Chinese actress Gao Yuanyuan has made a striking return to the film industry spotlight with her leading role in the Hong Kong dystopian crime thriller Sons of the Neon Night, which premiered at the prestigious Cannes Film Festival on May 17, 2025.
After stepping back from the public eye following her marriage to Taiwanese-Canadian actor Mark Chao in 2014 and the birth of their daughter in 2019, Gao’s reappearance has captivated fans worldwide — many of whom note that the actress appears remarkably unchanged by time.
The movie’s red carpet event saw Gao alongside director Juno Mak and prominent co-stars Tony Leung Ka-fai and Louis Koo Tin-lok. However, key actors Takeshi Kaneshiro and Sean Lau Ching-wan were notably absent from the festival.
In Sons of the Neon Night, Gao portrays a retired therapist enveloped in mystery, a role she describes as “strangely positive” and thought-provoking. Reflecting on her earlier Cannes experience with the 2005 film Shanghai Dreams, Gao shared how critics once praised her for simply “being herself” on screen — a sentiment she has since integrated into her acting philosophy. She explained that she strives to find a connection between her characters and her own identity while maintaining an essential distance.
The film’s production journey was long and arduous, beginning in 2017 and taking eight years to reach audiences. It also features a haunting score by the late legendary Japanese musician Ryuichi Sakamoto, whose contribution adds depth to this unique cinematic experience.
Known affectionately on Chinese social media as a “childhood goddess,” Gao’s journey began in Beijing, where she was discovered as a secondary school student and quickly rose to fame through TV commercials before transitioning to the big screen with the romance Spicy Love Soup.
Despite never attending a formal theatre academy, Gao’s natural talent propelled her career forward, leading to acclaimed roles in celebrated Chinese films such as Beijing Bicycle (2000), Spring Subway (2002), and City of Life and Death (2009). Her television work, including the beloved 2003 adaptation of Jin Yong’s wuxia classic The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber, solidified her status as a household name.
Her personal and professional life intertwined when she met Mark Chao during the filming of Caught in the Web (2012), directed by Chen Kaige.
Today, Gao remains a powerful online presence, commanding nearly 49 million followers on a major mainland social media platform, a testament to her enduring popularity. She has earned numerous accolades, including Best Actress at China’s Chunyan Awards and Best Foreign Actress at South Korea’s Grand Bell Awards.
Sons of the Neon Night has sparked varied reactions among audiences and critics alike, with some dismissing it as obscure while others laud its originality and artistic merit within the crime thriller genre. For fans of intricate crime movie plots and distinctive cinematic narratives, the film stands out as a bold addition to contemporary Hong Kong cinema.
