What Taiwan White Terror drama A Foggy Tale taught Will Or and 9m88 about resilience

In the historical drama A Foggy Tale, which won the best narrative film and best original screenplay gongs at the 2025 Golden Horse Awards, writer-director Chen Yu-hsun tells the emotional stories of everyday individuals who fight tirelessly to survive against a backdrop of intense political and social turbulence.

During Yue’s journey, she encounters Chao Kung-tao (Hong Kong actor Will Or Wai-lam), a rickshaw driver and former soldier, and reconnects with her long-lost sister, Hsia, a child bride turned showgirl played by singer-songwriter Joanne Tang Yu-chi, better known by her stage name 9m88.

For Tang and Or, their characters’ resilience is not only immensely admirable but also deeply inspiring to them in different ways.

Or, who received his first Golden Horse nomination – for best actor – for his work on the film, tells the South China Morning Post that he appreciates the simplicity of his character, whose name Chao Kung-tao is a play on the phrase “finding justice” in Mandarin.

“He’s a very rugged, foul-mouthed character with a strong moral sense of loyalty. He’s also quite direct and impulsive, partly because he’s not cultured or educated. He loves the basic necessities of life, like eating and sleeping,” Or says.

“But I think these types of people are the most resilient. I actually quite admire how easy it is for him to be happy.”