林更新 - Lín Gēngxīn - A Profile
Table of contents :Part 1 (below this table of contents)
Part 2 (click on this title to go there directly)
Part 3 (click on this title to go there directly)
Sources : MDL, Sohu, Baidu, Weibo, Wikipedia and other articles. (highlighted texts lead to soures ; pictures lead to their source or further information. Note: all pictures and links lead to their sources ; Gif are made by me (except noted otherwise), the Gif above was cut by me from an interview. To view the list of my other drama companion pieces (with links to them), check : HERE. |
ORIGINSLín Gēngxīn is very protective of his private data ; there are not many pictures of him with family, the names of his parents are not known. Although one amateur biographer thought she has traced his genealogy to famous theater actor Lin Zhaohua, this must be a mistake, since the name of the son of that prestigious theater director is Lin Xinyue... In fact, Lín Gēngxīn revealed in a 2021 interview that his father was a police officer (he was deputy director of Tiěxī police station), often on duty away from home on weekends and for Spring festival. Anecdote : Once, his father had taken a broken watch to a repair shop, to get it fixed for his son ; there, the dad had spotted a pretty girl and on his return, he offered to introduce the girl to his son ! In 2021, his parents were still worrying about their son's marriage. Lín Gēngxīn comes from a military family since his granddad was a soldier who became a senior colonel : Lín Liánzhāng 林连章 fought in many famous battles such as the Huaihai Campaign and the Crossing River Campaign. He received the "Independence Medal of Freedom" and the third-level "Liberation Medal". Born in 1917, he passed away in 2011. (Anecdote: Lín Liánzhāng 1917-2010 was a namesake, former Vice President of East China Institute of Engineering (now Nanjing University of Science and Technology) and granddad of Lín Gēngxīn's famous friend Wáng Sīcōng. Hence the mistaken idea that they were cousins.) | A photo posted on a FB fan site in Aug.2020 shows a very young dad with a baby identified as Lín Gēngxīn, but the name of the dad is missing :
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THE NORTHERNERHe is a Dōngběi man, raised as an only child in a loving middle class family in Tiěxī Qū district of Shěnyáng, Liáoníng province, that used to be the heart of the first prosperous, then in the 1980s depressed industrial steel-making area of the northern city. (That city is the one which bred historical figures such as warlord Zhāng Zuòlín, in the distant past when Shěnyáng was called Mukden. Today, it is also home of Xī Tǎ, world's 2nd largest Koreatown although the city is 91.2% populated by Hàn Chinese). As such, Lín Gēngxīn was a very good choice for cast of Fang Xiewen (in 2024 drama The Tale of Rose, led by Crystal Liu/ Liú Yìfēi), the "Northeastern rustic" intent on proving his mettle as entrepreneur and winning the heart and loyalty of the beautiful girl he fell in love with at first sight. Lín Gēngxīn too has the Dōngběi men's tenacity and perseverance, behind an aloof appearance that can change in a second to warm and playful. |
ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENTSLike Fang, LGX went to study in Shànghǎi, but not in Fudan, instead he attended : The Shànghǎi Theatre Academy 2007-2011 and majored in Drama, Film, and Television Performance. And, some years later, he enrolled for a : PhD class at Shànghǎi Theatre Academy, earning the respect of his peers with almost top entry score in June 2024. He is now eligible to be addressed as "Dr. Lín Gēngxīn" in the West, and he might now be addressed as 林博 (Lín bó) in Chinese, although he'll still be called more often, as he already was, 林老师 (Lín lǎoshī) i.e. "Teacher Lin" in China. "On June 12, the list of planned admissions for doctoral students at the Shànghǎi Theater Academy in 2024 was announced, and Lín Gēngxīn was among them, which aroused heated discussion among netizens. The list shows that the research direction Lín Gēngxīn applied for is drama, film and television performance creation. A total of 4 people were admitted to this major. Lín Gēngxīn ranked second in the major with a total score of 277.05 points. (...) Taking Lín Gēngxīn as an example, the length of his professional degree is 4 years, the duration of study in school is 3-6 years, and the learning method is full-time. Generally speaking, to graduate with a doctoral degree, you need to be the first author and publish more than 2 papers in core domestic journals or important international journals, complete the credits of all courses within the specified number of years, and always be honest and trustworthy without academic failure during the school period. end record." (Sohu.com)
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| NAMES AND NICKNAMESHis birth name is 林更新 - Lín Gēngxīn ; family name Lín 林, from a word meaning "forest", it is "listed 147th on the Hundred Family Surnames. Within mainland China, it is currently the 18th most common surname." The given name Gēngxīn 更新 carries the meaning "to renew". PHYSICAL DATAHe is, according to different sources 186 cm (6'1") tall (some even cast him as 188cm (6'2") tall), his weight is irrelevant, since he sometimes lets himself grow comfortably meaty, sometimes slims down from exercise to 72+kg (158.4 lbs). He is or used to be a smoker. He needed a small septoplasty operation to breathe more easily, in Aug.2018, but otherwise has had no major plastic surgery despite he "was injured many times because of filming and recording programs, and some injuries have become an old problem." (min news) . Blood type B.
