I’ve been through Louis Cha wuxia novel casting brouhahas before and when I was younger it did annoy me more that actors/actresses were cast that just looked/vibed nothing like the famous characters, the biggest complaint remains Michelle Chen as Xiaolongnu in the 2014 version of Return of the Condor Heroes. There have been new LoCH, RoCH, Dragon Sword, and Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils in the last decade but this upcoming new movie version of Legend of the Condor Heroes directed by Tsui Hark has gotten the C-netizens back to naysayer form. Female lead Zhuang Da Fei is getting complaints for being nothing like LoCH spritely female character Huang Rong. One netizens says “Zhuang Da Fei’s similarity to Huang Rong is………probably the same gender.” I don’t disagree that she doesn’t immediately make one think Huang Rong, I can see her playing Zhao Min actually, but I’ve been around the block enough to just go “eh” and a shrug and will wait to see the end product.
I don’t know why some people think actors and actresses have to look similar or must have a similar character to the role that they will be acting as. The job of actors and actresses is to bring their drama/movie character to life with their acting skills, and some help from the makeup/costume crew. So to me, unless an actor or actress is particularly known to be bad at acting, I will only judge after seeing the end result. And movies are different from dramas, movies depend more on the director’s skills than the actors/actresses.
And that’s why we have models reading scripts.
So your point is…?
It’s not hard. I meant that because of the audience’s commitment to pretty looks, we have models reading scripts and not necessarily good acting.
And what’s that got to do with my initial comment?
@Lilith You have poor reading comprehension. You wrote that an actor/actress’ job is to bring the character to life with their acting skills, there you implied that good looks are not necessarily fundamental. And I agree. That’s why I commented that because of the demands of the audience is that we have models reading scripts mostly. But I can explain it with apples so your brain can process it without getting upset.
@ceviche You totally make no sense. How does those words even imply that good looks are not necessarily fundamental? It seems like you just want to put words into my mouth and pick a fight. Hun, I can recognise you, you have been replying to me under different names here.
@Lilith different names? Lmao. Why are you triggered? 😂
@ceviche Triggered? That’s you, aren’t it? Tailing me everywhere on this site and even talking to yourself under different names. IP addresses don’t lie.
@Lilith It is well known that Xiao Zhan’s fans have mental problems. Lol! If you want to continue creating fantasies in your head, I have no problem, you make me laugh. And I would love for you to continue writing the results of your narratives. You can try naming my alleged multiple usernames. Let’s go!
Well, since you begged for it, and I’ll just point out the most obvious to others. It’s amusing seeing you posting under Estef, Sujie, and even using my name. I’m sure others can tell too, just look at who kept labeling anyone who pointed them out as antis as a XZ fan and then went on a rant about “XZ fans having mental problems”.
This case she obviously looks like shit and also cant act. Casting in china movies these days generally are bad. See how well the actress willing to spend the night to get her career move ahead or not instead of acting skills.
Sure, Jan.
Your comment is misogynistic, actors are applauded for working hard even if they are not talented… But women are demeaned.
CcpDabbear
Why do you say she looks like shit? Do you look much better? Take a good look at yourself before spewing hurtful words behind a keyboard.
A person’s look may not be to your taste, but NO ONE looks like shit.
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*Yawn When has C-netizens ever stopped complaining. Good, they complain. Bad, they complain. No one wins when it comes to infamous C-netizens.
Poor woman. So much bile. Honestly it is not even over her role as much as it happened that she is acting with XZ. Tsui Hark got death threats and called old and senile, she got attacked for her looks.
She needs to hold firm, do her job (she has talent) and let Tsui Hark guide her. Once the movie is out it is the general audience that will be the judge and they don’t have minds stewed in hate. They just care if the movie is good or not. Tsui Hark knows how to film women and most of this movie’s difficult moments have nothing to do with her.
Considering they are filming the first defense of Xiangyang and time before that the big points will go to XZ as JG, JG mother that is played by the brilliant Kara Wai and Fan Shaofeng who plays the Khan.
Some netizens joked about this movie casting: Pretty GJ and ugly HR!
LOL. I don’t agree totally. It’s not an issue at all to make XZ’s handsome face less delicate by makeup art. ZDF as Huang Rong may be questionable in terms of physical shape and looks. But she is not ugly at all and a talented actress. Her acting isn’t awkward like many rookie actresses. Perhaps Direct Tsui sees brilliance in the aura she exudes similar to HR? I hope magic makeup may change fans’ perception about her looks.
