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| Zhao Lusi Unveils Nine New Projects as Chinese Star Expands Into Production. (Weibo) |
Zhao Lusi is no longer content with waiting for the right script to land on her desk. As she reaches the 10th anniversary of signing her debut contract, the 27-year-old Chinese actress has revealed a nine-project slate spanning historical stories, mystery, contemporary romance, fantasy and time-travel, signalling a much more hands-on chapter in her career. The move puts Zhao Lusi in a position not only to star in stories but to help decide which stories get made in the first place.
The announcement arrives in August 2026, marking a decade since Zhao Lusi entered the entertainment industry, and the timing makes the scale of the move difficult to miss. Rather than presenting one new acting role and calling it a day, her studio has unveiled nine IPs intended to cover a broad range of genres and formats.
It is a sizeable statement from a star who has spent much of her career in front of the camera and is now clearly interested in having a hand on the steering wheel.
According to the details shared about the projects, the slate was not assembled overnight. Zhao Lusi has reportedly been quietly collecting stories and exploring promising material for some time, with the intention of creating opportunities rather than simply waiting for suitable scripts to arrive.
Her approach is summed up by the idea that she does not want to passively wait for good scripts and would rather create opportunities herself, particularly because compelling stories can often be found in ordinary life.
That philosophy will first be put into practice with Sonder·I’m Not Just an NPC, the short-form drama scheduled to begin filming in Hengdian on 22 August 2026.
The project is especially significant because it marks Zhao Lusi’s first credited role as a producer and creative supervisor, while she will not appear in the cast herself. Instead, the leading roles are set to be handled by Bao Jieyi, Zhou Zhiyi, Hou Ben and Wei Xiao, artists associated with her studio.
The title Sonder, which refers to the realisation that everyone has their own individual life and perspective, fits neatly with the project's central idea.
The story is built around the notion that nobody should simply exist as a background character in somebody else's narrative. That makes the title I’m Not Just an NPC more than a playful phrase; it also reflects the creative direction Zhao Lusi appears to be taking with her own career.
The drama is planned as a female-led ensemble rather than a conventional production built around one central heroine surrounded by supporting characters. Its four main characters are expected to have their own storylines, with their experiences reflecting different aspects of personal growth and self-understanding.
The tone is described as lighter and more restorative than the formula often associated with straightforward romance shorts, with greater attention given to character development and everyday experiences.
There is also a notable experiment in how the project is being produced. The production is expected to use a model in which key members of the creative team do not receive a conventional basic salary, with earnings instead linked to the project's eventual profits.
The idea is to tie financial returns more closely to the performance of the finished work, while giving the creative team a stronger connection to the outcome.
That approach has inevitably attracted attention because it puts unusual emphasis on the people responsible for creating the story. The project reportedly intends to give writers lasting credit alongside a share of viewing-related revenue and potential income from the wider IP.
For Zhao Lusi, that means the production is not simply another title carrying her name; it represents an attempt to build a creative structure in which writers and other creators retain a more meaningful stake in what they produce.
Her studio's nine-project announcement suggests that Sonder·I’m Not Just an NPC is only the opening move. The wider collection includes original scripts such as Ning Zuo Wo, I’m an NPC and Goodbye Letter, alongside adaptations including Who Is Calling Me From Elsewhere, The Weaver and Feng Deng Ji.
The projects reportedly stretch from historical and fantasy material to mystery, romance and stories centred on personal growth, giving the slate a deliberately broad range rather than locking the company into one familiar genre.
The mix of original development and literary adaptations is perhaps the clearest indication that Zhao Lusi is thinking beyond individual acting projects.
Her studio is understood to have pursued rights through both direct acquisitions and longer-term collaborative arrangements, with creators retaining authorship recognition and opportunities to share in the performance and future development of their work. In practical terms, it gives the actress a way to participate much earlier in the life of a project.
For fans, the response has understandably been mixed. Some have welcomed the move as a natural progression for a star who appears keen to have greater creative control, particularly after years of building a strong profile through acting.
Others are more cautious about the ambitious production model surrounding Sonder, questioning whether a new structure can deliver the quality expected from a project associated with such a high-profile actress.
And, as always, the internet has managed to turn a serious discussion about creative ownership into a debate about almost everything else within approximately five minutes.
There is also curiosity about what Zhao Lusi choosing not to act in her first production project says about her priorities. Rather than placing herself at the centre of the first title, she appears willing to test the production side of the business from behind the camera.
That could ultimately prove more revealing than simply adding another acting credit to an already busy career, particularly if the nine-project slate develops into a sustained production operation.
The bigger picture is that Zhao Lusi appears to be moving from being someone who waits for a story to someone who helps build the pipeline behind it. Nine IPs is an ambitious starting point, and Sonder·I’m Not Just an NPC will be the first real test when filming begins in Hengdian on 22 August.
Whether the project can turn that ambition into something audiences genuinely connect with remains to be seen, but the direction is already clear: Zhao Lusi wants a bigger say in what gets made. What do you make of her move into production, and which of the nine projects would you most like to see brought to the screen?