Joel Chan Scores First Lead Role 25 Years After Debut

It’s been a long time coming for Joel Chan (陳山聰), who has finally recovered from a scandal that nearly broke his career.

The 41-year-old Macau native made his first debut as a singer in 1993, soon after winning a singing competition hosted by TVB. Joel was only 17 years old at the time. His performance earned him a record deal with Andy Lau’s (劉德華) label, New Melody, and he released two albums under the label. After the 1997 Asian financial crisis, New Melody went bankrupt, and Joel was forced to quit. He transitioned to acting, and starred in the 1998 television drama Happy Monk <開心出家人> alongside Kelly Lin (林熙蕾), but was left without a job soon after.

In 2000, Joel signed with TVB and had his first major role in Virtues of Harmony <皆大歡喜>. It was a steady rise for Joel, and in 2009, he rose to prominence with his performance as Tsor-lun in 2009’s E.U <學警狙擊>. He was the second male lead in 2010’s A Pillow Case of Mystery II <施公奇案II>, and starred alongside Jessica Hsuan (宣萱), Myolie Wu (胡杏兒), and Sunny Chan (陳錦鴻) in the 2011 anniversary drama Curse of the Royal Harem <萬凰之王>.

Joel’s status as TVB’s rising star abruptly ended after his relationship with the heiress Florinda Ho (何超雲) came to light. Allegedly, Joel divorced his wife, who he had been with for 10 years, for Florinda. Joel’s relationship with TVB grew rocky, and he proceeded to live a lavish lifestyle with casino heiress. It severely damaged his image. When he ended his romance with Florinda in 2013, Joel returned to TVB for a second chance. His comeback work was in 2014’s Noblesse Oblige <宦海奇官>.

After a few more years of supporting performances, Joel scored a popular hit with 2017’s The Unholy Alliance <同盟> as Kent Ling. The role earned him the first award of his 25-year career—My Favorite TVB Supporting Actor at the 2017 TVB Star Awards Malaysia in November.

And all that waiting seems to work. According to Law Pui-ching (羅佩清), head writer for TVB’s The Exorcist’s Meter <降魔的>, she is looking to cast Joel in a two-episode mini drama produced by Yip Chun-fai (葉鎮輝). If it happens, it would be Joel’s first lead role.

Nothing is confirmed, however. In an intervie with Joel, he said, “I haven’t heard about this, so I’m not going to say anything. I’m also on vacation. The company and my manager haven’t called me about it either, so I have nothing to say! Sorry!”

Source: HK01.com

This article is written by Addy for JayneStars.com.