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Note: People (especially men in mostly costume c-dramas) with "jiàn méi" eyebrows are presumed to act straightforward and upright, and be prestigious, trustworthy! |
STAR SIGNS AT BIRTH : Fire Rabbit and Aquarius
His lunar birthday is on the 26th day of month 12, year of Dingmaopi (丁卯皮神年十二月廿六). |
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MBTI 
Now where could I find an MBTI (Myers-Briggs Type Indicator) test results to add, adding to the portrait of our "beast" ? A web-article reviewed the 16 types to categorize a series of c-ent celebrities, inferred from the analysis of performances in shows, variety shows, and interviews since very few of them have taken the test. And bingo, LGX was pigeonholed among those (alongside Bái Jìngtíng 白敬亭, Edison Chen 陳冠希, Máo Bùyì 毛不易, Ní Nī 倪妮, Wáng Yībó 王一博, Wang Leehom / Wáng Llìhóng 王力宏 , and Wàn Qiàn 萬茜, who played Susu in The Tale of Rose) ; he was categorized as : “ ISTP - Connoisseur - Bold and practical experimenter who is good at using any form of tool. - When they explore and experience the world, they can not only have calm rationalism, but also have a full of curiosity. ISTPs are natural makers, they can make the best use of the knowledge and tools they have learned and have, deconstructing, analyzing, and assembling them in their brains, so as to create new and wonderful works, and get the most out of them. Great fun. They are never afraid of failure, insist on doing it themselves, and will acquire more new ideas through courageous attempts.” So: Introverted, Sensing, Thinking and Perceiving. “An ISTP is energized by spending time alone and having quality time with people they care about.” |
Like astrology, MBTI charts should also be taken with a pinch of salt anyway since they are more often pop culture than perfectly scientific, and results may vary according to age and circumstance when the test is taken.
Lín Gēngxīn's personality is described as "sunny, natural, frank, and friendly" (Baidu questions). He is not really secretive, but one reason he is not totally easy to get data for is, is that back in 2014, as he stated, "My Weibo, BBS, and personal email have all been hacked. Not only my reputation is damaged, confidential documents such as movie scripts, contracts, as well as business plans in the email box were also exposed." He has grown to be more careful in protecting his personal and professional life since then.
PETS
"Liu Hao Ran" the shiba inu ? | Staying with "beast" idea , Lín Gēngxīn said his favorite animal is the monkey, and that he dislikes birds. He is better known to be fond of dogs, but there are not that many pix of his dogs or data about them (Wikipedia and another source talk about Corgis and mention one of the dogs is called Xiǎo Bā (minibus?), but the most frequent pix are clearly of a Shiba Inu...) There also was in a review of a show LGX took part in, a list of dogs linked to actor names, which a commenter claimed were the names of LGX dogs! Quite a zoo with 7 different breeds including also a Samoyed and a brown poodle, but that one may be in the past, since there were pictures of LGX and Zhào Lìyǐng with same colored poodles dating from 2016 or so.
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Does he also have a pug ? Pictured walking one in 2022 :
DAILY LIFE
A reporter commented on his down-to-earth manners, doing his shopping in supermarkets by himself, eating street food, not looking down on people: "He has no airs in private at all, just like ordinary people, he lives a real life, and it can be seen that he enjoys this feeling very much. The important thing is that compared to some people complaining, Lín Gēngxīn has always maintained an optimistic and positive attitude, and has great empathy to experience the difficulties of ordinary workers. " Yet, he is rumored to have a luxury apartment high up floors in a Shanghai condominium, and several cars (a BMW, a Maserati, a Wuling EV) and to like to drive. " His estimated net worth is about 2 million USD".
