News on Entertainment & Culture in China

Songs of hope
Online concert receives over 350 million views, bringing relief to artists
May 15, 2020 (WiC 495)

One World: Together at Home was billed as the largest gathering of pop stars since the Live Aid concert in 1985. The prime-time special was conceived as a tribute to healthcare workers, volunteers and civil servants fighting the ...

Entertainment deficit
Troubled times at studio Beijing Culture and across the film industry
May 8, 2020 (WiC 494)

China’s Labour Day holidays, in the first week of May, is traditionally one of the busiest for moviegoing. Last year, Disney and Marvel’s Avengers: Endgame went on to smash box office records, grossing over Rmb1.2 billion ($170 ...

Paying the price
Financial pain as celebrity love lives unravel on social media
May 1, 2020 (WiC 493)

In this day and age, is a relationship real if it’s not being flaunted on Instagram? In China, no break-up is official unless you post news of it on Sina Weibo, it seems. Last week, online influencer Zhou Yangqing penned an explosive post ...

Attention to detail
A lavish costume drama about Song Dynasty wins over the critics
Apr 24, 2020 (WiC 492)

It wasn’t the longest-reigning dynasty in Chinese history and it wasn’t the most powerful either. However, historians generally believe the Song Dynasty was well ahead of contemporary powers when it came to technology and invention. For ...

Buddy show
Music idol Jay Chou attacks Netflix for not promoting his travelogue
Apr 17, 2020 (WiC 491)

In the HBO hit Entourage, Vincent Chase (played by Adrian Grenier) is an actor who becomes a Hollywood star. Despite finding fame, he keeps his old friends close and they free-ride on his celebrity, enjoying the lifestyle that Hollywood ...

And for his next act…
A former phone entrepreneur relaunches his career as a livestream host
Apr 10, 2020 (WiC 490)

He was formerly a construction worker, a bookseller and a self-taught English teacher. He founded a blogging site before it was closed down for failing government content standards. And despite not having a background in tech, Luo Yonghao then ...

A 28 billion phenomenon
New girl band reality show breaks iQiyi’s record for popularity
Apr 3, 2020 (WiC 489)

While the world is struggling to contain the coronavirus outbreak, China has slowly reopened schools in areas like Guizhou, which are deemed low risk. Flights to Hubei province – with the exception of Wuhan, the capital city of the province – ...

Curtain call
Cinemas are reopening in some provinces, although audiences are small
Mar 27, 2020 (WiC 488)

Just before the coronavirus outbreak started to become more widespread in the US and Europe, Disney hosted the premieres of its latest offering in the live-action genre, Mulan, both in Los Angeles and London in early March. Only a few ...

Fanning controversy
How the protests of fans over an online novel backfired on pop star
Mar 13, 2020 (WiC 486)

Before Liu Bang established the Han Dynasty, his most trusted adviser and friend was Xiao He (257 to 193 BC). Xiao subsequently came across a young man named Han Xin and quickly recognised his military talent, recommending him to his leader. ...

Big in Japan, but not Jiangxi
Why do Chinese remakes of Japanese hit TV shows always seems to bomb?
Mar 5, 2020 (WiC 485)

While many say that acts of kindness – no matter how big or small in monetary terms – can make a difference, China’s netizens do not seem to think so. WiC reported last week that real estate tycoon Pan Shiyi’s lacklustre charitable ...

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