Girl Power: Top 6 Hottest Rising C-Drama Actresses You Should Know
With China’s rapidly growing entertainment industry, we’re also seeing a group of outstanding new generation Chinese actresses on the rise. We’re already quite familiar with popular actresses like Yang Mi, Dilraba Dilmurat, Zhao Li Ying and Liu Yi Fei, but who are the beautiful fresh faces with impressive acting abilities that are slowly creating their own mark in the Chinese entertainment world? Here’s our list of top six rising Chinese actresses that you need to get to know!
Shen Yue
The first rising actress on our list is the adorable Shen Yue! She graduated from Hunan Normal University majoring in Journalism and Communication. In her second year of university, her photographer friend posted a photo of her online which attracted the attention of her current agency, Mantra Pictures. Shortly after, she was selected to participate in the reality show, “Summer Sweetie,” broadcasted by Hunan Broadcasting System, and later became an intern for their hugely popular variety show “Happy Camp.”
Shen Yue made her acting debut in the 2017 drama “Autumn Harvest Uprising” and went on to play a supporting role in the fantasy drama, “Let’s Shake It.” Shen Yue gained fame from her leading role as Chen Xiao Xi in the extremely popular campus romance drama “A Love So Beautiful.” Subsequently, in 2018 she played the titular role of Dong Shan Cai in the remake of the intensely popular 2001 Taiwanese drama series, “Meteor Garden.” The drama was a massive worldwide success on Netflix, making Shen Yue well-known internationally outside of China.
Fans of Shen Yue love her easy-going attitude and girl-next-door vibe. She’s also well-loved for her amazing chemistry with her male co-stars Dylan Wang and Hu Yi Tian. Our young star is set to appear in “Another Me,” a drama adaptation of the critically acclaimed 2016 film “Soul Mate,” alongside Chen Du Ling and Dylan Xiong. Shen Yue will play An Sheng, the character who was originally portrayed by Zhou Dong Yu, who won Best Actress in the original film. To top it off, Shen Yue is the youth brand ambassador for Kiehl’s!
You can follow Shen Yue on Instagram, where she shares snippets of her daily life.
Start watching her in “A Love So Beautiful”:
Tan Song Yun
Tan Song Yun (Seven Tan) is a graduate of the famous Beijing Film Academy and first began her career as a child actress in 2005 in the drama “Wild Chrysanthemum.” Tan Song Yun gained recognition and popularity after playing the supporting role of Fan Xiao Ying in the 2015 drama “Whirlwind Girl,” 2016’s “Whirlwind Girl 2“, and as the lead in 2016’s youth drama “With You.” She won the Best Prospect Award at the iQiyi All-Star Carnival for her role in “With You“ and she won Best New Actress at the Huading Awards for “Whirlwind Girl.” 2017 was a great year for Tan Song Yun after she starred in the hit romantic-comedy drama “The Fox’s Summer,” which won her Best Actress at the Golden Guduo Media Awards. In the same year, she also starred in the very popular sports drama “My Mr. Mermaid” alongside rising actor Dylan Xiong.
Fans of Tan Song Yun love her fresh, natural acting style and her big, beautiful expressive eyes. Ever since debuting, Tan Song Yun has taken on various roles over the course of her career, helping to solidify her acting skills, which earned her unanimous praise from audiences. Fans of the actress can look forward to seeing her in the historical romance drama “Under the Power” and the upcoming drama republican-era “The Eight,” produced by highly acclaimed film director Chen Kaige. You can also currently watch Tan Song Yun in the romance drama “Face Off” alongside Zhang Dan Feng.
Start watching her in “My Mr. Mermaid”:
Song Yi Ren
Chinese-Canadian actress Song Yi Ren (Ireine Song) first flew into our radar last year after starring in the popular historical fantasy drama “Ever Night.” Song Yi Ren was born in Jinan, China and later immigrated to Montreal, Canada with her parents when she was eight years old. She is multilingual, as she is fluent in Mandarin Chinese, French, and English. Song Yi Ren later returned to China to attend the prestigious Beijing Film Academy and graduated from the school in 2016.
She made her acting debut in 2015 with supporting roles in various films including “Time to Love,” “At Cafe 6,” and “Sword Master.” It wasn’t until 2018 when Song Yi Ren landed her first major acting role playing the female lead Sang Sang in “Ever Night.” Fans love her portrayal of Sang Sang as she expressed her character’s practicality, unwavering loyalty, and love towards the male lead Ning Que (Chen Fei Yu) perfectly. Besides “Ever Night,” she also starred as the lead in the 2018 romantic-comedy drama “Time Teaches Me to Love” with Yan Yu Hao.
Fans can look forward to Song Yi Ren reprising her role of Sang Sang as she is currently filming season two of “Ever Night.” You can also look forward to seeing her in the upcoming drama “Instead of Being Tipsy Why Not Get Drunk” with Gong Jun.
Also, be sure to follow Song Yi Ren on Instagram, where she showcases her love of food and travel!
Start watching her in “Ever Night”:
Sun Yi
Our next rising actress is the elegant and charming Sun Yi! Sun Yi made her acting debut in the art-house film “Pleasure. Love.” which premiered at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival. She beat out over a thousand candidates to star in the film. Consequently, Sun Yi won Best Actress at the 19th Asian New Talent Awards and Best New Actress at the 11th Chinese Young Generation Film Forum Awards for her role in the film.