Lín Gēngxīn is reputedly down-to-earth and approachable ; he moves freely in his personal daily life, shopping, etc. He said he was convinced he was an ugly child, and shy in youth ; he still can be sometimes, with his ears flaring red around girls. He's even been known to flee in confusion from a kissing scene in Princess Agents! But he has come to terms with his appearance, and now doesn't mind quipping back to questions like : “Which one is your best angles?” to reply “All of them”.... (from a Princess Agents BTS reported in a soompi thread).
Netizens commented that "Lín Gēngxīn's face is very magnetic, although it is not a standard 'actor' face, but every expression can deeply attract the audience." (LaiTimes, July 3, 2024) He is ranked as 2nd or 3rd most "stunningly beautiful man," top god of C-ent according to a ranking reported by LaiTimes, where Xiào Zhàn 肖战 is 1st, and next spots are disputed by Lǐ Xiàn 李现, Lín Gēngxīn , Péng Guānyīng 彭冠英, Wáng Xīngyuè 王星越 among many other favorite actors.
SPORTSLín Gēngxīn can play tennis. (pictures from Facebook, linked) ; he also enjoys volley ball. |
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PROFILE CONTINUED BELOW IN PART 2
林更新 - Lín Gēngxīn - Profile (PART 2)
Gif above from a 2017 biographical article about LGX by "fireflymaoh", linked |
FREEDOM and businessThen again, Lín Gēngxīn has both playful and decisive traits of character. Jayne Stars reported in 2014: " Rumors began surfacing in 2012 that he was on bad terms with his management company, Chinese Entertainment Shànghǎi [also known as Tangren Media]. [In 2013], he officially terminated his contract with the company, and though he had to pay 1.95 million RMB as compensation for breaking his contract, he seems to have made the right choice. “I didn’t break my contract,” he said when asked about the issue. “It’s just that the company’s demands and my expectations were not really the same. I think this is very common – it’s like when you’re working for a company and then you switch jobs.” Next, he created his own Lín Gēngxīn Studio to manage his own career. Perhaps it is because he is no longer under a specific management company that Lín Gēngxīn can be so free with his thoughts and actions. He often posts silly photographs to his Sina Weibo account, and admitted straight out that he is a male chauvinist, though he is working hard to change. “I don’t want a fixed public image,” he explained. “If they seem me as healthy, or sunny, or a good man, those are all okay with me.”
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| WORK AS A MODEL"Lín Gēngxīn mainly earns from acting and brand endorsement deals." |
Producer & Stylist | Chen Liming @力铭chan Photography｜He Kaituyi@He Kaituyi Photography Coordinator | French fries @Shutiaooo Makeup & Hairstyling｜Xu Lixiao@Xu Lixiao Costume Coordinator｜Allen@AllenAllenLin Fine Arts｜ZHU Interview & Writing｜Gu Xiang@Gu Xiang Costume Assistant｜ningning & An Qi Design｜@ Zhaoyouji
He said that his favorite colors are: black, white, blue. |
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Lin ranked 77th on Forbes China Celebrity 100 list in 2015, 43rd in 2017, and 84th in 2019
COOKING AND FOOD
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| Hairy crabs, a unique species in China (picture from a min.news feature) |
Lín Gēngxīn is known to like to cook, including ribs and shrimp. is said to like things such as spicy dry tofu and barbecue, and he opened barbecue restaurants about the same time as his venture into... hair salons business ! (OK, how does that relate to food? There is a thing called "hairy crab" which is a specialty of the Jiāngnán and Shànghǎi, the city that he says he likes best, and where he has an apartment in the upper floors of a tall high-rise. A collection of pictures on a n FB fan page shows that he indeed cooks and likes 螃蟹 pángxiè, crabs, so he must enjoy at times the well known 大闸蟹 dàzháxiè delicacy... ) He occasionally shares videos of himself in the kitchen on Xiaohongshu. But he regrets that his parents don't like his cooking ! Does he regret Jī jià (鸡架, literally “chicken frame”) the signature street food of Shěnyáng ? He did not say. He did say he liked Singapore cuisine, such as bak kut teh, chicken rice and skewers, but also that he's better at cooking northern Chinese dishes, such as stew and braised dishes, adding he learned how to cook because he wants to eat home-cooked meals instead of takeouts. |
