[Biography] Xiao Zhan

Xiao Zhan, who has become a famous artist in only 4 years

Some have been close to the art world since they were children. Even if some of them had to start as adults, they came into contact with this world at a young age. Unlike others, Xiao Zhan debuted at the age of 24. Although he debuted at a late age, he reached the top in just 4 years.

Born in Chongqing on this day (October 5) 31 years ago, Xiao Zhan has been learning to paint and play the violin since he was a child. Although he did not go to art school like others, he was still a member of the literature committee and student choir at Chongqing Technology and Business University.

Before finishing school, he opened a photography studio with my friends. After graduating in 2014, he still worked there as a photographer and designer.

In 2015, the first change in Xiao Zhan's life began. A teacher referred him to join the X-Fire program. In 2016, he debuted as a member of X Nine. He started touring as an idol.

It was only in 2016 that the drama series began. He also appeared as a guest actor in movies. Released in 2018, Oh! My Emperor got a few people to start to know him.

In fact, as we all know, The Untamed, which was released in 2019, caused a major change in both Xiao Zhan's life and the data charts of the Chinese entertainment world. In line with the success of the original novel, the retelling of this story within the censorship, was successful both domestically and internationally. It was one of the most watched dramas overseas, and it was also a drama that could solidly build a fandom for Xiao Zhan.

Since then, Xiao Zhan's name has topped almost every chart. Otherwise, it was always near the top. All the next dramas were supported overwhelmingly by his fans.

The journey has not been smooth. The movie Jade Dynasty, which was released in 2019, earned only 400 million yuan and won the Golden Broom Awards, which can be called the most disappointing actor award. But Donnie Yen, Deng Chao and Yang Mi have also won the Golden Broom Awards so it was not that awkward. 

In February 2020, a fan fiction piece caused a fire from garbage. In that story, the name of a prostitute was used as Xiao Zhan, and the name of an underage boy was used as Wang Yibo, so Xiao Zhan's fans started reporting the fan fiction. Despite being banned from Weibo, people continue to read it on the original website, archive of our own (ao3), so they continued to report the website, and that website has been blocked by China. Since the ao3 website is a site used by various fandoms such as football / games / anime, the users were not satisfied and started boycotting Xiao Zhan. Finally, Xiao Zhan Studio issued an apology for wasting the public's resources.

In May 2020, he returned with an interview about it, and started performing again in December 2020. Xiao Zhan proved that once a fandom is established, nothing can destroy it. When he came back after taking a break for months, he now has the most endorsements until 2022. It remained at the top of most data charts.

During these years, while continuing to shoot various TV programs and drama series, the Oath of Love series released in 2022 was a hit both domestically and internationally. It was still a popular drama abroad.

The common word that most people talk about Xiao Zhan is "warmth". Xiao Zhan's smile was warm, Xiao Zhan's treatment was warm, It was a feeling that everyone who interacted with him felt. The seniors also said that there is a lot more potential. The directors also praised his thorough acting. Now, he has worked with the respected Hong Kong director Wong Kar-wai on a commercial.

Xiao Zhan has yet to receive any high-level acting awards. But as someone who has had the biggest fandom in just 4 years, it will be interesting to see how many more big successes he will have in the next years.

Source 1, 2. 

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