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| Lin Yi: From Leading Man to Taking a Break, What Happened? (Weibo 林一/Lin Yi) |
One minute you're everywhere, the next you're barely a blip. The entertainment world moves fast, and Lin Yi’s the latest proof of just how brutal that ride can be.
Ten months.
That’s how long it’s been since Lin Yi last stepped onto a drama set.
Once hailed as the next big thing, especially after turning heads with his role in The Tale of Rose, the young actor’s promising trajectory has hit a wall—hard.
Back then, things were golden.
His portrayal of the charming young boyfriend opposite superstar Liu Yifei had everyone swooning.
Fresh-faced, heartfelt, and with chemistry to boot, Lin Yi was the name on everyone’s lips.
Offers rolled in. Fans were buzzing. Even industry veterans tipped him as the next A-lister in the making.
Riding that wave, Lin Yi took on a romantic drama, Ski into Love (a.k.a. Hush, The King is Hibernating), starring opposite rising starlet Esther Yu Shuxin.
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| Lin Yi and Esther Yu (Ski Into Love) |
On paper, it had all the right ingredients: a trending duo, an exciting love story, and a fanbase already hyped before episode one even aired.
But oh, how quickly things can go south.
When the drama finally dropped, it landed with more of a fizzle than a bang.
Viewers slammed it as cliché, the storytelling felt half-baked, and to top it off, that sizzling chemistry everyone expected?
Nowhere to be found.
The show barely pulled in 15 million viewers per episode—not disastrous, but far from the blockbuster success people hoped for.
And in this cutthroat industry, one misstep can cost more than just ratings.
Before long, Lin Yi was quietly dropped from several potential projects.
Some casting deals simply vanished.
Others went to newer, shinier stars like Ding Yuxi, Wang Anyu, and Xin Yunlai—his peers who are now miles ahead on the fast lane.
The biggest blow?
Our Destiny, a high-profile film with Li Wanda (Vanda Margraf), was shut down just a week into filming.
From dream job to dead-end, just like that.
With scripts no longer knocking and cameras no longer rolling, Lin Yi has spent the last ten months off the acting radar.
His only lifeline?
Wind Rider, a celebrity car-racing variety show that’s kept him (barely) in the public eye.
But for a young actor still carving out his space, that kind of pause can feel like a career-killer.
In a market currently dealing with a production slowdown thanks to economic pressure, the competition’s fiercer than ever.
Blink, and you’re forgotten.
Still, all is not lost.
Word on the street is Lin Yi’s now in talks for a brand new mystery-crime drama, Trace of Sin.
It’s a two-lead format and could give him a completely fresh stage to prove he's not just a pretty face, but a serious actor with range.
If it lands, it could be the pivot point he desperately needs.
Fans haven’t given up.
They’re still flooding his socials with support, sending messages of encouragement, and waiting patiently for that one golden comeback.
And Lin Yi?
He seems to be taking it all in stride.
“Every journey has its challenges,” he said in a recent quick interview.
“What matters is believing in yourself.”
So maybe this isn’t the end of the story. Maybe it’s just the mid-season cliffhanger.
We’ll be watching.