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snoo_wink
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I’m very sorry, but this actor’s acting is painfully average for the hype he gets 🤦♂️ Discussion 🗨
r/cdramasfans - I’m very sorry, but this actor’s acting is painfully average for the hype he gets 🤦♂️ Page 1 (Current page) Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6
Item 1 of 6 So ever since Hidden love exploded I've seen a lot of mentions online about Chen Zheyuan being an incredible actor with great emotional range, often labeled as the best in China.
From what I can tell, most of this praise comes from the international fandom. I’m an international viewer myself, and seeing the level of praise he gets on social media and even on here it sometimes feels like he’s being hailed as a breakout star destined for Magnolia or even Golden Rooster awards in the future🥲🥲
Now let me be VERY blunt, when I see people praising his performance online in white olive tree and hidden love but theres a ton of comments dissing Bai Jingtings or Xiao Zhans acting as medicore? People actually ignoring performances from current younger stars like Jackson yee in China? I'm very sorry to say the bar is so low and the water is so muddy.
Take Wang Yibo in his early twenties, starring opposite a veteran like Tony Leung , he held his own remarkably well. That’s a star, that’s talent, and most importantly, that’s an actor dedicated to improving and pushing himself given his popularity. If I saw him getting the same level of social media attention for his acting skills that Chen Zheyuan does, I’d understand, because it would be deserved.
Now czy is not a bad actor but for the level of praise his range gets he is so incredibly LIMITED. His got the same expression through any speech or dialogue. All style no substance. He mostly plays “cool, hot guy Chen Zheyuan” in every role with his same signature microexpressions. His got his strengths, but he lacks a unique charm that sets him apart from other actors. I don't see that something special in his presence or as a celebrity. The way his praised you would think his a Takeshi Kaneshiro?
His success seems to rely on a formula: flattering styling, perfectly written swoonworthy male lead roles, minimal emotional complexity, and sticking to swoonworthy expressions, basically the same formula he used in Hidden Love.
He did well in roles like Hidden Love, Mr. Bad, and The White Olive Tree, but mostly because those characters matched his current strengths. Under a microscope his performance in white olive tree was far from groundbreaking or skilled. Dramas like Dark Night and Dawn for example, his weaknesses became very obvious, especially in very emotional scenes opposite senior actors like Nie Yuan.
He’s good at conveying quiet sadness, but his sadness lacks distinctiveness, it’s simply a sad face with sad eyes. When it comes to anger or emotional breakdowns, he tends to overact. His “formula” seems to be: go crazy + shake your head + pop out your eyes. It often feels like he’s sticking to a playbook instead of truly connecting to the moment.
His biggest strength lies in modern romance dramas. He has the sweet smile, the foxy smirk, and the romantic gaze that make viewers swoon, and this is why he gets praised for “microexpressions.” But if you watch enough of his dramas, you’ll notice it’s the same expressions repeated across projects. He just always seems to be trying so hard to pop out and flash emotions. I can literally see him acting.
In roles that require authority or a powerful presence, he does not come across as believable. During intense scenes, his expressions can even border on what people would call the “constipated look,” because he’s STRAINING so hard to emote to show pain or fury. Thats why he wins when he sticks to quiet expressions but sadly it becomes repetitive.
This has nothing to do with his age or looks it just shows his limitations and how he thrives in a very specific niche. You will see him in a costume drama getting praised but then you find out the praise is for more styling and looking hot and flashing the same expressions. Strip that away and suddenly his acting isn't that impressive.
I’ve also realized that social media often praises performances that are actually quite average, mostly because they’re trendy, romantic, or 'hot'. For me, his role in Hidden Love wasn’t iconic or irreplaceable. Plenty of actors could have delivered the same or better performance.
What really made him popular in Hidden Love were: • A swoonworthy, perfectly written male lead with just enough angst to make him feel like “husband material.” • Zhao Lusi as the female lead, she has a charm that’s hard to replicate. Some actors naturally elevate their co-stars, and she’s one of them (Bai Lu is another example).
If you stripped away Chen Zheyuan’s current popularity and put him side by side with other actors as a comparison, the results would be very interesting.
It's so frustrating to watch this type of acting from such a hyped actor and especially when you have the same people criticizing actors who give amazing performances and who don't have to strain or pop their eyes to emote.
If it’s just bias, then admit it. But don’t present it as an objective review claiming he’s stronger in the acting department or a breakout star delivering impactful performances. There’s a big difference between that and simply enjoying someone in a swoon-worthy, easy-to-play role.
This social media hype is 90% thanks to Hidden Love, because before that, people hardly talked about him or highlighted anything special about his acting or roles. Let’s not pretend he was all over social media before Hidden Love , that’s simply not true. He was rarely mentioned for his earlier popular roles like Our Secret or Mr. Bad. Then he stars opposite Zhao Lusi in a drama with massive social media exposure, and suddenly he’s hailed as a master of acting and microexpressions and even labeled “the most handsome actor in China.” Is that a coincidence? No. It's more like a result of timing and visibility than a sudden change in skill. Popularity does not equate to skill Being the most followed Chinese actor on MDL also does not equate to skill.
