Dylan Wang and Meng Zi Yi Fans Fight Online Over Likely Pairing in the C-drama Adaptation of The Rebirth of the Malicious Empress of Military Lineage
I have so many feels on the upcoming C-drama adaptation of the popular revenge and romance period novel The Rebirth of the Malicious Empress of Military Lineage. Now it’s becoming more and more certain that the leads will indeed be Dylan Wang and Meng Zi Yi and the two fandoms are already in furor in hating the casting of the other star. His side thinks she’s too old looking for him and wrong for the role as written in the novel (petite and more cute than beautiful) and her side thinks he’s not a good enough actor or has enough charisma for the oozing with handsome and charisma male lead as written in the novel. The billing will also be an issue, as he ought to be top billed over her but this drama is a female lead-centric story. There is also fear that the adaptation will change too much to balance out having two big name leads. If I didn’t love the novel so much I’d just be sitting here with popcorn but I am genuinely concerned, especially with Legend of the Female General really disappointing me so much.
Neither is suitable. I only know there are no more actors actresses in China industry. they can never find appropriate cast for major IP. It’s always the same boring people. Yet another adaptation to regret.
She refused, she is not in this project and good for her.
He wants to be the main lead. In a female focused massive IP.
But anyway, it doesn’t matter. This is Xinli. And if anyone is paying attention to China, Xinli is in danger of disappearing thanks to the massive scandal unfolding.
He can work for the role as long as he gets a voice actor… she is older but I have enjoyed her acting in a few dramas.. so if both are cast, I is okay for me.
She’s three years older than him and hasn’t even turned 30 yet. Idk why everyone keeps acting like she’s so much older than him or as if she looks old. She looks the same as Bai Lu, Reba, and other 90s actresses in that age range.
Her age pairing with Dylan does not bother me. There are others with much bigger gaps… I just hope for a good production.
See does look older though. Older than Bai Lu too, same as Reba.
He, on the other hand, still looks like a kid. It’s not an age gap thing, it’s a physique compatibility one.
@Nena girlie no offense but you’re delusional if you think MZY looks older than Bai Lu. Bai Lu’s age has been showing recently, probably because she’s been so underweight for so long. She doesn’t have the round youthful face she had in her The Legends days. MZY, Reba, Bai Lu, Yang Zi, etc. are all looking like women in their 30s because…they’re literally women in their 30s. Wang Hedi does not look like a kid, he looks younger than them, but not by much. Literally just looks like a dude in his mid 20s.
Koala, are you still reading chinese novel? Can you give some recommendation or review post? Or maybe a list of some popular, well reviewed top cnovel. Thanks
I’m not @koala but just check out novelupdates for cnovel recommendations just customize the tags/genre you prefer and choose carefully because there’s a lot of bad/meh novels out of there. When in doubt, go for the highly-rated ones with lots of reviews first. Good luck and happy reading!
Have you read When The Stars Tremble? I read it lately. It is so good and already finished.
Check it out at novelupdates.com
We’re seeing plenty of such fights happening recently due to lesser “long” drama projects being initiated, caused by the rise of short dramas. Unless you had consistently delivered superb results while paired with a nugu actor/actress, investors will only invest if both leads for a drama are established actors/actresses. Low supply high demand leads to fierce competitions. No one wants to give up the project so they try to kick the other out instead.
Yes..the industry is changing rapidly… Long dramas are lessen, short drama are aggressively being produced each day and variety shows have increased 3folds.
There are 2 type sof short dramas, the vertical dramas are really very popular. I started watching afew…just a handful is entertaining for me. Too much rubbish to pick the good ones.
I have to admit, I watch more variety shows than dramas nowadays. By the way, have you watch Dear X? The first 4 episodes blew me away, Yoojung nailed her role!
which long dramas are you referring to? Aren’t chinese dramas mostly 40 episodes? Is that short? LLTG was 70 episodes until the cap was introduced but now the cap is being removed again the dramas will get longer again won’t they? Not sure why the fan have a problem with each other but I didn’t understand what it has to do with the drama length? China still churns out several new dramas every week almost and I mean regular dramas not shorts or verticals. If anything isn’t cdrama only now starting to rise? It still has a long way to go and fan wars might be for other reasons. China has a good diversity of established and rising stars across all age groups and its fun to see them being matched up in different combinations.
@Lilith, yes, I started on Dear X… Yoojung is doing very well. And looks very good too.
@Belly Long dramas refer to the regular dramas while short dramas are those 1 minute per episode.
@HL I can’t wait for the next episode tomorrow!
2025 has been dominated by the short dramas phenomenon
I’m watching “Dear X” too! I’ve been re-obsessed with “The Glory” (upset that many judicial systems don’t deliver justice to victims often), and sadly, I think “Dear X” is feeling like such a realistic scenario for people who suffer from abuse. Kim Yoojung is too good an actor, I’m a little freaked out. Lol. The resolution in “The Glory” is so satisfying because the story takes care of ALL the characters in a logical way, but I have a feeling “Dear X” is NOT headed in that direction because illogic (chaos) is sort of the point right now. TBD!!