MUSIC and other skillsDoes he sing? I didn't find many recordings although his voice is not bad, a little less powerful as expected in comparison to his spoken diction. There is the 2017 song “A Life-long Love” from the movie Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons sung by Yáo Chén 姚晨 and Lín Gēngxīn (English translation subtitles). Perhaps he sings more freely under the shower ; he does sing karaoke and in his trailer like this snippet of the song “Girl” 《女孩》, a 2015 song by Taiwanese singer WeiBird (MV with pinyin and English subtitles here), recorded while he was promoting Legend of Shen Li. [Anecdote : In My Bargain Girl, audience was cheated out of hearing him sing the love song request in the elevator, ep. 10 : a female voice was bizarrely substituted for it!] He is said to like Taiwan "king of mandopop" Jay Chou /Zhōu Jiélún 周杰倫 (everybody does : here's a playlist + a sample of one of Jay Chou's oldest songs : "Common Jasmine Orange" Qī Lǐ Xiāng 七里香 title song of his 5th album of 2004, a song from a poem by poet and painter Xí Mùróng 席慕容 ). Lín Gēngxīn also said he liked the songs of Taiwan band Mayday (五月天 Wǔ Yuè Tiān) which are still well received (collection of songs here); Jay Chou even played with the group "Promised not to cry" (说好不哭 Shuō hǎobù kū ). Lín Gēngxīn also said he likes the songs of singer-actors Chén Kūn 陈坤 (sample : 蝴蝶 Húdié, Butterfly, who rose to international prominence with the films 2002 Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress, 2006 The Knot and 2008 Painted Skin) and Eason Chan /Chén Yìxùn 陳奕迅 many of whose songs are modern classics : 好久不见(hǎo jiǔ bú jiàn, Long Time No See), 苦瓜 (Kǔguā, Bitter Gourd) etc (20 Eason Chan songs playlist) |
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5XIe-vpuxlg |
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DRAWING
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BEST FRIENDSLín Gēngxīn and Mark Chao
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Lín Gēngxīn and Wáng Sīcōng
| Another good friend of his is Wáng Sīcōng 王思聪, a Chinese businessman, son of Chinese tycoon Wang Jian Lin 王健林 and chairman of Dalian Wanda Group (China's largest real estate developer, as well as the world's largest movie theater operator.) Wáng Sīcōng is one of China’s most famous fu’erdai (富二代, the ‘second generation rich’)" | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Among his other known friends in the c-entertainment circle, pictured left : |
GAMES
冷静沉着，勇闯禁地，越是恐惧越要向前！"Stay calm and collected, bravely enter the forbidden area, the more afraid you are, the more you have to move forward!" |
LOVE and relationships (rumored)
He had a sweetheart in N°36 middle school in Shěnyáng, in the beginning of the 2000s, called Xǔ Sháochún 许韶纯 when kids were shy (but Lín Gēngxīn kept good relations with and remembers many of his classmates long after leaving). As for love life, Lín Gēngxīn said he first fell in love when he was 18. He dated a fellow student at the Shànghǎi Theater Academy for 4 years ; that girlfriend was from a wealthy background, and he allegedly stayed at his girlfriend’s family manor when he was studying in Shànghǎi. Whether or not parents from both parties approved the relationship has been reported with differences, but in the end the short girl nicknamed Noisy Mushroom/Nàogū 闹菇 moved away from entertainment, and took over family business. Anyway that relationship didn't pan out. They drifted apart after graduation.
Since then, starting in the last year of the Mushroom story, he allegedly embarked on serial relationships which if true, make him look quite the Casanova ! so that adds fuel to those who view him less positively (yes, as most actors, he does have haters... ) Here's the (not totally complete!) catalogue of beauties whom he did not always keep at arms length (well : hugs between friends are not to be frowned upon, are they ?)