You shouldn’t take her seriously. I remember your opinion saying that you can’t take seriously actors who look different from their character descriptions in novels lol.
I’m not taking you seriously. LOL
Don’t you like being reminded of what you’ve done? 😂 Hypocrite, it seems like you only use your argument about looks when it’s convenient for the actor/actress you want to defend.
Seriously! You’re the one who needs a mental check! LOL
@Somebody Why should I have a mental checkup when all I’ve done is quote your words? It’s you who needs it since you don’t have the courage to accept what you wrote. It’s like you have multiple personalities. LOL.
Honestly, I’m going to try to keep an open mind. I remember when Mark Chao was first casted as Ye Hua in TMOPB, and people were up in arms. But his acting was soooooo good. He made me cry so many times!
Michelle Chen on the other hand…. proved netizens correct. I don’t think she’s a bad actress, but the way she interpreted her role just didn’t work. Yu Zheng also did her no favors with the styling.
I still remember all the drama surrounding Michelle chen as xiaolongnu. It baffles me at first too, but netizens reaction is understandable since she needs to take over the big shoe left by Liuyifei from the last adaptation. Michelle is cute, but she is not it for xln.
Uh from the pictures above, she’s indeed quite ugly as what netizens said. Probably would need god tier styling and makeup to make her look half decent.
No, she should have gone under the knife as Xiao Zhan. Makeup doesn’t work extreme miracles. You should see pictures of him before he rose to stardom, I don’t recognize him.
@Lolita
Do you have proof to back your comment about Xiao Zhan? Be careful about what you said and don’t embarrassed yourself ok. There are a couple videos on YouTube proved that he didn’t and I tried to add them here, but it’s not working on this website.
@Lolita
Do you have proof to back up your comment about Xiao Zhan? There are videos on YouTube proved that he didn’t. I wanted to share those links and this website doesn’t let one attach links.
@XZ Likewise, there are videos and publications that say he did. The point is? It’s just common sense to see how the facial structure of his face has changed, and no, bones don’t move when you lose weight.
@XZF Your delusion has you in despair to the point that you have written a similar comment twice. It is you who is embarrassing yourself by not knowing how to accept reality. Your Chinese god has drastic changes in his eyes and facial bone structure.
Lmao his facial structure has never changed. It’s well-known that his antis have been photoshopping his past photos and spreading those around claiming that he had surgery. They even used photos of random guys that look a little similar to him, photoshopped them and claimed that it’s him.
@Lilith Only a fan would believe it.
My friends could hardly recognize me after I lost a lot of weight. Also, they said that I looked all different at different stages of life, very different between school days and post graduation.
If XZ had gone under knives, then those must have been very successful procedures. I don’t believe the cosmetic surgeons would have given up such good marketing opportunities to boost up their businesses. LOL
NOPE! XZ had those days after his debut with XNine but went on a brief break from activities when he gained A LOT of weight and looked just like pre-debut. There’re photos taken. So tell me how could he have looked like what he was if he had done plastic? Use your brain!
@Psychopath Lol, stop pretending to be a XZ fan already. You’ve already shown your true colors in the previous article.
@Lolita
You are the one who is delusional here. I replied the same comment twice because after I posted the 1st reply and it didn’t come up for a long time (more than one hour later – see the times stamped). Why do I bother to explain it to someone like you who is delusional? This is my last reply to you by the way. Life is short – don’t be an unkind person.
@XFZ Lmao, try again.
@Somebody Hahaha! Your personal example has no bearing here because you are not Xiao Zhan. Commenting on unrelated points is a delusional way to divert the topic. Use your brain and don’t throw fallacies. Lol.
The shape of his eyes is different, specifically in the tear trough area. Also, his chin is longer, which is not related to weight gain or loss because bones cannot change naturally.
https://pm1.narvii.com/7276/ddfb8c8b79189fbadd29f047de7ca94b9032d983r1-1080-720v2_hq.jpg
https://images.moviefit.me/p/o/135278-xiao-zhan.jpg
@Lilith, some xfx are very obnoxious. You’re one of them. Nonetheless, your crazy fandom has nothing to do with me being a fan of XZ. The actor is just unfortunate to have pathetic fans like you and some others whose mental states need to be checked.
