[3][4] Zhang first came to public attention in 1986 when he was a college student, appearing on Xie Jin's Hibiscus Town, a drama film starring Jiang Wen and Liu Xiaoqing.
In 1987, Zhang played the role of Prince Gong in Wang Xuexin's film Two Dowagers, for which he received a Best Actor nomination at the 10th Hundred Flowers Awards.
Zhang gained national fame for his starring role as Lü Bu in the 1994 historical television series Romance of the Three Kingdoms, adapted from Luo Guanzhong's classical novel of the same title.
In 2001, he joined the main cast of Princess Wencheng as Gar Tongtsen Yulsung, a general of the Tibetan Empire who served as Great Minister during the reign of Songtsen Gampo.
Zhang co-starred with Sun Li and Tong Dawei in the 2002 television series Jade Goddess of Mercy as Bian Xiaojun.
[12] That same year, he co-starred with Xiong Naijin, Anya and Wang Yan in the thriller film Letter Box as the amorous man Zheng Chuan.
He was cast as the political commissar in the romance film A Tibetan Love Song, opposite Alec Su, Ju Wenpei, Purba Rgyal, Ariel Aisin-Gioro, and Chen Maolin.