Yeah, Yoojung’s acting gave me the chills, especially when she looked into the cctv camera at the police station, her eyes really gave off the sociopath look.
Wow, my favorite novel!!! Well, both actors’ fanclubs have valid concerns though🤣🤣
@lana
When it comes to casting for the life adaptation of Malicious Empress of Military Lineage, think actresses like Song Zu’er or Zhao Lusi could be a great fit in terms of looks—they have that petite and cute quality the role might need. Acting-wise, they’ve both shown they can project a clumsy, mischievous or even a malicious vibe when required. Even Bai Lu, who could play cute and mischievous characters, has proven she can handle scheming roles.
I liked Meng Ziyi’s performance as the tragic, vengeance-driven villainess in Heroes. However, her recent styling in dramas, with strong red lipstick and swept-up hairstyles, tends to age her. Perhaps a softer, more youthful makeup look and hairstyle—something similar to Zhao Lusi’s in Love Like the Galaxy—would help her better suit a younger character. Morever she is just 3 years older than Dylan.
To be frank, I feel Wu Jinyan looks significantly older than Wang Xing Yue in The Double. While audiences accepted her playing a 14-year-old in her mid-30s, it does highlight how age perception can be flexible for popular actors and she is 12 years older than WXY.
For the male lead, Dylan Wang seems suitable based on his look alone. I haven’t seen Dafeng yet, so I can’t judge his acting now, but I understand that producers often prioritize big names for a project this big, so I won’t dwell on a replacement.
This novel holds a special place for everyone and its one of the first C-novels I ever read, so I’m truly hoping the adap
Thank you for pointing out the double standard for some actors. Meng Ziyi looks her age but so do all of the other 90s born actresses who get paired with younger actors. Especially Wu Jinyan, she has always had a mature look to her but there’s never been this issue brought up about the age of her costars. MZY is currently having her big moment so everyone is looking for a reason to bring her down. I’m not even a huge fan of hers but I can recognize a hate train when I see one.
I don’t like either of them, Meng Zi Yi is a boring actress. Dylan Wang is not a good actor. Will not watch it.
Casting for this seems cursed and the production is getting desperate. I wonder if Meng Ziyi and Dylan Wang really want to do this drama or if they’re being convinced to accept in return for being cast in other things.
Zhang Yaqin would be fabulous in this role but she doesn’t have the name pull so it will never happen. She can play cute, she can play wretched, and she can play badass. It’s a shame she seems to be stuck in second lead roles.
I believe she can be Shen Miao too but as you said, she lack the sponsors who can invest in the role for her.
I like to add Landi Li on the whiteboard too…another who can be Shen Miao but lack the investors who can pull this role for her.
Li Landi would also be perfect. She definitely has the range to pull it off acting wise. It’s such a shame that she’s been in the industry so long yet she doesn’t have the backing to get a big drama like this.
Li Landi impressed me in Coroner’s Diary. She hard carried that drama.
Dai Luwa would also make a very good Shen Miao.
May I ask why billing is such a big issue in Chinese dramas? Is there an enormous gap in salary between the first billed actor and the second billed actor? If yes, does anyone know what this salary gap is?
No idea about salary, but first billing usually takes the largest credit if the drama did well. Of course there’s also nepo actors trying to game the system by filling their dramas’ supporting cast with big names to attract viewers and then take credit for the drama’s success, but investors will still know who are their real money-makers.
I may watch if MZY tones down her theatrical makeup, and Dylan Wang gets his lines dubbed by someone else. LOL. Not sure how good the novel is since ppl have been raving about it numerous times, but more likely an adaptation would fail than succeed in delivering a popular and good novel, per the track record.
IF she ends up playing this character PLEASE tell me they will change her semi permanent make up style. And different hairdos too! She has been looking same for a long time now Im tired of it.
I agree…her hairdos can be so distracting… as her her makeup, the Chinese Opera style with white cake face and strong colours still puzzles me.
I like her makeup personally but you’re totally right that she always looks the same. She had a much more natural look in The Untamed, they should try that out again. As of now she’s like Zhang Wanyi in that you can’t really differentiate their characters because they look the same in every drama.
Why not Zuer? She’s amazing. Li Landi also looks good as the FL.
Honestly i really like Wang Yinglu. She can pull off many roles. But not many people will agree with me tho.
Dylan, uhm… i prefer Heyu.
I like Wang Yinglu too but she is not Shen Miao…
Meng Ziyi is a one-note actress. I liked her in Blossom but quickly got sick of her when she has the SAME styling and acting in her subsequent costume drama with Liu Xueyi. And looking at her stills and roles in her next two upcoming costume dramas, she looks like she has the “Ju Jingyi syndrome” by looking and acting the same in all her costume dramas. I would prefer they cast a fresh face.