is a Taiwanese actor. He debuted as a stage actor and began his on-screen career in 2005, landing a starring role in the romance film The Most Distant Course (2007). He then expanded his career internationally, appearing in the multinational film Snowfall in Taipei (2010), the Hong Kong film Cross (2012), and the Australian-Singaporean film Canopy (2013). He also co-wrote and starred as Lu Ho-jo in the autobiographical drama Roseki 1914 (2018), winning Best Writing and receiving a nomination for Best Male Lead in the 53rd Golden Bell Awards.
Mo delivered his breakout performance with Cheng Yu-chieh's Dear Tenant (2020), for which he won both Best Leading Actor in the 57th Golden Horse Awards and Best Actor in the 22nd Taipei Film Awards. Following the critical recognition, Mo also starred in Goddamned Asura (2021) and The Embers (2024), for which he received another nomination for Best Supporting Actor in the 61st Golden Horse Awards with the latter.

## Early life and education

Mo was born on 23 June 1981, in Wanli District, New Taipei City. His father worked in private security, while his mother was a hawker. He spent his childhood in the mountainous regions of Wanli. When he was young, he moved to Yonghe District, New Taipei City, living near the Fuhe Grand Theatre. His father took him to watch movies there during his childhood, sparking his interest in film, and he often skipped classes in the future to watch films at that theater. Mo attended the National Overseas Chinese Experimental Senior High School [zh], where he described his school years as "rebellious" and was nearly expelled after failing eight subjects in his first year. However, he was invited to join the school's drama club in the second semester, which ignited his passion for acting, and he cited the "sense of freedom" he felt on stage as a key reason for his newfound interest. At the age of 15, he starred in the short film Wild Sparrow written by Yang Ya-che.
After discovering his passion for acting, Mo enrolled at Taipei National University of the Arts to pursue studies in performing arts. He was mentored by stage director Ma Tin-ni [zh], and took on an overloaded course curriculum, graduating with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in 2003 after five years. During his university years, he developed an appreciation for literature, and worked part-time at Eslite Bookstore on Dunhua South Road in Taipei, often reading books there even when he was off duty. Due to his dislike of commercial activities and dealing with the press, Mo chose to work as a stage actor after graduation, and he continued to be labeled by the media as leading a "low-profile life".

## Career
### Early ventures (1996–2009)

Mo began his stage acting career while still in high school in 1996, debuting in Chefboy and Handmaid, and starred in One Hundred Years of Solitude, Dream Hotel, and Fallen Leaves in the following years. He gained prominence with the 2006 Water Margin, directed by Edward Lam [zh] and co-starring Joseph Chang. He also appeared in PTS television films, and received two nominations for Best Male Lead in a Television Series in the 35th Golden Bell Awards and Best Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or Television Film in the 37th Golden Bell Awards for his roles in The Pact of Choshui River [zh] and Watan's Wine Bottle [zh] respectively. Mo had a supporting role as a journalist in the 2002 drama film Somewhere Over The Dreamland [zh], but he returned to stage acting after that performance.
In 2005, after completing his mandatory military service, Mo began his on-screen acting career. He described his on-screen career as "unproductive", as he typically took on only one role at a time and often requested extensions of several months for pre-production to prepare for his characters, which led him to reject many offers. Before turning 30, he worked part-time at various restaurants to make a living, including nearly a year as a dishwasher. He debuted with Cheng Yu-chieh's 2006 drama film Do Over [zh], as he had been acquainted with Cheng since 18 years old. In 2007, he landed a starring role in the romance film The Most Distant Course alongside Gwei Lun-mei. In 2008, Mo was cast in a leading role in the television film Artemisia [zh], earning him another nomination for Best Leading Actor in a Miniseries or Television Film in the 43rd Golden Bell Awards, as well as a minor role in the drama film Candy Rain. The following year, he starred in Giddens Ko's segment of the romance anthology L-O-V-E [zh], and played Mozi, a washed-up bandleader, in the drama film A Place of One's Own [zh].