I also think he’s been very lucky with casting in big productions and support from platforms like iQIYI. But it’s a bit sad to see other talented actors ones with a special type of screen authority and range get buried due to lack of backing or poor scripts.
People complain about actresses like Bai Lu being “everywhere,” but I honestly don’t understand how Chen Zheyuan keeps landing all these high-budget projects. And in Bai lus case like her or not , she has shown shes ready to push herself in different roles, same with Yang Zi.
With all due respect, Chen Zheyuan currently thrives in a very specific type of role. If you were to put him in Xiao Zhan’s role in The Legend of Zang Hai, Zhang Ruoyun in Joy of Life, Chen Kun’s in Rise of the Phoenixes, or Zhang Wanyi’s in Lost You Forever, his weaknesses would become clear. He would have little to no impact in those roles and would likely face heavy criticism because his performance wouldn’t be able to match the depth and nuance those actors delivered.
If you enjoy his acting, that’s completely valid everyone has their own preferences. I just think it’s important to be humble when comparing him to other actors, especially when China has such a wide range of talent and memorable performances.
I’m all for actors growing and improving, but right now I don’t see him pushing himself or truly connecting with his characters, especially given his current popularity. What I see is Chen Zheyuan playing every role with only minor variations.
Well On which platform YTY will come Is it S+ project
How is yang yang and cheng lei doing costume drama even Xu kai costume drama is about to release on tencent. If not so then why CZY did not do love in the turquoi sed lan sorry if it's spelling mistake . And even you said that after YTY CZY will do another tencent costume drama.
Well On which platform YTY will come Is it S+ project
Why tencent gave up every project related to CYZ . Earlier another project of CZY they back of . It's better CZY does not do any project with tencent. Well had he done any project with mango tv before.
Don't know exactly. Because I heard that after yty he will join costume drama again.
The costume drama you were talking about after YTY is not confirmed yet I saw in X about that rumour drama so let see what project he choses I hope it will me modern one so let see .
This is the first time CZY's team has denied the rumors😁
Really I did not know . whatever it is at least they denied the rumour. They could have done the same when YTY controversy aroused with billing issue so that the negativity could be avoided.
Tencent historical drama #胡善围 • Based on the novel 胡善围 (Hu Shan Wei) by 暮兰舟 (Mu Lan Zhou) • Production: Xixi Pictures • Cast: #MengZiyi #ChenZheyuan You are right I also it in X
Let’s not start a fan war here. Whether WJY will have good chemistry with CZY or not, we can’t say for sure.…
Even some other actor fans were comparing TWOT and The first frost success. And even says that hidden love was carried by Zhao lusi and after than no other drama of CZY was able to create that success I don't want mention the name of the actor fans to create fan war
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snoo_wink
2 days ago
AwkwardBambooTea
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I’m very sorry, but this actor’s acting is painfully average for the hype he gets 🤦♂️
Discussion 🗨
r/cdramasfans - I’m very sorry, but this actor’s acting is painfully average for the hype he gets 🤦♂️
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Item 1 of 6
So ever since Hidden love exploded I've seen a lot of mentions online about Chen Zheyuan being an incredible actor with great emotional range, often labeled as the best in China.
From what I can tell, most of this praise comes from the international fandom. I’m an international viewer myself, and seeing the level of praise he gets on social media and even on here it sometimes feels like he’s being hailed as a breakout star destined for Magnolia or even Golden Rooster awards in the future🥲🥲
Now let me be VERY blunt, when I see people praising his performance online in white olive tree and hidden love but theres a ton of comments dissing Bai Jingtings or Xiao Zhans acting as medicore? People actually ignoring performances from current younger stars like Jackson yee in China? I'm very sorry to say the bar is so low and the water is so muddy.
Take Wang Yibo in his early twenties, starring opposite a veteran like Tony Leung , he held his own remarkably well. That’s a star, that’s talent, and most importantly, that’s an actor dedicated to improving and pushing himself given his popularity. If I saw him getting the same level of social media attention for his acting skills that Chen Zheyuan does, I’d understand, because it would be deserved.
Now czy is not a bad actor but for the level of praise his range gets he is so incredibly LIMITED. His got the same expression through any speech or dialogue. All style no substance. He mostly plays “cool, hot guy Chen Zheyuan” in every role with his same signature microexpressions. His got his strengths, but he lacks a unique charm that sets him apart from other actors. I don't see that something special in his presence or as a celebrity. The way his praised you would think his a Takeshi Kaneshiro?
