Zhou Dongyu is favourite celebrity influencer in China
BEIJING: Actress Zhou Dongyu has been named the favourite celebrity brand influencer in China.
That conclusion came during an online poll using the WeChat platform.
Also ranked at the top was actor Karry Wang.
The list of favourites also included celebrities like Wang Yuan, Zhu Yilong, Dilraba, Huang Zitao, Chen Weiting, Yang Zi, Zhang Yixing and Bai Yu.
Kris Wu, who was on the top of the list last year, endorsed fewer number of brands this year. However, the brands he is endorsing have become increasingly high-end and international. Celebrities who were born in 1990s become more welcome by brands than those born in the 1980s.
A growing number of videostreaming websites and apps, including Youku, iQiyi, Tencent Video, and Weishi, have also been endorsed by multiple celebrities. Another trend this year is a growing number of male celebrities are endorsing products targeting lady consumers, such as cosmetics, snacks, and personal care products.
For Zhou, the high ranking is attributed to her large number of starring roles as an innocent, if quirky love interest in romantic comedies.
Zhou has since blossomed on China’s silver screen, appearing in over 20 films to date. Her recent works, This Is Not What I Expected (2017) and Us and Them (2018), were instant box office hits.
Among online shoppers in China, demographic studies show that the most influential group are ladies of college-going age. Not surprisingly, they have voracious appetites for romantic comedies.
For Zhou, it’s been quite a career trajectory.
In her early twenties, she had a series of roles that failed to impress Chinese netizens. She remained low-key regarding public criticism, while quietly honing her skills at the Beijing Film Academy.
The breakthrough came in her performance in Soul Mate (2016), a tale of tested friendship and redemption in a love triangle.
Zhou has since blossomed on China’s silver screen, appearing in over 20 films to date. Her recent works, This Is Not What I Expected (2017) and Us and Them (2018), were huge hits.