The Outlaw Doctor
| The Outlaw Doctor | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chinese name | |||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 化外之醫 | ||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 化外之医 | ||||||
| |||||||
| Genre | Crime drama · Medical drama · Suspense | ||||||
| Written by |
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| Directed by |
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| Starring | |||||||
| Country of origin | Taiwan | ||||||
| Original languages | Taiwanese Mandarin, English, Taiwanese Hokkien, Hakka Chinese, Vietnamese, Indonesian | ||||||
| No. of seasons | 1 | ||||||
| No. of episodes | 11 | ||||||
| Production | |||||||
| Executive producer | Phil Tang | ||||||
| Production companies | GrX Studio Co., Ltd. (瀚草文創) | ||||||
| Original release | |||||||
| Network | Public Television Service | ||||||
| Release | March 8 – April 12, 2025 | ||||||
The Outlaw Doctor (Chinese: 化外之醫; pinyin: Huàwài zhī Yī) is a 2025 Taiwanese crime-medical drama series broadcast on Public Television Service. The series stars Ning Chang and Vietnamese actor Liên Bỉnh Phát, following the story of an undocumented Vietnamese physician who secretly provides medical care to marginalized migrant workers in Taiwan.[2][3]
Synopsis
[edit]Set within Taiwan's migrant labor and underground brokerage networks, the series follows Vietnamese doctor Phạm Văn Ninh (Liên Bỉnh Phát), who arrives in Taiwan to earn money for his mother's medical expenses.[4] After encountering exploitation within the labor system while working as a janitor in the morgue, he is drawn into an illicit medical network serving overstayed and undocumented migrant workers. Ninh's path intersects with Liu Tian-cheng (Weber Yang), a human-resource broker navigating the gray zones of migrant labor management, and Zheng Wan-ping (Ning Chang), a neurosurgeon who becomes involved in uncovering the hidden medical underground.[5]
Cast
[edit]Main
[edit]- Ning Chang as Zheng Wan-ping, a neurosurgeon
- Liên Bỉnh Phát as Dr. Phạm Văn Ninh, an undocumented Vietnamese physician[6]
- Weber Yang as Liu Tian-cheng, a labor broker
Supporting
[edit]- Tsai Hsuan Yen as Lin Jing-yu, a nurse in Weida Hospital
- Hsia Teng-hung Wu Zhen-hua, a foreign affairs police officer who speaks Indonesian and has learned some basic Vietnamese.
- Nguyễn Thu Hằng as Hong Yun, patroness of Hong Yun Restaurant
Music
[edit]Track listing[7]
| No. | Title | Lyrics | Music | Performer | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "For a Better Day" | A1J | A1J, Diiton | William Wei, Liên Bỉnh Phát | 3:35 |
| 2. | "Truth in My Heart (捕捉心跳)" | PoLin, Shio, Cavier | PoLin, Shio, Cavier | PoLin | 3:56 |
| 3. | "The Way I Feel" | David Wong | David Wong | 3:32 |
Release and reception
[edit]The series premiered on March 8, 2025, and aired weekly for 11 episodes.
On 24 August 2025, the series won the "Best Asian Contents Awards", while actress Suri Lin (林廷憶) was named "Best New Actress" at the Global OTT Awards in Busan, South Korea.[8]
In October 2025, the series won the 60th Golden Bell Awards.[9] Lien is the first Vietnamese artist nominated at the award.[10]
In November 2025, the series became the first Taiwanese drama to be featured on the Australian public broadcaster Special Broadcasting Service's streaming platform SBS On Demand.[11]
References
[edit]- ^ Tam Ky (October 19, 2025). "Lien Binh Phat becomes first Vietnamese to win Best Actor at Taiwan's Golden Bell Awards". VnExpress.
- ^ 陳擷安 (November 2, 2025). "自由開講》越南影帝拿金鐘 看見台灣文化「新南向」突圍". Liberty Times (in Chinese (Taiwan)).
- ^ 周意軒 (March 17, 2025). "《The Outlaw Doctor 化外之醫》5大必看亮點！台劇醫療犯罪新標竿，張鈞甯聯手越南影帝挑戰禁忌話題！". United Daily News (in Chinese (Taiwan)).
- ^ "《化外之醫》劇情角色7大看點，轟動越南的犯罪醫療台劇，越南影帝連炳發與張鈞甯一同挑戰道德與人性的底線". Marie Claire (in Chinese (Taiwan)). March 26, 2025.
- ^ 葉婉如 (November 13, 2024). "張鈞𡩋自薦《化外之醫》「男帥女美」 越南影帝獲封「怪醫黑傑克」". Mirror Media (in Chinese (Taiwan)).
- ^ "Vietnamese actor wins Best Leading Actor at Taiwan's Golden Bell Awards". Tuổi Trẻ. October 19, 2025.
- ^ 陳薈涵 (March 28, 2025). "為《化外之醫》獻聲！正妹歌手前進高雄音樂季 當金秀賢救火隊". TVBS News (in Chinese (Taiwan)).
- ^ Hung, Su-chin; Lin, Sean (August 25, 2025). "Taiwan's 'Outlaw Doctor,' actress Suri Lin win at Global OTT Awards". Focus Taiwan.
- ^ Lai, Reagan (October 20, 2025). "Vietnamese actor makes Taiwan Golden Bell history". Taiwan News.
- ^ "First Vietnamese artist nominated at Golden Bell Awards". Voice of Vietnam. September 17, 2025.
- ^ 黃庠棻 (November 4, 2024). "張鈞甯海外被封台灣女神！《化外之醫》成澳洲電視台首部上架台劇". ETtoday (in Chinese (Taiwan)).