whoissilmoy

SWL was still under Huanyu (Yu Zheng) prior to 2023, so his projects prior to 2023, like Go Ahead and Find Yourself and other projects, would still need to get approval from Yu Zheng, or are you saying he went to another company while he's still under contract? I would think any other company, producer, or director, or anyone would have to go through Yu Zheng first before approaching the actor, so they don't get into trouble. He sued Huanyu in 2022 and left in 2023 and went independent is what someone said. He signed a contract in 2015 for ten years, which means he had to go through legal maneuvers to get out of it early, since he had disputes. But yeah, Yu Zheng reputation is bad. I wouldn't be surprised if he was behind the rumors on SWL. Yu Zheng treats actors like commodities he can rearrange, replace, or experiment with, rather than as people with careers and agency. He can make your career miserable. He will try to kill your career because you are competition if you leave him. The disputes seem to have stalled his career. Luckily, he was young and had time to get back on track.

MDL has its favorites,

Those rumors started in 2023 and were debunked.

Gosh, Song Weilong was so young, he signed with Huanyu in Oct 2015, only 16 yrs old, just a kid. He signed a year earlier than WJY, BL, and XK. He signed a ten-year contract, so I have to think that the others did too, which means their contracts are up this year, unless they're already renewed.

I wonder why YZ didn't cast SWL as Fuca Fuheng in the Story of Yanxi Palace? He has the height 6'1" and Young Master look. Perhaps he didn't want to shave his head? I think it's because he was already established as a male lead in a drama by 2017. He's only done male lead roles in dramas; other than the first drama he debuts in 2016. Of course, he wouldn't take anything but male lead. No one expected the role of Fuca Fuheng to be a breakthrough role. It was such a limited role in a 70-ep series. But Song Wei Long also got his got breakthroughs in 2020. But in 2025, with Shine on me, he has secured a defining career turning point at the mainstream broad household recognition.

Good for him! It seems to all be working out for him.

Oh, okay — that lines up. He filed his lawsuit in 2022, and by 2023 he was out of Huanyu and working independently (or possibly with a new agency). He filmed four dramas in 2023–2024, all of which ended up airing in 2025. The two dramas that aired in 2023 must have been filmed earlier, while he was still under Huanyu. It’s interesting that from 2021 to 2024 he only had two dramas air, but now everything is rolling out at once — and with popular FLs too.

Have you watched Shine On Me? The reviews said it's a typical sweet slow burn romance; comfort dramas are very popular.

Very classy!

He didn't film it "as soon as he's out of Huanyu." There was never an offiical announcement of his departure, but his name was no longer listed in Huanyu's roster by 2020-2021. You can see the gap years 2021 and 2022, he had no dramas airing.

People with backgrounds in classical dance, martial arts, gymnastics, or acrobatics should be able to look graceful in wire‑work stunts because of their training. In college, Luo Yunxi earned a national‑level gold medal as part of a group ballet performance in a major and highly respected competition.

How old is Li Wei Yi in the story?

Fans call his short sword a “little ruler.” Shi Wuming fights with a short blade while Su Xuelou uses a long sword. I noticed Shi Wuming spins with his sword fighting. I would think that would be too risky in real sword fighting, but in the story he must be absurdly fast to make up for the short reach.

Calling Mei Zhuyu "wooden" or "flat" is proof that Xu Kai nailed the character's core design. Mei Zhuyu is written as emotionally detached on the surface (lifelong Taoist isolation, desire suppression, ascetic discipline), so outward stoicism isn't a flaw—it's fidelity to the role. It's like calling a method actor "boring" for perfectly portraying a stoic monk; a committed actor performs as the character, fully inhabiting their psychology, habits, and emotional state, which is exactly what Xu Kai does.

In Mei Zhuyu, there’s always a quiet intensity beneath the surface. He feels deeply — he just doesn’t express it loudly, not even in his final moments, which is why his death scene is so refined and quietly powerful.

If the performance were truly poor, those subtle, quiet moments wouldn't hit so hard for fans who appreciate the nuance. "Wooden" critiques usually just mean the viewer prefers louder expressions, not that Xu Kai failed the character.