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| Lín Gēngxīn has been portrayed as something of a playboy, also linked romantically at times to celebrities such as actresses Zhōu Dōngyǔ 周冬雨, Claudia Wang /Wáng Lìkūn 王丽坤, Cass Gai / Gài Yuèxī 盖玥希, Jiǎng Mèngjié 蔣夢婕, Sūn Yí 孙怡 (who married actor Dong Zijian in 2017, but divorced in 2022, after having had a child), or supermodel Bonnie Chen, or internet emerging model Wáng Liǔwén 王柳雯 (born in 1996 in Chéngdū) whom LGX dated around 2015-2016 in Shànghǎi but shook off for several reasons as he moved on to date Wáng Lìkūn [later, in 2019 Wáng Liǔwén was arrested over drugs use] ... These relationships rumors came by over paparazzi sightings but most of them were not confirmed and often refuted. They were just colleagues, "reel but not real" relationships. He is still officially single, despite a rumor in 2018, marking him as married (a form had been incorrectly filled out by staff in hospital, according to LGX studio, and despite he acknowledged the document as genuine, the actor blasted against the disclosure of his personal data, true or erroneous, to public.) One assessment about his former rumored crush on Zhào Lìyǐng 赵丽颖 is that "their relationship is more of a partnership than a couple. Lín Gēngxīn has always been sober in his relationship choices. He prefers to find a partner in the Internet celebrity circle or among 18-tier actors." He has a lots of female friends with whom he openly goes out, walks around freely : he doesn't care about being caught by media or about giving anybody an explanation. Zhào Lìyǐng briefly married actor Féng Shàofēng 冯绍峰 (aka William Feng, real name Féng Wei, only son of a billionaire textile business owners family) in 2018 and the couple had a son in March 2019 ; just over two years later, in April 2021, the couple divorced, due to Féng's mother interfering and demanding that the actress stop her career to have more children. They agreed to co-parent their son who stays in the Féng family. |
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The more recent romantic suspicions are over sightings of his being attentive to a very tall young actress and ex-trainee, Shǐ Ruìyī 史芮伊, who played a small part in 2024 billiards drama Amidst A Snowstorm of Love.
| The starlet Shǐ Ruìyī is 11 years younger than the 36 year old actor. Lín Gēngxīn took her to the wedding of a friend in Sanya. "Jayne Stars" news noted that she is "exactly Lín Gēngxīn's type" and that they were spotted holding hands... She also seems to like cats and dogs, from the pictures of her that can be found. They were sighted at least twice together in October 2023 and April 2024 and again in April 2025, rumored to live together although "tight-lipped about their relationship". "Heartbreaking news for the shippers who linked him with Zhào Lìyǐng" and who still on and off go back to the "XīngYuè CP" (names of the two lead characters in the 2017 drama Princess Agents : Xīng'er played by ZLY and Yǔwén Yuè played by LGX). But it's clear that, despite they are very close friends, LGX and ZLY don't intend to let it go further. |
Has the single dog 单身狗 (dān shēn gǒu) [Warning : careful when using this phrase, this can be construed as a joke or as an insult! the safest is for a man to use it for himself] perhaps found his perfect girlfriend? But we are in July 2024 now, and there are no more recent sightings of the pair, and the Weibo pages, personal or official, don't show them as an item. (Edit: an April 2025 article with pictures show them together again).
Shǐ Ruìyī, like the other ladies he may have dated, is not perfectly conforming to the ideal " Aries-Pig, Gemini-Pig, Aries-Ram, Libra-Dog and Sagittarius-Ram" combinations suggested by the Horoscope. But her personality and tallness (1m73) might suit him anyway. People seldom take horoscope into account when they chose romantic partners ; it's mostly the parents who will ask to check the bazi compatibility chart, and perhaps agree to a choice even if the odds predicted by the stars are less favorable than hoped. Besides, nowadays, marriages are very often only short term contracts, and divorces are a frequent experience ; friendships are more durable... He does not lack friends.
Anyway, from the interviews and live streams I perused of him (for Master of My Own, Legend of Shenli, and now The Tale of Rose) I got the impressions that this is a person who manages to scoff and joke away prying questions, with a dry humor, and who keeps his private life very much to himself. But it still seems possible that Shǐ Ruìyī is now his girlfriend.
PROFILE CONTINUED BELOW IN PART 3 Back to Table of contents.
