He’s well-known as an actor, director and producer, but we bet you didn’t know that Daniel Wu’s an architect too.

The 43-year-old graduated from University of Oregon’s College of Design in 1997 with a bachelor’s degree in architecture.

The Hong Kong-based actor recently unveiled his hidden talent in Chinese reality show Dream House where he travelled to different parts of the country to give makeovers to aged buildings.

He has also roped in fellow actor (and long-time buddy) Stephen Fung and other stars to help out in the projects.

In the show, Wu displayed a dedication to his projects from conception to completion and was not afraid to get his hands dirty at the worksite.

His efforts have paid off handsomely, as one of the four projects featured in the show – Mulan Weichang Visitor Centre – recently received a nomination in the Royal Institute of British Architects’ International Prize 2018, the equivalent of the ‘Oscars’ in the architecture world.

Designed in collaboration with architecture firm HDD, the visitor centre is located in scenic Inner Mongolia and was inspired by the ‘ger’- portable round tents traditionally used by the nomads.

Unlike the other makeover projects, the centre’s library was built from scratch and has natural light streaming in from open skylights.

In an Instagram post on Friday (Jan 5), Wu shared his elation over the RIBA awards nomination, and quipped “Guess I should think about going back to being a designer?”

minlee@sph.com.sg