His acting didn’t change — the characters did. Gu Yanzhen was written for big, loud, mischievous expressions, so of course he looked more animated. Mei Zhuyu is the complete opposite: raised in isolation from the world, emotionally suppressed, ascetic, and trained to eliminate desire (reciting Taoist teachings to suppress those impulses). Mei Zhuyu was the purest embodiment of the Taoist Way. A character like that shouldn’t be expressive. Xu Kai adjusted his performance to match the role.

It’s easy to miss the nuance in character‑based acting, so it can look “less expressive” at first glance. Since you overlooked that he’s played plenty of expressive characters after Gu Yanzhen, it suggests your taste leans toward louder reactions, which makes the subtler work stand out less for you. Zhu Zhanji, for example, is noble, temperamental, and romantic, and Xu Kai portrayed all of that with refined precision. There's the clever prodigy Wan Lu and playboy Cheng Chu Mo to name a few more. Gu Yanzhen was unusually loud and animated — a truly iconic character — so anything after that naturally feels different in comparison, but that doesn’t mean he stopped being expressive as an actor.

Mei Zhuyu specifically is meant to appear emotionless on the surface. His entire upbringing was built on restraint:
raised in total isolation
trained to suppress desire and emotion
devoted to Taoist discipline and detachment
emotionally inexperienced and socially unformed
carrying deep internal conflict he never shows outwardly

When Mei Zhuyu first saw Wu Zhen, it was also the first time he had ever left the Taoist monastery. He wanted nothing to do with the outside world until she pulled him into it.
Mei Zhuyu feels things — he just doesn’t know how to express them, yet his proposal to Wu Zhen was so pure. His emotions are buried, not absent. That’s why his acting in this role is subtle and internal rather than loud or reactive. It’s a very difficult type of character to portray, and he handled it with control and nuance.

Even in his talisman scenes, Xu Kai deliberately avoided flashy martial‑arts moves and chose controlled, graceful movements that show power without exaggeration. The director even said he knows Xu Kai can do martial arts well, but for this drama they intentionally kept it understated — and it gives the show a unique, beautiful style.

Xu Kai keeps expanding his range with every role. Even when he plays a CEO, he plays it differently. He doesn’t follow trends; he adapts to the character.

The drama also didn’t give him much screentime, which limits how much emotional range the audience gets to see. Even so, his scenes were impactful, and his action work was especially impressive considering he performs his own stunts.

Xu Kai himself has said he won’t take on such an extremely restrained, ‘emotionless,’ and pure type of character again.” Mei Zhuyu is an outlier — not a sign that he “lost” expressiveness.

Xu Kai doesn’t cry the way idol‑drama leads are ‘supposed’ to cry — he cries the way each character would cry. His acting sometimes feels like art.

Wanda Margraf was nominated for Best Supporting Actress at The 16th Macao International Television Festival "Golden Lotus Award", although she did not win, it's quite an honor for someone so young in her first drama.

Li Wan Da is youthful but also has a mature aura

https://x.com/AVirtualVoyage/status/1988077284700340613/photo/1

Thank you for the correction. I meant that Leo Wu brings his reputation and popularity, and Wanda Li brings a fresh energy. I think both are lucky to pair up because I think highly of Wanda Li and believe she will bring, as I said, a fresh energy. I find her different from the usual popular drama actresses out there, so she intrigues me. But yes, she’s also very lucky to work with Leo Wu because of his reputation, popularity, and excellent acting. Wanda Li has excellent acting skills too, but she’s just starting out, so audiences don’t know her talent yet.

Viki watchers really like this drama. It's a 9.1 over there from almost 10k user ratings.

love his voice

"For Xu Kai, taking on genres like crime and mystery - "every boy's dream" subject -
is thrilling, but more importantly, it's about finding the right place within the craft of realistic acting. He doesn't rush to define his path, preferring instead to "take one step and see where it leads.""

I don’t know much about Miles Wei beyond what I see on his MDL profile the dramas he’s been in. I noticed a shift in his roles around 2024 which positioned him well for this role.