林更新 - Lín Gēngxīn - Profile (part 3)
Gif above from a 2017 biographical article about LGX by "fireflymaoh", linked ; excerpted from an LGX fans collection on Youtube. |
 Yuewen Global IP Awards, January 2024. Lín Gēngxīn was awarded "Yuewen has all the copyrights of original scripts of dramas: To Love, Master Of My Own, The Legend Of ShenLi, The Tale Of Rose, etc. We are anticipating more and more good adapted novels/ scripts to be acted by professional actor Lín Gēngxīn." It was the 1st time these awards were hosted abroad, in Singapore's Marina Bay Sands.In right column : LGX at the airport, meeting fans and giving autographs. He is wearing a Bunny Rabbit T shirt that comes in several colors from : " 1 TROP FORT Clothing (Brand) STAY IN THE CUTE CORNER www.1tropfort.com " [the bunny rabbit is the brand's specific emblem, and it is also Lín Gēngxīn's Chinese zodiac sign ☺️ ] | FANDOMWhen, why, and where did his Kids fandom appear ? Still not clear to me. A source states that “it is supposed to mean Little Monkeys because his nickname is Monkey” ("Hóuzi" 猴子). It seems to have started around the time he was acting in a movie as Monkey King Sūn Wùkōng 孫悟空 in a movie in 2017 (the same year, Z.Tao also revisited the classic tale in another drama, but the movie with LGX grossed $239.5 million, becoming the highest-grossing film among the Journey to the West novel adaptations).Support color: Green Support slogan: Love at first sight Lín Gēngxīn, Lín Xīn always in my heart (一见倾心林更新，心有林新永相随 Yī jiàn qīngxīn Lín Gēngxīn, xīn yǒu Lín Xīn yǒng xiāng suí) He likes his fans to call him “Xīn Gē” 新哥 (Brother Xin). From the beginning of his acting career, he already had about 5.8 million followers in 2012 on Weibo, winning masses of female fans with his good looks. Over the next 12 years, his following on his official Weibo social media has grown to almost 10 times that number (53.92 million fans as of June 30, 2024) ; his Studio Weibo had 459K followers as of June 30, 2024. |
OVERVIEW OF SCREEN WORKS
 2009 The Blue Cornflower (藍色矢車菊) - Movie |  2011 Scarlet Heart (步步惊心) - TV series |  2013 Young Detective Dee : Rise of the Sea Dragon (狄仁傑之神都龍王) - Movie |  2014 My Old Classmate (同桌的妳)- Movie A romance between two desk-mates spanning 20 years. |
| Support role : [Hotel sales manager] | Support role : Àixīnjuéluó (Aisin Gioro) Yìntí /14th Prince 愛新覺羅 胤禵 | Support Role : Shā Tuó zhōng 沙陀忠 | ML role as: Lín Yī 林一  |
 2014 The Taking of Tiger Mountain (智取威虎山)- Movie |  2017 : Journey to the West 2 : the Demons Strike Back (西遊伏妖篇)- Movie |  2017 Princess Agents (特工皇妃楚乔传 aka The Legend of Chǔ Qiáo)- TV series |  2020 The Croods: A new age - Animation Movie |
| ML: Shǎo Jiànbō / Captain 203 少剑波  | ML: Monkey King Sūn Wùkōng 孙悟空  | ML : Yǔ Wén Yuè 宇文玥 | Dubbing: "Guy" played by Ryan Reynolds in the US version |
Lín Gēngxīn has won wide attention with his agility and changeability. His acting style is full of unique tension and often challenges the audience's stereotypes of the character. Netizens are full of appreciation and expectation for his acting skills, believing that he is a clear stream among the new generation of actors. Some netizens joked: "Lín Gēngxīn is like a trick every time he performs, and he can interpret each role as if he has changed people." (LaiTimes, July 3, 2024) Lín Gēngxīn expressed in the past his admiration for Daniel Wu/ Wú Yànzǔ 吴彦祖 (the 1974 born American actor and filmmaker based in Hong Kong, is known as a "flexible and distinctive" leading actor in the Chinese language film industry. Since his film debut in 1998, he has been featured in over 60 films. He is considered as a "godson of Jackie Chan"), and for Zhāng Jìngchū 张静初 (the 1980 born Chinese film actress won a Best Actress award for the 2005 film Peacock, which was shown at the Berlin International Film Festival). In 2017, Lín Gēngxīn said that among the characters he played, his top 3 favorite movie characters were Sūn Wùkōng (Journey to the West 2), Shǎo Jiànbō (The Taking of Tiger Mountain), and Hsieh Shaofeng (from 2016 Sword Master 三少爺的劍). Lín Gēngxīn can dub himself or other characters, but when he is dubbed, he prefers it to be by Biān Jiāng 边江 who has a voice very similar to LGX and dubbed LGX/Yǔwén Yuè (Princess Agents), and other famous actors/roles such as Rèn Jiālún/ZhōuShēngchén, Yáng Yáng/Hēi Fēngxī, Fēng Lánxī, Wáng Yībó/Lán Wàngjī, Mark Chao (ZhàoYòutíng)/Yè Huá, etc . |
Since he broke into the limelight in the 2009 film The Blue Cornflower, Lín Gēngxīn "has starred in several #1 box office hits such as :
- 2011 Scarlet Heart (TV series that made him to a star throughout Asia, role as Yinti )
- It can be watched on Viki with several language options for subtitles.
