Kai Ko

Kai Ko
Ko in 2023
Born
Ko Chia-kai (柯家凱)

(1991-06-18) 18 June 1991 (age 35)
Penghu County, Taiwan
EducationChinese Culture University
Occupations
  • Actor
  • singer
  • film director
Years active2011–present
AwardsFull list
Musical career
Also known asKe Zhendong
OriginTaiwan
GenreMandopop
LabelSony Music
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese柯震東
Simplified Chinese柯震东
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu PinyinKē Zhèndōng
Yue: Cantonese
JyutpingO1 Zan3 Dung1
Southern Min
Hokkien POJKoa Chìn-tong

Kai Ko Chen-tung (Chinese: 柯震東; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Koa Chìn-tong; born Ko Chia-kai on 18 June 1991) is a Taiwanese actor, singer and film director.

Career

Ko rose to fame with You Are the Apple of My Eye (2011), for which he won Best New Actor at the 48th Golden Horse Awards and 12th Chinese Film Media Awards. He released his debut studio album, Be Yourself, the same year.

Following the success of the Tiny Times film series, his career was disrupted in 2014 when he was arrested in Beijing for marijuana possession, along with Jaycee Chan, leading to their blacklisting in mainland China. Ko's scenes in the Chinese films Monster Hunt and Tiny Times 4 were removed. His advertisement deals and his variety show engagements were also cancelled.

Ko returned to acting with The Road to Mandalay (2016) in Taiwan. In 2020, A Choo, a film he had acted in before the 2014 arrest, was released in Taiwan after he acquired the distribution rights from the Chinese copyright holder.

In 2021, Ko worked with Giddens Ko again in Till We Meet Again. In 2022, Ko won Best Actor at the 24th Taipei Film Awards for his role in the film.

Personal life

Relationships

Ko dated Cherry (黃慶宜), a TV showgirl, before he became famous for You Are the Apple of My Eye. He made headlines when his romance with pop singer Elva Hsiao, who is 12 years senior to him and a bigger star, broke in 2012. Ko then has an on-and-off relationship with singer Tia Lee since 2014.

Drug use

Ko had appeared in a 2012 anti-drug advertisement in Taiwan in which he and other celebrities declared, "I don't use drugs".

On 18 August 2014, Ko was arrested along with Jaycee Chan by the Beijing Police for drug use, amid a broad anti-drug crackdown on the Chinese celebrities. Police said both actors tested positive for marijuana and admitted using the drug. Ko was placed in administrative detention for 14 days. He was released on 28 August and faced another round of interrogations by the Taipei District Prosecutors Office after returning to Taiwan.

On 29 June 2018, NARS invited Ko to a promotional event in Taipei. After backlash on Weibo, NARS China issued a statement on 1 July expressing regret over the Taiwan team’s decision and apologizing; Ko deleted his social media posts of the event the same day.

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Notes Ref.
2011 You Are the Apple of My Eye Ko Ching-teng Golden Horse Awards for Best New Actor
Chinese Film Media Awards for Best New Actor
2012 When a Wolf Falls in Love with a Sheep Tung / Wolf
2013 Machi Action Face (stand-in) Cameo
Together A-tzu
Tiny Times Gu Yuan
Tiny Times 2 Gu Yuan
Dive in 2013 Ke Dong Short film
2014 Dive in 2014 Ke Dong Short film
Tiny Times 3 Gu Yuan
2015 Monster Hunt Scenes edited out due to drug use conviction
Tiny Times 4 Gu Yuan Scenes edited out due to drug use conviction
2016 The Road to Mandalay Ah Guo
2017 Mon Mon Mon Monsters Student on bus Cameo
2020 A Choo Wang Yi-zhi
2021 Moneyboys Fei
Till We Meet Again Ah Lun Taipei Film Awards for Best Actor
Grit Croc / Xiao Yu
2022 Mama Boy Hsiao Hung
Bad Education N/a Directorial debut
2023 Miss Shampoo Long Legs
2026 We Wish Chi-hua
Kung Fu

Television series

Year Title Role Notes/Ref.
2022The Exorcist
2024 Let's Talk About Chu Chou Ping-ke
Imperfect Us Yu Xiang-li
2026Agent from AboveHan Jie

Discography

Title Album details Track listing
Be Yourself
有話直說
Track listing
  1. "Qing Rang Wo Jixu Xihuan Ni" (請讓我繼續喜歡你; Please Let Me Continue to Like You)
  2. "Qing Bi Wo Ai Ta" (請比我愛她; Please Love Her Better Than I Do)
  3. "You Hua Zhi Shuo" (有話直說; Just Say It)
  4. "Ai Ni Jie Bu Liao" (愛你戒不了; Can't Stop Loving You)
  5. "Ai Jiu Ai" (愛就愛; Just Love)
  6. "Piao Liu Ping" (漂流瓶; Drifting Vase) featuring Michelle Chen
  7. "Zuo You" (左右; Left Right)
  8. "Feng Suo Ni" (封鎖你; Blocking You)
  9. "Be My Baby"
  10. "Bai Shi Zhi Ling" (百式之零; Zero of Hundred)

