Top 10 Foreign Stars On Chinese Minds
In early 2016, the South Korean television drama Descendants of the Sun was broadcast in China through an online streaming service at the same time as it was shown in South Korea. After four episodes, video views surpassed 300 million. Song Joongki shot to fame for his lead role as Yoo Sijin and became one of the most-discussed topics and top search terms in China.
Kobe Bryant
On April 4, 2016, Kobe Bryant scored 60 points in his final NBA game with a 101-96 win over the Utah Jazz. To pay respect to Bryant, some Chinese companies gave their employees the day off to watch the game. That morning, Bryant posted a thank-you video on Sina Weibo (a Chinese version of Twitter), and by the afternoon it had amassed 90,000 likes and over 20,000 comments.
Mohammad Ali
Legendary American boxer Mohammad Ali succumbed to illness on June 4, 2016. Chinese athletes expressed their condolences. “Ali organized many training classes for boxers and referees in China, tremendously assisting the development of boxing in China,” remarked Chinese boxer Yang Lianhui. “Almost all of our growth must be at least partially attributed to him.”
Leonardo DiCaprio
Leonardo DiCaprio has been widely known in China since the film Titanic was released in 1997. In February 2016, he finally won an Oscar for Best Actor for his role in The Revenant. Virtually everyone felt that the statuette was deserved, and Chinese fans were excited for him. Many thanked the Oscar voters for making his career wish finally come true in his forties.
Angelina Jolie
American actress Angelina Jolie, who has performed impeccably in a wide variety of roles, is very popular in China. Moviegoers are consistently raving about her work, and of course her marriage to and divorce from Brad Pitt always attracted Chinese fans’ attention.
Bob Dylan
American singer and songwriter Bob Dylan won the Nobel Prize in Literature last year. Chinese musicians such as rocker Wang Feng and folk singer Li Jian posted congratulations on social media platforms as soon as the news broke. For Chinese musicians, Bob Dylan is more than a legend; he represents the culture of an era.
Bear Gryll
Bear Grylls is a British adventurer, writer and television presenter. He is widely known in China for his television series Man vs. Wild, and was originally dubbed “the man who sits atop the food chain” by some Chinese netizens. In November 2016, he posted a short video about his interactions with Yao Ming, a Chinese former basketball player who was invited to take part in his new show Running Wild with Bear Grylls, which excited Chinese netizens and sports fans alike.
Emma Watson
The recent trend of “books on the underground” promoted by British actress Emma Watson has caused widespread discussion and made news all over the world. Many Chinese stars and ordinary people joined in the activity.
Makoto Shinkai
In December 2016, Your Name, the latest film by Makoto Shinkai, hit cinemas on the Chinese mainland. After earning box office revenues of 540 million yuan, it became the highest-grossing Japanese film in China of all time.
Keigo Higashino
Recently, Amazon released its bestseller list for the Chinese market. Keigo Higashino’s Miracles of the Namiya General Store sold strongly in China and finished in the top three on the list. Higashino won dual bestselling honors in 2016, in both paperback sales and Kindle e-books.