- 2013 Young Detective Dee: Rise of the Sea Dragon (movie, role as Shā Tuó zhōng)
- 2014 My Old Classmate (movie, ML role as Lín Yī )
- 2014 The Taking of Tiger Mountain (movie, ML role as Shǎo Jiànbō)
- 2017 Journey to the West: The Demons Strike Back (movie, ML role as Sūn Wùkōng)
- Directed by Tsui Hark, written and produced by Stephen Chow, it was the most successful movie among those based on the classic novel “Journey to the West” by Wú Chéng'ēn that year.
- Directed by Tsui Hark, written and produced by Stephen Chow, it was the most successful movie among those based on the classic novel “Journey to the West” by Wú Chéng'ēn that year.
- 2017 Princess Agents (television series ; ML role as Yǔwén Yuè
- Directed by Ng Gam Yuen, Chen Wen Yong, written by Yang Tao, starring also Zhào Lìyǐng, the roles made the two fanous internationally. Can be watched on Viki.
- Directed by Ng Gam Yuen, Chen Wen Yong, written by Yang Tao, starring also Zhào Lìyǐng, the roles made the two fanous internationally. Can be watched on Viki.
He was more a movie actor with 17 movies from 2010 to 2021, and also voice acting for the Chinese version of a Dreamworks animation movie (2020 The Croods : A new age) [that film had crossed $46 million (RMB 300 million) in China, becoming the second-biggest Hollywood title of the year in the country behind Tenet ($66.6 million)].
Besides, he was a well-known celebrity taking part in 35 TV shows since the first season of Keep Running, in 2014. The movie data base TMDB (in English) or Maoyan (in Chinese) are also places to find pretty exhaustive listings of his screen works.
Among his 13 dramas to date in June 2024 :
 2020 To Love (最初的相遇，最后的别离) a thriller mystery around a drug trafficking case |  2021 My Bargain Queen (我的砍价女王) a reunion years after a misunderstanding |  2022 Master of My Own (请叫我总监)a business romance starting on wrong footing |  2024 The Legend of Shen Li (与凤行 Yǔ fèngxíng)a comedic and thrilling xianxia romance |
ML : Yán Jǐn 严谨 | ML : Shèng Zhéníng 盛哲宁  | ML: Lù Jìmíng 陆既明  What a coincidence! | ML: Xíng Yún 行云 / Xíng Zhǐ 行止 (ancient god) |
- *2022 Master of my Own can be watched on Viki as well as the original channels, it has a 9.3 Viki rating from 29.6K ratings (vs 6.5/10 Douban from 53K ratings). Likewise,
- 2021 My Bargain Queen was less well received in China than by international audience with a 9.1 Viki rating from 13K ratings (vs 3.0/10 Douban from 15K ratings).
- 2020 To Love can be watched on Viki, and got 5.7 Douban from 48.1K ratings.
This year 2024 marked a pivot for Lín Gēngxīn with two successive S+ dramas that made it big : - 2024 The Legend of Shen Li can be watched on Viki. Opening Douban rating 7.2/10 from 154.3K ratings on April 11, 2024 and 15 weeks standing in the top 10 TV dramas watched in China by end June 2024;
- 2024 The Tale of Rose can be watched on Viki. Douban initial rating of June 23 was 7.1 for 84.6K votes, rising to 7.4 later, and it stood 3 weeks as #1 in the top ten most watched TV dramas with between 607, 613, and 594 points by end of June 2024.