### Multinational career (2010–2017)

In 2010, Mo had a supporting role as a gangster in the drama film Tears [zh], and appeared in the Singaporean romance film Forever [zh] alongside Joanna Dong. He also took on a leading role as Jack, a journalist searching for a missing singer played by Tong Yao, in the Chinese-Hong Kong-Taiwanese-Japanese co-production Snowfall in Taipei. In 2011, Mo starred in main roles in the Hakka TV series Jiong Ien Sen [zh] and the family drama Son, My Love Forever [zh]. In 2012, he participated in another international project, the Hong Kong film Cross. He also took on a leading role in the romance series An Innocent Mistake [zh], alongside Wang Shih-hsien and Zaizai Lin, which earned him his second nomination for Best Lead Actor in the 48th Golden Bell Awards. In 2013, Mo starred as Seng, a Singaporean-Chinese resistance fighter, in the Australian-Singaporean war film Canopy. Australian director Aaron Wilson, who had seen one of Mo's previous works, tried to inquire about him at the Hong Kong Film Market to invite him to join the project, recalling that he found Mo "standing right behind [him]". Nicole Herrington of The New York Times described Mo's performance in Canopy as "more convincing" than that of his co-star Khan Chittenden; while Todd Brown of Screen Anarchy characterized Mo's performance as "stellar" and "engaging", also noting that it kept the audience captivated despite Chittenden's shortcomings.
In 2014, Mo made a cameo appearance alongside Blue Lan in Apple in Your Eye, a TTV series and the latest project of An Innocent Mistake's writer Mag Hsu [zh], as lead actress Amber An's colleague. He also landed a lead role as Bazi, the head of a design company in a romantic relationship with Tiffany Ann Hsu's character, in the romance film Design 7 Love [zh]. After starring in Designer 7 Love, Mo returned to stage acting and participated in Edward Lam's Dream of the Red Chamber, which was performed in Taiwan that same year and continued its run in Hong Kong the following year. In 2015, he starred in another romance film Elena [zh], which features a love triangle involving Tammy Chen [zh] and Kaiser Chuang. He also made a cameo appearance alongside Shih Ming-shuai as special agents from the 1980s in the period drama The Best of Youth [zh]. In 2016, Mo took on another main television role in the CTV series Nie Xiaoqian [zh], a modernized version of the folktale of the same name, where he played a surgeon who falls in love with the reincarnation of Nie Xiaoqian, portrayed by Annie Chen.

### Breakthrough and critical recognition (2018–present)

In 2018, Mo starred as playwright Lu Ho-jo in the autobiographical drama Roseki 1914 [zh], which he also co-wrote with director Lou Yi-an. However, in an interview with The News Lens, Mo noted that most of the script was completed by Lou and that he "only played a small part". He won Best Writing for a Television Series and a nomination for Best Male Lead in the 53rd Golden Bell Awards with his work. In the same year, he was approached by Cheng Yu-chieh at a wedding and offered the chance to collaborate on a project that he and Yang Ya-che were developing, which Mo accepted before the screenplay was finished. This project evolved into the drama film Dear Tenant, which premiered in 2020. In it, Mo played Lin, a tenant suspected of murdering the landlord (played by Chen Shu-fang) to take over the property. Tay Yek Keak of Today stated that Mo "practically carries" the film with his "greatly restrained, sensitive, and highly nuanced" performance; while Han Cheung of Taipei Times described his performance as "delicate, nuanced", and "hitting just the right notes for his role". His performance also won him both Best Actor in the 22nd Taipei Film Awards and Best Leading Actor in the 57th Golden Horse Awards. Also in 2020, he took on the lead role of Kuo Wei-chiang, a police detective, in the mystery thriller web series Kill for Love [zh], which earned him another nomination for Best Leading Actor in the 55th Golden Bell Awards.
In 2021, Mo appeared as Mold, an investigative journalist and one of the six ensemble cast members, in the crime drama film Goddamned Asura. Allan Hunter of Screen Daily collectively praised the leads as "a strong ensemble", while Lu Hao-ping of Global Views Monthly particularly commended Mo's portrayal of the journalist, highlighting his "exquisite performance" and acknowledging that he adequately captured the character's complexity. He was also nominated for Best Supporting Actor in the 24th Taipei Film Awards with the role in the following year. Mo was then cast as Cheng-hsiu, an astronomer experiencing a midlife crisis, in the drama film Murmur of Memories, which premiered in 2023. In 2024, Mo received a co-leading role alongside Chang Chen in Chung Mong-hong's The Embers, which earned him a nomination for Best Supporting Actor in the 61st Golden Horse Awards. Estella Huang of Mirror Media lamented the film's narrative thinness but called Mo's performance "competent within a limited scope".

## Personal life

In 2017, Mo published a prose anthology titled The Person with Insomnia, citing playwright Chen Ming-chai [zh] as his inspiration for the book. He adapted it into a stage play in 2018, in which he also starred alongside Huang Yu-siang [zh], and the play continued its run until May 2022. Mo got married in July 2022.

