KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 8 — Taiwanese veteran opera actress Chen Ya-lan has raised eyebrows for her nomination in the Best Actor category for the 57th Golden Bell Awards.
The 56-year-old was nominated for her portrayal as Jiaqing Emperor travelling in Taiwan disguised as a commoner in search of his birth mother in Lord Jiaqing and The Journey to Taiwan, Taiwan News reported.
Chen joins Camake Valaule for his role in Seqalu: Formosa 1867, Tony Yang for Light the Night, Kuo Tzu-chien and James Wen for their roles in Gold Leaf, and Berant Zhu for his role in Danger Zone for the category.
The Golden Bell Awards judging committee said Chen's performance was truly convincing hence her nomination.
Responding to her nomination, Chen said she did not think there was a chance for her to receive the nomination as she was portraying a male character.
This is not Chen’s first submission for the Best Actor category.
In 2020, she and Yang both submitted their performances in The Timeless Virtues for the award but neither of them got nominated.
At that time, the Ministry of Culture confirmed that actresses are also eligible for the Best Actor award as it considers the characters' gender for the award.
The Golden Bell Awards, equivalent to the Emmy Awards, is an annual Taiwanese television production award presented in October or November each year by the Bureau of Audiovisual and Music Industry Development, a division of Taiwan's Ministry of Culture.