[Note : to find the Douban rating of a drama, type in the name of the drama in Chinese and add “豆瓣”]
The Tale of Rose is his 13th drama ; among these, he played twice as support role in the beginning of his career, and since then as Male Lead or, twice as Guest (including The Tale of Rose). The latter Guest denomination seemed rather inappropriate to many commentators, considering that Baidu lists him as "supporting" and he got 12 million Rmb remuneration for several times more screen time than colleagues Péng Guānyīng 彭冠英 (who got paid 15 million Rmb), Wallace Huo /Huò Jiànhuá 霍建华 (who hauled off 20 million Rmb for his appearance in 8 episodes [was LGX too slack to negotiate his remuneration fairly?] LGX appeared in 18+ episodes and could well have been termed ML since his status as father and husband or ex husband from episode 13 to 38 was far more impactful on the story than the shorter or relatively shorter appearances of his colleagues). As Crystal Liu / Liú Yìfēi 刘亦菲 acknowledged, Lín Gēngxīn played admirably the difficult role. Lín Gēngxīn had already expressed himself in interview, so he did not add more than a few sentences in his farewell message to the character on his social media. It was also difficult personally, since this set him as a target for "black fans" (anti-fans) who criticized him harshly, mostly from the character he portrayed. Lín Gēngxīn chose to "respond positively through various ways, hoping to change the audience's views with practical actions, so that everyone can better understand and recognize themselves." (LaiTimes, July 2, 2024) |
The Tale of Rose (Meigui's story) - size comparison of members of the cast ; name of characters, number of episodes appearing ; remuneration (in mil./millions Rmb)
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At the moment, future work in dramas or movies seems to be kept under wraps from the part of Lin Gengxin Studio, his agency. There was a rumor in April that he might collaborate with Zhào Lùsī 赵露思 in a business drama called Perfect Lobbyist, directed by Dèng Kē 邓科 , but this seems to be, as often when hearing about projects, just another "melon" (to be confirmed as ripe someday or stay in the realm of virtual fantasies). Rosy's keluli fans would prefer to see her pair in a drama with Luō Yúnxī 罗云熙, even though LYX is roughly same age as LGX. |
MISCELLANEOUS, emoticons etc
Above: an emoticons collection posted by Lín Gēngxīn on his Weibo in June 2024
Key to meaning:
| 阿 ? A ? (eh ?) 好吧 hǎo ba (okay) 嘻嘻嘻嘻 xī xī xī xī... (hihihihi...) | 尶尬 Gāngà (awkward) 怪不好意思的 Guài bù hǎoyìsi de (I'm so embarrassed) | 傲娇 ào jiāo (proud) 强行闭麦 qiángxíng bì mài (cut the microphone!) 真无语了 zhēn wúyǔle (I'm speechless) |
PILLOWS AND CUSHIONS | He likes to travel but prefers to take his own pillow with him on trips! Since it is a bit bulky, it may not fit in the luggage, so he sometimes has to negotiate with hotels to get one that does not cause his neck to crick ! He does like his comfort and revealed other things he looks for in accomodation : he does not think first about fengshui. But he said he likes to travel and discover new places, so as "not to leave too many regrets behind". (asiaOne, Feb.05, 2024) About pillows, he gave one special cushion to Zhào Lìyǐng at the Prrincess Agents press conference of May 26, 2017, telling her she could "use is for sleeping or put it in the car because he had the exact same one in his car too." |
As Lín Gēngxīn moved on to other projects big and small, such as the July fashion magazine issue and the brand ambassadorship for Crossfire (穿越火 chuānyuè huǒ) National e-game, he changed his Studio Weibo banner to a new one, which ties in with both.
Still, Lín Gēngxīn was delighted to find himself portrayed in a new Madame Tussauds wax figures interactive exhibition and event ( "Ancient Charm and National Style Season") lasting over the month of March 2025. The figure, created by a team of expert British wax artists, was based on iconic scenes from The Legend of Shen Li, with meticulous attention to detail in its costume, props, and posture, perfectly capturing the memorable moment of the "frozen China sea" from the show. On March 4, 2025, Madame Tussauds Shanghai, in partnership with Tencent Video—China’s leading online video platform—unveiled the brand-new wax figure of the iconic character Xingzhi Shenjun, and Lín Gēngxīn made a surprise appearance, playfully stepping into the role of a "one-day employee" at the museum. (from backstage news, March 2025 and Lín Gēngxīn Weibo page of March 4,2025)
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From LGX Weibo page, this appropriate end picture :
July 4, 2024 (moved from The Tale of Rose companion piece) ; last revision July 12, 2024 , revision to fit black mode and news about the wax figure exhibition added March 2025.