Sun Yi rose to fame after starring in the 2016 melodrama “Fifteen Years of Waiting for Migratory Birds,” and in 2017, she gained widespread popularity after starring in the drama “Because of Meeting You.” The drama ranked first throughout its broadcast and was one of the highest-rated dramas of 2017. Last year, Sun Yi starred in the republican-era drama “Seige In Fog” with Elvis Han as well as the melodrama “All Out of Love” with Wallace Chung and Ma Tian Yu.
Sun Yi married film actor Dong Ji Jian in 2017 and gave birth to their daughter whom they nicknamed Da Fu, which adorably means Big Blessings. Her husband is also a rising actor who has been nominated for New Best Actor at several big awards including Cannes Film Festival and Taiwan Golden Horse Film Award. They’re definitely a young power couple to watch out for!
Fans of Sun Yi can look forward to seeing more of her as she is currently filming the legal drama “Hello Prosecutor” alongside Zhang Hao Wei as the male lead. Sun Yi has also been recently appointed as the new brand ambassador for Kate Spade in the greater China region!
Start watching her in “Seige in Fog”:
An Yue Xi
An Yue Xi is a graduate from the esteemed Beijing Dance Academy majoring in Musical Theatre. She made her debut as an actress in the 2013 drama “Editorial Department Story.” She also starred in the youth film “Young Style” (alongside Sun Yi’s husband Dong Ji Jian), which premiered at the 2013 Shanghai International Film Festival. In 2015, An Yue Xi gained recognition after playing the supporting role Tang Bao in the hit historical-fantasy drama “The Journey of Flower.” It wasn’t until 2017, after playing a supporting role in the massive hit drama “Eternal Love,” that she gained widespread recognition for her performance as Shao Xin. This role was highly praised by critics. In the same year, An Yue Xi starred as the lead Ah Bu Cha Cha in the low-budget historical-fantasy web drama “Let’s Shake It.” The quirky drama unexpectedly became popular, gaining a cult following online before leading to the production of a second season that aired in 2018.
An Yue Xi is known for having a sweet image with her clear bright eyes and sunny smile. She has consistently shown the different sides of characters in her various roles, often touching the hearts of audiences. Critics say An Yue Xi has a bright path ahead in her acting career with unlimited potential.
You can watch An Yue Xi as the lead in the fantasy-action series “Rakshasa Street“ alongside Jiro Wang, as well as the youth sports drama “The Whirlwind Girl 2“ alongside Ji Chang Wook. Additionally, she is also the lead in the period romance drama “Granting You a Dreamlike Life“ with Zhu Yi Long.
Start watching her in “Granting You a Dreamlike Life”:
Wu Qian
Many drama fans are probably very familiar with our next rising actress Wu Qian (Janice Wu). She is most well-known for her leading role in the popular fantasy romantic-comedy drama “My Amazing Boyfriend” as the hilarious B-list actress Tian Jing Zhi. She has also starred in a string of supporting roles, which includes: “Ruyi’s Royal Love in the Palace,” “Fighter of the Destiny,” and “My Sunshine.” She recently starred in the popular 2018 fantasy historical drama “An Oriental Odyssey” with hot rising actor Zheng Ye Cheng.
Wu Qian is a graduate of Wuhan University’s Arts Department. She is signed under Zhejiang Huace Film & Television, China’s largest private film and television enterprise focused on investment, production, and distribution. Wu Qian has a few awards under her belt, the first being the Breakthrough Actress of the Year Award at the 2017 Tencent Video Star Awards, based off her performances as Yi Li in “A Life Time Love” and the adorable Princess Luo Luo in “Fighter of the Destiny.” She also won Most Popular Actress at the 2016 Golden Guduo Media Awards for her role in “My Amazing Boyfriend.”
Fun fact: Wu Qian met Prince William in 2015 at the film premiere for “Paddington” in Shanghai, China. Hilariously, when Wu Qian spoke with the Duke of Cambridge, she recommended duck necks for him to try, which is a delicacy from the provincial capital of Hubei known as Wuhan, where she is from.
She’s currently starring in the popular romantic-comedy drama “The Brightest Star In the Sky” with Huang Zitao (Z.Tao). You can look forward to seeing her in the next upcoming romance drama “Le Coup de Foudre” with the male lead Zhang Yu Jian, set to air sometime this year.
Don’t forget to follow Wu Qian on Instagram, if you have haven’t already!
Start watching her in “My Amazing Boyfriend”:
Hey Soompiers, who is your favorite hottest rising Chinese actress? Any favorites who weren’t mentioned in the article? Let me know in the comments below!
blacksesame88 is a long-time Asian drama and entertainment addict. She enjoys discussing her favorite dramas and sharing her knowledge of Asian entertainment. When she’s not watching dramas, she’s busy snapping aesthetic photos of delicious food on Instagram. Follow her on Twitter and join her for recaps of the current dramas she’s watching, also feel free to say Hi and have a chat!
Currently watching: “Goodbye My Princess” “Destiny’s Love“ “The Brightest Star In The Sky“
All-time favorite dramas: “Nirvana In Fire,” “Queen In Hyun’s Man,” “A Witch’s Romance” “Love O2O” “My Mr. Mermaid”
Looking forward to: “Le Coup de Foudre” “The King’s Avatar” “Cry Me a Sad River” “Novoland: Eagle Flag”
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