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1999 | Spring Cactus [zh] | Cheng-chen (承真) | |
| 2002 | Somewhere Over The Dreamland [zh] | Hsiao-mo (小莫) | |
| 2006 | Do Over [zh] | Li-hsiang (立翔) | |
| 2007 | The Most Distant Course | Hsiao-tang (小湯) | |
| 2008 | Candy Rain | Summer's husband | |
| 2009 | L-O-V-E [zh] | Hsiao-lu (小路) | |
| 2009 | A Place of One's Own [zh] | Mozi (莫子) | |
| 2009 | Pinoy Sunday | Husband in apartment | Cameo |
| 2010 | Tears [zh] | Black Eyes (黑目) | |
| 2010 | Forever [zh] | Gin Lee | |
| 2010 | Snowfall in Taipei | Jack | |
| 2012 | Cross | Woo (葉永禾) | |
| 2013 | Canopy | Seng (阿盛) | |
| 2013 | The Losers [zh] | Hsiang (阿祥) | Cameo |
| 2014 | Design 7 Love [zh] | Bazi (霸子) | |
| 2015 | Elena [zh] | Kevin | |
| 2020 | Dear Tenant | Lin Jian-yi (林健一) | |
| 2021 | Goddamned Asura | Mold (黴菌) | |
| 2023 | Murmur of Memories | Cheng-hsiu (葉承修) | |
| 2024 | The Embers | TBA | |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1999 | The Pact of Choshui River [zh] | Li Ming-nan (李明南) | Main role; television film |
| 2002 | Watan's Wine Bottle [zh] | Hsiao-mo (小莫) | Main role; television film |
| 2003 | Wintry Night II [zh] | Liu Ming-ji (劉明基) | Main role |
| 2006 | Mico, Go! [zh] | Shih Yuan (石原) | Main role |
| 2008 | Artemisia [zh] | Sung Hai (宋海) | Main role; television film |
| 2011 | Jiong Ien Sen [zh] | Wan Tsun-pin (萬俊斌) | Main role |
| 2011 | Son, My Love Forever [zh] | Hsiao Chi-chien (蕭智謙) | Main role |
| 2012 | An Innocent Mistake [zh] | Cheng Yu-en (鄭予恩) | Main role |
| 2014 | Apple in Your Eye | Chang Chi-hsun (張志勳) | Cameo |
| 2015 | The Best of Youth [zh] | 1980s special agent | Cameo |
| 2016 | Nie Xiaoqian [zh] | Ling Cheng-hsi (凌承熙) | Main role |
| 2018 | Roseki 1914 [zh] | Lu Ho-jo | Main role; also as writer |
| 2020 | Kill for Love [zh] | Kuo Wei-chiang (郭偉強) | Main role |

## Awards and nominations

| Year | Award | Category | Work | Result |
| 2000 | 35th Golden Bell Awards | Best Male Lead in a Television Series | The Pact of Choshui River [zh] | Nominated |
| 2002 | 37th Golden Bell Awards | Best Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or Television Film | Watan's Wine Bottle [zh] | Nominated |
| 2008 | 43rd Golden Bell Awards | Best Leading Actor in a Miniseries or Television Film | Artemisia [zh] | Nominated |
| 2013 | 48th Golden Bell Awards | Best Male Lead in a Television Series | An Innocent Mistake [zh] | Nominated |
| 2018 | 53rd Golden Bell Awards | Best Male Lead in a Television Series | Roseki 1914 [zh] | Nominated |
| Best Writing for a Television Series | 53rd Golden Bell Awards | Won | Roseki 1914 [zh] | |
| 2020 | 22nd Taipei Film Awards | Best Actor | Dear Tenant | Won |
| 2020 | 55th Golden Bell Awards | Best Leading Actor in a Miniseries or Television Film | Kill for Love [zh] | Nominated |
| 2020 | 57th Golden Horse Awards | Best Leading Actor | Dear Tenant | Won |
| 2021 | 2nd Taiwan Film Critics Society Awards | Best Actor | Dear Tenant | Won |
| 2021 | 15th Asian Film Awards | Best Actor | Dear Tenant | Nominated |
| 2022 | 24th Taipei Film Awards | Best Supporting Actor | Goddamned Asura | Nominated |
| 2024 | 61st Golden Horse Awards | Best Supporting Actor | The Embers | Nominated |