After the airing of critically acclaimed drama Nirvana In Fire <琅琊榜>, Hu Ge (胡歌) can once again be seen in the currently airing Good Time <大好时光>. Transitioning from his early days as an idol star, Hu Ge has become a character actor. In an interview to promote Good Time, Hu Ge shares about his family background as well as pursuits outside of acting. Family Background Hu Ge came from a very ordinary family in Shanghai – his father was a tennis coach and his mother was a teacher. Their family was not very wealthy, but his parents took pains to develop Hu Ge’s talents. This paid off, as Hu Ge started appearing on television when he was 14, with his first role as a children’s television host. Subsequently, he successfully enrolled into the Shanghai Theater Academy, and this was followed by his breakthrough role in the Chinese Paladin <仙劍奇俠傳> series. Car Accident Changed Outlook in Life Due to a car accident in 2006 that killed his assistant and left Hu Ge with serious injuries, his outlook on life and financial planning changed. Whereas Hu Ge previously only relied on insurance provided by his management company, after the accident, he bought additional insurance policies. He commented, “Buying insurance is also a form of investment. As an actor, your life is pretty tough. There is no stability to your flow of work, and you are often in situations where you are prone to injury. I have learned to better protect myself.” The car accident, which affected Hu Ge both physically and emotionally, took place at the moment when his career was just rising. He was in the middle of filming a reboot of the classic, The Legend of the Condor Heroes <射雕英雄传>. After the car accident, Hu Ge had to undergo almost 100 stitches on his face and neck, leaving scars on the right side of his profile that have yet to fade today. Hu Ge also had to undergo numerous reconstructive surgeries due to the impact the accident had on his physical appearance. To cover up some of his scars, Hu Ge had no choice but to don bangs for most of the roles he took on in the three years afterward. This naturally had a negative effect on Hu Ge’s popularity, as much of it had stemmed from his good looks. Nevertheless, Hu Ge worked hard and focused on improving his acting skills. It worked. After his performances in The Disguiser <伪装者> and Nirvana In Fire, Hu Ge’s popularity re-surged. While Hu Ge was previously a classic idol, he has now graduated to become a bona fide actor, known not for his looks but for his solid acting skills. Running His Own Restaurant Initially clueless about financial planning, Hu Ge admitted that most of his money went straight to a bank account managed by his mother. In an interview in 2008, he had said, “I basically give most of my earnings to my mother, and keep a small portion for my own allowance.” In 2010, Hu Ge made the bold move of investing about $5 million RMB into a restaurant with a friend. At the official opening party of the restaurant, “匚Fount”, numerous celebrities turned up to support Hu Ge, including Tiffany Tang (唐嫣), Angelababy, and Cecilia Liu (刘诗诗). Hu Ge recalled how nervous he had felt at the time, “I was more nervous than when I first started filming. It felt like I was getting married!” It turns out that Hu Ge had no reasons to be nervous, as the restaurant performed very well, often being featured on various food and lifestyle magazines as well as television programs. Many well-known films and television dramas have also filmed scenes in Hu Ge’s restaurant. In spite of all that, Hu Ge said, “I have never deliberately asked friends to come to my restaurant for publicity. I want my restaurant to attract customers because of its inherent qualities. I can’t just rely on celebrity publicity, which is short-term.” Running the restaurant helped Hu Ge learn lessons about being a smarter businessman. He initially gave heavy discounts to friends who visited the restaurant. After being shown the balance sheets by his manager, and seeing that the discounts were causing his restaurant to suffer significant losses, Hu Ge realized that there had to be a limit to his discounts. He mused, “One of the biggest takeaways from running this restaurant is that it has allowed me to gain a clearer perspective of how diverse and multi-dimensional this society is. I used to be very idealistic and viewed society with rose-tinted lens, thinking that everyone around me is good and kind. That is not always true. I have, however, learned to be positive despite this.” The restaurant’s revenues, as well as Hu Ge’s lucrative filming and endorsement fees, have put Hu Ge firmly in the category of the wealthy with assets worth more than 100 million RMB. He now lives in a lavishly decorated house. Photos of his house in Shanghai were recently leaked. Personal Aspirations In Good Time, Hu Ge has a scene where his character proposes to his love interest by the Whampoa River in Shanghai. Hu Ge raved over this scene and expressed that he longed for such a romantic moment to enter his real life one day. He said candidly, “I really want to get married, but because of the nature of my job, this will not be happening anytime soon.” Hu Ge’s character in Good Time goes through three relationships in the span of the entire drama. He laughed, “This must be the drama where I have romantic interaction with the most number of women.” On what Hu Ge’s aspirations are, he said that his biggest wish was to spend more time at home. He said longingly, “I want to be able to stay at home and cook, have a cat, garden, read books, watch movies, make tea or freshly ground coffee.” These may sound like the most mundane and ordinary things, but to Hu Ge, who is often busy working as dictated by his hectic schedule, these things would make his life more satisfactory. Creds: QQ
