Recently, the preliminary list of the 38th Hundred Flowers Film Awards of China was announced, causing public discussion.
Notably, in the Best Actor category, the preliminary list has up to 15 names, typically Jackie Chan, Ngo Kinh, Co Thien Lac, Chu Nhat Long, Hoang Bot, Liu Hao Nhien, Dich Duong Thien Ty...
But there is no appearance of Shen Teng - the actor with total personal box office revenue exceeding 40 billion RMB, currently holding a record achievement in China.
In this year's Hundred Flowers Awards cycle, Thẩm Đằng owns 2 blockbusters of the year, "Phi trì nhân sinh 3" which achieved revenue of 4.42 billion CNY - the Chinese box office champion in 2026 to date; and "Trảo oa oa" also achieved success in both revenue and reputation.
Both films entered the preliminary list of 20 nominations for Best Film, actors and film crews also successively received nominations in individual categories; but the number one male lead, Shen Teng, was not named in any individual category.
Immediately after the list was announced, public opinion immediately stirred up. From the viewer's perspective, the strange contrast between "movies are famous but actors are not recognized" makes it difficult for many people to accept.
This is not the first time Thẩm Đằng has been "forgotten" by official awards.
As the actor with the highest total box office revenue in Chinese cinema history with 40 billion RMB, Shen Teng has never had a title of "Film Emperor" (Best Actor) at official film awards.
At the 36th Bach Hoa Awards (2022), Shen Teng received 0 votes, causing public shock.
At the 35th Golden Rooster Awards (2022), Shen Teng was nominated for Best Actor with "Monkey Moon Bridge" but did not win the award.
At the 37th Golden Rooster (2024), Tham Dang continued to be nominated for "Phi Tri Nhan Sinh 2" but lost to Loi Giai Am.
Even for the Hoa Bieu award, his name did not appear in the personal nomination list.
Many people believe that the reason lies in the so-called "biasis towards comedians".
Previously, Stephen Chow was repeatedly empty-handed at the Golden Statue awards. Tran Boi Tu has countless classic works but is also not favored by major awards.
In the official film award system, there seems to always be an invisible barrier for comedians.
Some opinions point out that the judges often lean towards historical topics that are heavily epic, painful real-life stories or works with political color. They are easily convinced by acting scenes full of screams, emotional collapse or silent tears.
Conversely, the ability of comedians to control rhythm accurately, or the sophistication in releasing and hiding segments, is often simplified into "acting true to nature" or "just joking".
What makes the audience feel even more indignant is Bach Hoa's voting mechanism, which inherently has contradictions. Although advertised as a "public" award and based on audience votes; in reality, the final decision-making power is in the hands of a group of "audience representatives" who have been selected in advance.
In other words, works must go through a selection round by the council before entering the "audience selection" stage. Therefore, films appearing in the voting list may not necessarily reflect the correct choices of hundreds of millions of moviegoers who spend money to buy movie tickets.
Bach Hoa for many years has not appreciated an actor with influence and national recognition like Shen Tang, causing public questions about the selection criteria of the award.