His success seems to rely on a formula: flattering styling, perfectly written swoonworthy male lead roles, minimal emotional complexity, and sticking to swoonworthy expressions, basically the same formula he used in Hidden Love.
He did well in roles like Hidden Love, Mr. Bad, and The White Olive Tree, but mostly because those characters matched his current strengths. Under a microscope his performance in white olive tree was far from groundbreaking or skilled. Dramas like Dark Night and Dawn for example, his weaknesses became very obvious, especially in very emotional scenes opposite senior actors like Nie Yuan.
He’s good at conveying quiet sadness, but his sadness lacks distinctiveness, it’s simply a sad face with sad eyes. When it comes to anger or emotional breakdowns, he tends to overact. His “formula” seems to be: go crazy + shake your head + pop out your eyes. It often feels like he’s sticking to a playbook instead of truly connecting to the moment.
His biggest strength lies in modern romance dramas. He has the sweet smile, the foxy smirk, and the romantic gaze that make viewers swoon, and this is why he gets praised for “microexpressions.” But if you watch enough of his dramas, you’ll notice it’s the same expressions repeated across projects. He just always seems to be trying so hard to pop out and flash emotions. I can literally see him acting.
In roles that require authority or a powerful presence, he does not come across as believable. During intense scenes, his expressions can even border on what people would call the “constipated look,” because he’s STRAINING so hard to emote to show pain or fury. Thats why he wins when he sticks to quiet expressions but sadly it becomes repetitive.
This has nothing to do with his age or looks it just shows his limitations and how he thrives in a very specific niche. You will see him in a costume drama getting praised but then you find out the praise is for more styling and looking hot and flashing the same expressions. Strip that away and suddenly his acting isn't that impressive.
I’ve also realized that social media often praises performances that are actually quite average, mostly because they’re trendy, romantic, or 'hot'. For me, his role in Hidden Love wasn’t iconic or irreplaceable. Plenty of actors could have delivered the same or better performance.
What really made him popular in Hidden Love were: • A swoonworthy, perfectly written male lead with just enough angst to make him feel like “husband material.” • Zhao Lusi as the female lead, she has a charm that’s hard to replicate. Some actors naturally elevate their co-stars, and she’s one of them (Bai Lu is another example).
If you stripped away Chen Zheyuan’s current popularity and put him side by side with other actors as a comparison, the results would be very interesting.
It's so frustrating to watch this type of acting from such a hyped actor and especially when you have the same people criticizing actors who give amazing performances and who don't have to strain or pop their eyes to emote.
If it’s just bias, then admit it. But don’t present it as an objective review claiming he’s stronger in the acting department or a breakout star delivering impactful performances. There’s a big difference between that and simply enjoying someone in a swoon-worthy, easy-to-play role.
This social media hype is 90% thanks to Hidden Love, because before that, people hardly talked about him or highlighted anything special about his acting or roles. Let’s not pretend he was all over social media before Hidden Love , that’s simply not true. He was rarely mentioned for his earlier popular roles like Our Secret or Mr. Bad. Then he stars opposite Zhao Lusi in a drama with massive social media exposure, and suddenly he’s hailed as a master of acting and microexpressions and even labeled “the most handsome actor in China.” Is that a coincidence? No. It's more like a result of timing and visibility than a sudden change in skill. Popularity does not equate to skill Being the most followed Chinese actor on MDL also does not equate to skill.
I also think he’s been very lucky with casting in big productions and support from platforms like iQIYI. But it’s a bit sad to see other talented actors ones with a special type of screen authority and range get buried due to lack of backing or poor scripts.
People complain about actresses like Bai Lu being “everywhere,” but I honestly don’t understand how Chen Zheyuan keeps landing all these high-budget projects. And in Bai lus case like her or not , she has shown shes ready to push herself in different roles, same with Yang Zi.
With all due respect, Chen Zheyuan currently thrives in a very specific type of role. If you were to put him in Xiao Zhan’s role in The Legend of Zang Hai, Zhang Ruoyun in Joy of Life, Chen Kun’s in Rise of the Phoenixes, or Zhang Wanyi’s in Lost You Forever, his weaknesses would become clear. He would have little to no impact in those roles and would likely face heavy criticism because his performance wouldn’t be able to match the depth and nuance those actors delivered.
If you enjoy his acting, that’s completely valid everyone has their own preferences. I just think it’s important to be humble when comparing him to other actors, especially when China has such a wide range of talent and memorable performances.
I’m all for actors growing and improving, but right now I don’t see him pushing himself or truly connecting with his characters, especially given his current popularity. What I see is Chen Zheyuan playing every role with only minor variations.
Thanks
And even you said that after YTY CZY will do another tencent costume drama.
Is it S+ project
• Based on the novel 胡善围 (Hu Shan Wei) by 暮兰舟 (Mu Lan Zhou)
• Production: Xixi Pictures
• Cast: #MengZiyi #ChenZheyuan
You are right I also it in X