Awards and nominations

YearAwardCategoryNominated workResult Ref.
201148th Golden Horse AwardsBest New PerformerYou Are the Apple of My EyeWon
201212th Chinese Film Media AwardsBest New PerformerWon
6th Asian Film AwardsBest NewcomerNominated
Changchun Film FestivalBest ActorNominated
201653rd Golden Horse AwardsBest Leading ActorThe Road to MandalayNominated
2017Youth Film Handbook AwardsMale Actor of the YearWon
8th To Ten Chinese Films FestivalBest Performance by an Actor in a Leading RoleWon
58th Asia-Pacific Film FestivalBest ActorNominated
202158th Golden Horse AwardsBest Leading ActorMoneyboysNominated
202224th Taipei Film AwardsBest ActorTill We Meet AgainWon
59th Golden Horse Awards Best New DirectorBad EducationNominated
202426th Taipei Film AwardsBest Supporting ActorMiss ShampooNominated
6th Asia Contents Awards & Global OTT AwardsBest Supporting ActorImperfect UsNominated
59th Golden Bell AwardsBest Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or TV FilmWon

References

  1. ↑ 柯震東獲金馬獎最佳新演員 [Kai Ko wins Golden Horse for Best New Actor]. Yahoo HK! News (in Chinese). 26 November 2011. Archived from the original on 17 November 2018. Retrieved 4 June 2012.
  2. ↑ Be yourself (有話直說) by 柯震東 [Be yourself (有話直說) by Kai Ko]. KKBOX (in Chinese). 21 November 2011. Archived from the original on 11 July 2022. Retrieved 12 July 2022.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Davis, Rebecca (16 July 2021). "'Moneyboys' Taiwanese Star Kai Ko Dismisses Comeback Talk: 'I Never Left'". Variety. Retrieved 6 April 2026.
  4. 1 2 "A Choo". The Asian Cinema Critic. 24 October 2020. Retrieved 6 April 2026.
  5. 1 2 "台北電影獎完整得獎名單！柯震東、陳湘琪封帝后 《月老》連拿3大獎". Ettoday. 9 July 2022. Archived from the original on 10 July 2022.
  6. ↑ "與李毓芬3年情變！那些年柯震東曾經追的女孩原來有這些". ELLE HK. Archived from the original on 2 April 2024. Retrieved 2 April 2024.
  7. ↑ 娛樂組 (20 November 2018). "【斷開戀姐癖】柯震東二度分合李毓芬 最終破局原因曝光". 鏡週刊 Mirror Media (in Traditional Chinese). Archived from the original on 2 April 2024. Retrieved 2 April 2024.
  8. ↑ "China's anti-drug crackdown ensnares Jackie Chan's son, Taiwanese actor Ko Kai". Star Tribune. Archived from the original on 20 August 2014. Retrieved 19 August 2014.
  9. ↑ "Taiwanese actor apologizes for drug offenses". Retrieved 19 August 2014.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)
  10. ↑ "【獨家】不只柯震東吸毒？ 藝人染毒風暴恐擴大". Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 19 August 2014.
  11. ↑ "NARS彩妆邀请柯震东代言遭痛批 为何网友不买账？". www.sohu.com. Retrieved 23 April 2026.
  12. ↑ Allie Hsieh (25 November 2022). "Netflix《乩身》7大看點！史上最貴台劇、柯震東為「三太子」王柏傑賣命降妖，宛如東方版「驅魔神探」！" (in Chinese). Cosmopolitan. Archived from the original on 9 February 2023. Retrieved 2 May 2023.
  13. ↑ "‎有話直說 by Kai Ko on Apple Music". Apple Music. 14 November 2011. Retrieved 12 July 2022.
  14. ↑ "有話直說 - 台灣索尼音樂娛樂股份有限公司". Sony Music Taiwan. 11 November 2011. Archived from the original on 9 April 2025. Retrieved 12 July 2022.
  15. ↑ "台北電影獎／《周處除三害》入圍13項大贏家 阮經天、周渝民搶影帝". Yahoo News. 15 May 2024. Archived from the original on 15 May 2024.
  16. ↑ Naman Ramachandran (30 August 2024). "Wong Kar-wai's 'Blossoms Shanghai,' Netflix's 'Cigarette Girl' Among Busan Streaming Awards Nominees – Global Bulletin". Variety. Archived from the original on 6 September 2024. Retrieved 31 August 2024.
  17. ↑ Charlie Lee (11 September 2024). "【2024金鐘獎】金鐘59完整入圍名單". Harper's Bazaar Taiwan (in Chinese (Taiwan)). Retrieved 14 September 2024.
  18. ↑ Guo Yuru (19 October 2024). "金鐘59迷你劇集男配角獎 柯震東奪得". Central News Agency (Taiwan) (in Chinese (Taiwan)). Retrieved 20 October 2024.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)