2001–2010: Early work and breakthrough Sun first entered show business by participating in 2001's
Star Search, held by Singapore's
MediaCorp. Sun received overwhelmingly positive feedback from audiences for her portrayal of An Xin, and rose to fame in China as one of the most promising young actresses. In 2006, Sun won the Best Newcomer award at the 28th
Hundred Flowers Awards for her performance in
Huo Yuanjia co-starring
Jet Li. She then starred alongside
Huang Xiaoming in
Shanghai Bund (2007), a mainland remake of the 1980 television series
The Bund. Sun starred in
Gordon Chan's horror-adventure film
Painted Skin (2008), and was nominated for the Best Supporting Actress award for her performance as a young and inexperienced demon hunter at numerous award ceremonies. The same year, she starred in
Gao Xixi's military-romance drama
Tian Mi Mi. The series was chosen by the Chinese Radio & Television Association as one of the Top Ten television series of the year. Sun then starred in
Iron Road (2009), the second joint venture created under Canada/China co-production treaty established in the 1960s. She plays a poor Chinese girl in search of her father who works at a railroad in North America, and challenged speaking in English for the film. For her performance, Sun was crowned Best Actress at the 2nd Roma FictionFest and the
25th Gemini Awards. The same year, Sun played the title character in the television series,
Auntie Duohe, based on the novel of the same name by acclaimed writer
Geling Yan.
2011–2016: Widespread recognition and success In 2011, Sun gained widespread recognition by playing
Zhen Huan in the critically acclaimed historical drama,
Empresses in the Palace. She was nominated for an
International Emmy Award in the Best Actress category for her role. Praised for being one of the best historical dramas in China, the series garnered high ratings throughout its run and also sparked trends in dialogue quotes and plastic surgery. The same year, she reunited with
Painted Skin director Gordan Chan in
Mural (also known as
Painted Skin 2). She also starred in martial arts film
The Lost Bladesman alongside
Donnie Yen and
Jiang Wen. For her role as an independent mother in
Hot Mom! (2013), Sun won the
Best Actress award at the 20th
Shanghai Television Festival. She also won the Most Popular Actress award at the 10th
China Golden Eagle TV Arts Festival. In 2015, Sun played
Queen Dowager Xuan, the first stateswoman in China, in historical drama
The Legend of Mi Yue. The series was a commercial success, and recorded the highest ratings of the year. Sun won her second
Best Actress trophy at the 22nd
Shanghai Television Festival. The same year, Sun challenged her first comedy role in
Devil and Angel, directed by her husband
Deng Chao. In 2017, Sun played the lead character in the period drama
Nothing Gold Can Stay, based on a real-life story of Zhou Ying, a budding businesswoman who takes on the responsibilities from her dead husband and starts rebuilding their business empire from scratch. For her performance in the role, Sun was awarded the
Outstanding Actress award at the
Flying Apsaras Awards. In 2018, Sun starred in
Zhang Yimou's historical film,
Shadow as the female lead. She was nominated in the Best Actress category at the
Golden Horse Awards for her performance. In 2019, Sun was cast in the drama
I Will Find You a Better Home as a star property agent, and was nominated for the Best Actress award at the
Shanghai Television Festival. In 2020, Sun starred in the urban drama
An Jia (House of Rebirth). In 2021, the workplace drama
The Ideal City, in which he starred, was aired. ==Personal life==