Allan Wu

In this Chinese name, the family name is Wu.
Allan Wu
Wu in 2024
Born (1972-06-11) June 11, 1972 (age 52)
Los Angeles, California, United States
Occupations
  • Actor
  • host
  • model
Spouse
​
​
(m. 2003; div. 2013)​
Children2
Stage name
Traditional Chinese吳振天
Simplified Chinese吴振天
Hanyu PinyinWú Zhèntiān
Birth name
Traditional Chinese吳振宇
Simplified Chinese吴振宇
Hanyu PinyinWú Zhènyǔ

Allan Wu (born June 11, 1972) is a Singapore-based Chinese-American actor, host, VJ and model.

He is best known for being the host of 3 different editions of the popular reality game show, The Amazing Race. He was the host of 5 seasons of AXN Asia's The Amazing Race Asia, 3 seasons of International Channel Shanghai's The Amazing Race: China Rush and 4 seasons of Shenzhen Media Group's Chinese edition of The Amazing Race.

Wu decided to change his Chinese name because it was similar to Hong Kong film star Francis Ng (Chinese: 吳鎮宇; pinyin: Wú Zhènyù).[1]

Early life and education

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Wu was born in Los Angeles, California, United States to Chinese immigrant parents from Shenyang, Liaoning, China. His first language was Mandarin as his parents spoke it at home.[2] He graduated from the University of California, Berkeley in the United States and worked in the biotechnology industry for several years. He eventually discovered his desire to become an actor after an accident made him reassess his life. He did some modeling for a while and also participated in an episode of the reality competition series Fear Factor, where he placed 2nd. He moved to Hong Kong where he worked as an actor.[3]

Career

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Despite struggling with limited knowledge of Cantonese, MTV Taiwan gave him a stint as a VJ, during which he co-hosted a Christmas concert. He moved to Singapore and began acting in Chinese language drama series on Channel 8.

He has been the host for all five seasons of The Amazing Race Asia. He is also the host of The Amazing Race: China Rush, the Chinese version of The Amazing Race. In Season 16 of the American version of The Amazing Race, Allan Wu made a cameo appearance in Singapore, handing out clues.

Personal life

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In September 2011, Wu and his family relocated to Shanghai, China to be nearer to job commitments.[4]

Wu was married to former Mediacorp actress Wong Li Lin and they have a daughter Sage and son Jonas.[5] The couple is managed by Fly Entertainment.[6] In 2013, the couple separated.[7]

Filmography

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Television series

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Year Title Role Notes
2002 Bukit Ho Swee
Beautiful Connection Du Zhengyu
The Unbeatables III Ding Wei
2003 True Heroes Wang Feng
A Child's Hope
Always On My Mind (无炎的爱)
2004 My In-Laws (我的岳父岳母) itcom
A Child's Hope II
Fear Factor 1 episode
2005 My Lucky Charm
Baby Blues
2006 C.I.D. Steve
House of Joy Zheng Sanji
2011 Miss Universe China Host Hosting
2012 Rally On Channel 5 production
2014 Mata Mata: A New Era Alan Leong Channel 5 production
2017 Kidnapped (绑架) Officer Lee
  • Male lead
  • Toggle Original Series
2018 Divided (分裂)
2019 C.L.I.F 5 Alexis
2021 Crouching Tiger Hidden Ghost Evan Lau
The Heartland Hero Jimmy
2022 Truths About Us (别来无恙) Dai Shouzheng

Film

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Year Title Role Notes
1999 Never Compromise (逆我者死) Chun Yu Ng
2003 Night Corridor (妖夜迴廊) Vincent Sze
2004 Rice Rhapsody Ronald
2005 I Do, I Do Chen Jianfeng
2008 The Leap Years Steven
2008 Kung Fu Hip Hop Tang Ge
2010 Love Cuts Timothy Tang Special appearance
2011 Overheard 2

Television shows

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Year Title Notes
2003 Discover Australia (奥妙无及现)
2005 Hua Yu, Cool! Mediacorp Channel 5[8]
2006–2016 The Amazing Race Asia
2010 The Amazing Race 16 Cameo appearance
2010–2012 The Amazing Race: China Rush
2014–2017 The Amazing Race China From Season 1 Episode 3

Brand ambassador

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Year Brand Notes
2003 TAG Heuer [9]
2009 Carlsberg [10]
2014 Oakley [11]

Awards and nominations

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Year Awards Category Nominated work Result Ref
2002 Star Awards Best Newcomer — Nominated
2021 Asian Television Awards Best Actor in a Supporting Role Crouching Tiger Hidden Ghost Nominated [12]

References

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  1. ^ "What's Up with My Chinese Name??". Archived from the original on 25 January 2008. Retrieved 2008-02-01.
  2. ^ "Allan Wu back in the race". AsiaOne. 10 February 2012. Archived from the original on May 8, 2014.
  3. ^ Men’s Health, November 2006
  4. ^ "Allan Wu's culture shock". The New Paper. 6 September 2011. Archived from the original on 28 September 2011.
  5. ^ "Allan Wu's 18-Year-Old Daughter Just Got Into Stanford University; He Says He's Been "Saving Up For A Long Time" To Pay For Her School Fees". 8days. Archived from the original on 2023-05-22. Retrieved 2023-07-26.
  6. ^ "Amazing Race Asia a 'wild ride' for Allan Wu". Channel NewsAsia. Archived from the original on 2007-10-01. Retrieved 2006-11-01.
  7. ^ Yap, Desmond (17 June 2013). "Allan Wu & Wong Li Ling divorced due to affair". Yahoo. Yahoo News Singapore. Archived from the original on 15 September 2014. Retrieved 15 September 2014.
  8. ^ "Be cool and catch Hua Yu, Cool!". No. 18 January 2005. Today. 18 January 2005. Archived from the original on 21 April 2023. Retrieved 29 July 2014.
  9. ^ "A new star for TAG Heuer". Newspaper SG. Archived from the original on 21 April 2023. Retrieved 29 July 2014.
  10. ^ "早早报喜!". eAdvine February 2009. Singapore Press Holdings. Archived from the original on 2014-08-11. Retrieved 29 July 2014.
  11. ^ "When Oakley Meets Ferrari". GolfPunk-Singapore Edition. Archived from the original on 5 August 2014. Retrieved 29 July 2014.
  12. ^ "2021 Nominees". Asian Television Awards. Archived from the original on 2021-11-25. Retrieved 2021-11-12.
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