Ok Lolita! Live your life with what you believe. That won’t change the fact that XZ is the most popular actor in C-ent. Go cry a river! LOL
@Psychopath You insist on calling me a XFX, yet claimed yourself as a non-XFX XZ fan. Why is that so? Because it’s convenient for you (who is actually an anti in disguise) to label XZ’s entire fandom as bad. Reminds me of a certain commenter here who claimed herself as a non-Mainland Chinese and then proceeded to degrade Chinese celebrities.
Too bad for you though, it is clear from previous articles here that there’s a bunch of C-ent actors and actresses whom I like.
@Somebody whose identity got hacked by a psychopath you keep using fallacies, how delusional you are. We were talking about plastic surgery not popularity. It’s funny how you want to change the subject using unrelated factors.
You even send me to cry, which is useless because I am having fun watching you guys get upset when your Chinese god is criticized. Try again.
@Somebody whose identity got hacked by a psychopath Since you mention his popularity, he should be thankful he went under the knife. With the looks he had before, there is no way he would have had stardom of such magnitude even if he is a good actor. Audiences care about beauty first. There are actors who have powerful skills but because they are not good-looking, they go unnoticed.
There is nothing wrong with pointing out plastic surgery but the Xiao Zhan’s cult doesn’t understand it. I adore Li Qin and I won’t deny that she has corrected her eyelids. I will not get angry when it is mentioned because it is the truth.
Don’t act like I hate Xiao Zhan, because I don’t. I’m just pointing out a fact
@Somebody I’m watching The Untamed and there is no wide range in Xiao Zhan playing a morally gray character. His acting there is average, nothing out of the ordinary. Mo Dao Zu Shi fever brought Xiao Zhan and Wang Yibo to stardom.
Chinese entertainment is riddled with good-looking actors with regular talent. At least there is beauty.
Those who claimed that I used multiple name on this site should seriously see mental help. LOL. Only Koala can confirm me is me with the unique IP address and email address. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have even bothered to type a long ass user name each time. I could have just randomly picked and switched between names like Lilith, Lolita, and Cevice etc. LMAO
For jealous haters spreading fallacy that XZ has gone under knives, take a few key strokes to google the information of several professional and renowned plastic surgeons coming out to rebuke the rumor. Bitching bitterness in the threads won’t convince rational people. These plastic surgeons even published videos of their own interviews in person to explain why XZ looks all natural to them. These are reputable plastic surgeons who practice in the field. Does anyone of you even have a bit of correct medical knowledge knowing how to disinfect yourselves in preparation for a simple operation? LMAO.
Also, XZ looks exactly like his pre-debut days in the college without any makeup. There are photos from his college fellows, comparing his current looks without any makeup. You insist denying plain truth just because you’re jealous of his looks better than your faves. I won’t hesitate to suggest checking your mental state or IQ. Either way might knock some sense into you foggy head!
@Somebody I was only provoking you to bring out your delusional and aggressive fanatic nature, and since you are like that, you were quick to expose yourself. You shouldn’t criticize your fandom, when you are just like them.
@Somebody whose identity got stolen by a psychopath there’s no reason for me to be jealous over a factor that has no bearing or value in my personal life. I am not obsessed with celebrities. Liking an actor/actress is not similar to acting as if we belong to a cult. Facts exist, whether we like them or not.
The only actress I follow is Li Qin, and as I mentioned, I am aware that the symmetry on her gaze was done with the help of plastic surgeons.
Just by looking at the pictures of Xiao Zhan before he joined C-biz, you can see the changes in his eyes and chin area.
https://www.jaynestars.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/Xiao-Zhan-5.jpg
https://www.jaynestars.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/Xiao-Zhan-3.jpg
There are professional who consider Angelababy or Kylie Jenner to be natural, so I can use such logic to break your pseudo-argument. And considering the nature of Chinese gods/goddesses fanatics, who would want to tell the truth only to get cyberbullying?
@Somebody whose identity got hacked by a psychopath You would be fine using Chinese social networks in the midst of personal attacks and cyberbullying. You have the same attitude as Chinese netizens, so you would get along with them.
It’s funny that we are talking about plastic surgery and you involve popularity. When we talk about popularity, you involve jealousy and mental illness. You should take a deep breath before you write in anger, is not good for your health.
