Liu Ye ( ) (born March 23, 1978 in Jilin, China) is a Chinese film and television actor.

Beginning his acting career when he was a 20 year old student majoring in performing arts at the Central Academy of Drama in Beijing, Liu Ye's talent in acting was apparent very early on. Liu was nominated for Best Supporting Actor for his role as a young postman in his first movie, Postmen in the Mountains, at China's Golden Rooster Awards in 1999. Shortly after his graduation, Liu Ye won Best Actor at Taiwan’s 38th Golden Horse Awards for his bold and splendid performance as a gentle, sensitive homosexual in the movie Lan Yu in 2001. Three years later, he clinched Best Actor with his role in the movie The Foliage at the 24th Golden Rooster Awards. In addition, several of Liu Ye’s movies have also featured in many international film festivals, for example Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress, Purple Butterfly and The Floating Landscape.

Instead of making use of his good physical appearance to become a teen idol, Liu Ye has chosen the path of continuously challenging himself by taking on difficult roles. From simple, honest, and down-to-earth "peasant-like" roles, introvert and melancholic personas, to manly and Casanova roles, Liu Ye has not only convinced the audience, but also well-established international directors, of his remarkable acting skills. He has been openly praised and roped in by famous directors, such as Stanley Kwan (Lan Yu), Chen Kaige (The Promise), Zhang Yimou (Curse of the Golden Flower) and John Woo (Blood Brothers), to take part in their major movie productions.

Liu Ye's first Hollywood movie Dark Matter, inspired by a true story in the early 1990's, was screened at major international film festivals in 2007. Starring with actress Meryl Streep, Liu Ye stars as the brilliant physics postgraduate "Liu Xing" from China. This movie won the Alfred P. Sloan Prize at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival and is expected to be released in America in April 2008.

Liu Ye plays the lead character in Nanking! Nanking!, a movie paying tribute to the 70th anniversary of the 1937 Nanjing Massacre. Directed by 6th generation mainland director Lu Chuan (notable for his environmental movie Kekexili), Nanking! Nanking! has commenced filming in Tianjin, China, in early October 2007. The movie, which will also be filmed in other Chinese cities such as Changchun and Nanjing, is targeted for completion by April 2008.

Liu Ye's acting talents were apparent right from his first movie, "Postman in the Mountains", for which he was nominated for Best Supporting Actor at China's 1999 Golden Rooster Awards. Shortly after his graduation from Central Academy of Drama, Liu Ye won Best Actor at Taiwan's 38th Golden Horse Awards for his bold and splendid performance as a gentle, sensitive homosexual in the movie Lan Yu in 2001. Three years later, he clinched Best Actor with his role in the movie Foliage at the 24th Golden Rooster Awards. Several of his movies have also participated in international film festivals, Balzac and the Little Seamstress, Purple Butterfly, Floating Landscape, etc. His latest award winner is Dark Matter, which won the Alfred Sloan Award at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival. Instead of making use of his good physical appearance to become a teeny idol, Liu Ye has chosen the tough path of continuously challenging himself by taking on difficult roles. From simple, honest, and down-to-earth "peasant-like" roles, introvert and melancholic persona, to manly and Casanova roles, Liu Ye has convinced not only the audience, but also well-established international directors, of his remarkable acting skills.