Xing Zhaolin (邢昭林)

Xing Zhaolin shot to fame in 2017 as the charming “Eight Prince” Mo Liancheng in the hit web drama The Eternal Love (Shuang Shi Chong Fei). At just 20 years old, he became the face of the “sweet costume romance” boom, with the low-budget series amassing billions of views and turning him into an overnight sensation. A former SM Entertainment trainee who turned down a K-pop career, Xing rode the early wave of China‘s web drama explosion, earning nicknames like “the Nation’s Boyfriend” and building a massive following of young female fans. But beneath the fairy-tale rise lay a career defined by a single, all-consuming role — one that would prove both his greatest asset and his most persistent trap.

Breakthrough Role Xing‘s breakthrough came with two back‑to‑back roles in 2017. First, he gained recognition as Yue Qi, the loyal personal guard to the male lead in the hit period drama Princess Agents (Chu Qiao Zhuan). But it was his very next project — the web drama The Eternal Love — that made him a star. He played Mo Liancheng, a witty and devoted prince caught in a time‑travel romance, whose chemistry with co‑star Liang Jie became the stuff of internet legend. The series was a phenomenon: a low‑budget production that outperformed major studio dramas and spawned two sequels. In 2018, he took on the challenge of playing dual roles in The Eternal Love II, showcasing a broader acting range. His performance earned him the Tencent Video Starlight Awards for “Most Promising TV Actor” (2017 and 2020) and the 6th China TV Good Actor Award for Best Actor in the Web Drama Category (2019).

Public Perception Today, Xing Zhaolin occupies a precarious and increasingly marginal position in the Chinese entertainment industry. He is widely remembered — but only for one role. Most viewers still associate him almost exclusively with Mo Liancheng, and he has struggled to establish any other memorable character. His recent work, including the 2025 drama My Bad Girlfriend and the 2026 urban suspense series Crime of Love (Zui Ai), has failed to generate significant buzz. Critics point to a lack of acting range: when stepping outside the “sweet idol” template into more complex, emotionally layered roles, his performance is often described as flat and unconvincing. A series of early public relations missteps — including rumors of an inflated sense of self‑importance — quietly eroded the goodwill he once enjoyed. In response, Xing has turned to the theater, performing in plays like Jizhou Suspicion and South to North to refine his craft. But whether this “retreat to the stage” represents a genuine artistic rebirth or simply a fading star‘s final act remains an open question.