It is you who is exposing your lack of civility and reasoning. It’s as if you were a caveman using technology.
It’s fun to read your overly defensive comments, I brought ice cream to enjoy your show, but I worry that Xiao Zhan has more and more fans like you.
@Somebody I forgot to attach this image: https://i.pinimg.com/564x/67/17/a5/6717a5c1ea1bb22d620e2a1a300669fa.jpg
You can keep throwing your gratuitous insults, they will be welcome on Reddit. So more people can laugh with me. In the end, toxic fans are predictable.
@Lolita, expose me? Lmao. What you have done just exposed yourself instead, like many rabid Chinese netizens !!!
Stop looking in the mirror while making comments.
@Shrug you are always making bad comments about actors’ physique, so don’t pretend to be nice nice now lol.
aren’t you the best body-shammer on this site lol?
@ceviche
Cut the hyperbole. I mention Luo Yunxi and his weight because he is being sold as the hottest thing ever. EU has forbidden showing clearly underweight models in campaigns because it sets highly unrealistic and harmful expectations to young girls.
In Asia, where you have a hidden epidemic of men with EDs, you are showing a man who is severely underweight as a hot throb. Yeah, I am going to continue to talk about it just as I did when Z. Shuang played in Love O2O and was severely underweight. This is not example of beauty and should not be emulated. At least she went back up in weight. He has been like this for ages and is filming yet another drama, where he is yet another lead where they get to promote that as a hotness standard.
Oh and if I wanted to be mean I would link to his raw photos. Without editing you can truly see how painfully underweight he is. He needs help, not celebrating this as a male standard.
@ceviche You’ve never talked about it objectively even though it’s a relevant health issue. All you’ve done is use pejoratives to refer to Luo Yunxi, which is just as harmful as him being promoted as hot (when he looks unhealthy).
You should re-read what you wrote and don’t say it wasn’t you.
@Lyney
Certainly I hope you are prettier than her. Don’t forget to be kinder.
@Lyney
I hope you are prettier than her. Please be a kinder person.
What’s wrong with pointing out that a person is not pretty? It is reality and should not be seen as a bad behavior. If we can talk about beauty, why can’t we talk about ugliness? Double standards. I am sure that every artist is conscious about their appearance, e.g, Zhou Dongyu has commented that she does not consider herself conventionally pretty and therefore does not choose roles of good-looking.
The bigger problem is she can’t act at all and she’s frigid with her male costars. I guess none of that matters if you have money/backers.
it’s just a movie, huang rong on screen time perhaps less than 30 minutes.
Why Zhou Ye is in the last picture?
@ockoala
Your comment section doesn’t work sometimes. So many times I posted/made comments on your stories and they didn’t show up. Is there something wrong or you pick and choose them? Thanks!
I haven’t read the novel, but is she supposed to be a peerless beauty or something? Though I think the cherry picking must because she is not really famous. Getting chosen in this production should reflect her skill tho
Yes, she is described in the novel as having the beauty of a fairy (which idiomatically means breathtakingly gorgeous).
The heroine is described as a stunning beauty in ALL men’s and women’s eyes per the novel. The author lavished tons of praises on her ethereal beauty on many different occasions to the point you would wonder if such a belle could possibly exist on earth. LOL. If Huang Rong, the heroine, is said to be the 2nd beautiful lady in the world, then #1 beauty doesn’t exist. That’s the image pictured from the novel.
All these “newcomers” on this blog, it’s so obvious that you are related to each other. Do you think we can’t recognise you just because you post under a different name?
I don’t even bother replying, you know the drill by now. XZ gets something great and all the bobo and other bitter fans crawl out and start the usual. He has had surgery, he is insert whatever, attack his colleagues, attack the crew. It is just tired old stuff as it never matters a whit.
They better get ready with more because here comes WDB on cctv.
Keeping completely silent will only give room for them to spread false information. It’s not a bad thing to reply them sometimes. The more they continue to badger me, the more they will be seen as mindless haters.
@Lilith
Sometimes sure, it is definitely worth drawing it out onto the surface but sometimes it devolves into a free for all and the comment section gets so crazy with the particular way they are threaded here that you can’t keep track of the conversation. It is difficult to balance.
At least koala gets some good traffic, that is something lol