Li Qin (actress)

In this Chinese name, the family name is Li (李).

Li Qin (Chinese: 李沁; born 27 September 1990) is a Chinese actress.^[2][3] Li is known for her roles in The Dream of Red Mansions (2010), White Deer Plain (2017), Princess Agents (2017), Joy of Life (2019), The Song of Glory (2020), The Wolf (2020), Where Dreams Begin (2023), and War of Faith (2024).

Li Qin
李沁
Li in 2019
Born	(1990-09-27) 27 September 1990 (age 34) Kunshan, Jiangsu, China[1]
Other names	Sweet Li
Education	Shanghai Theatre Academy
Occupation	Actress
Years active	2008–present
Agent	Li Qin Studio
Musical career
Genres	OST Mandapop
Instrument	Vocals
Years active	2010–present
Chinese name
Chinese	李沁
Hanyu Pinyin	Lǐ Qìn

Early life and education

Li was born in Bacheng Town of Kunshan, Jiangsu, China. At the age of 11, Li studied Chinese traditional opera in Shipai Central School.^[4]

She graduated from the Affiliated Chinese Opera School of Shanghai Theatre Academy in 2008, majoring in kunqu.^[5]

Career

2010–2016: Debut and rising popularity

Li first rose to prominence in 2010 for playing Xue Baochai in the television series The Dream of Red Mansions, based on the novel by the same name by Cao Xueqin.^[6][7] She won the Best New Actress award at the TVS Award Ceremony for her performance.^[8]

In 2011, Li made her film debut in The Founding of a Party, playing Yang Kaihui.^[9] She was nominated for the Best Newcomer Award at the 31st Hundred Flowers Awards.^[10] She again played Yang Kaihui in China in 1921, another patriotic tribute production.^[11]

In 2012, Li starred in the romantic melodrama television series The Watchful Sky,^[12] which won the Gold Angel Award at the 9th Sino-US Film Festival.^[13] In 2013, Li starred in romance dramas Shining Days and The Return of a Princess , both of which attained high ratings during their respective runs.^[14][15]

In 2014, Li starred in romance drama If I Love You,^[16] and was named the Most Promising Actress at the China TV Drama Awards for her performance.^[17] In 2015, Li starred in her first historical drama My Amazing Bride, playing a quirky and adorable heiress.^[18]

2017–present: Acclaim and transition to mainstream popularity

In 2017, Li starred in the television adaptation of the classic novel White Deer Plain.^[19] Her performance as Tian Xiao'e^[20] was a "pitch-perfect illustration of a rural woman's miserable life" according to critics, and stood in sharp contrast to her previous performances as youthful and innocent characters.^[21] Li was nominated for the Best Supporting Actress award at the Magnolia Awards for her performance.^[22] The same year, Li starred in the historical action drama Princess Agents, playing a princess of a befallen kingdom.^[23] The drama was a major success and led to increased popularity of Li.^[24] That year, Li entered Forbes China Celebrity 100 list for the first time, ranking 100th.^[25]

In 2018, Li was nominated at the Hundred Flowers Award for Best Actress for her portrayal of Yang Kaihui in the patriotic film The Founding of an Army.^[26][27] The same year, she played the role of Fragrant Concubine in the palace drama Ruyi's Royal Love in the Palace.^[28] Forbes China listed Li under their 30 Under 30 Asia 2017 list which consisted of 30 influential people under 30 years old who have had a substantial effect in their fields.^[29]

In 2019, Li played the female lead Lu Xueqi in the film adaptation of the xianxia novel Zhu Xian, titled Jade Dynasty.^[30][31] She then co-starred in the aviation disaster film The Captain as a flight attendant,^[32] and received the Best Supporting Actress award at the Gold Crane Awards held by the Tokyo International Film Festival.^[33] The same year, she starred in the historical political drama Joy of Life,^[34] and gained attention for her role as the drumstick lady.^{[citation needed]}

In 2020, Li appeared in CCTV New Year's Gala for the first time, performing the song item "Hello 2020".^[35] The same year, she starred in the historical drama The Song of Glory as the daughter of a military family.^[36] She also starred in the comedy film Warm Hug.^[37] She ranked 72nd on Forbes China Celebrity 100 list in 2020.^[38]

Other activities

Endorsements

In 2018, Li was selected as brand ambassador for cosmetics brand SK-II.^[39]

Since 2021, Italian luxury leather goods brand Furla has announced that Li will serve as the brand's spokesperson.^[40] In 2021, she was also become the first brand spokesperson for Laura Mercier Cosmetics in the Asia-Pacific region.^[41][42] Since 2021, Li has been named as brand spokesperson for Forevermark, a luxury retail subsidiary brand of De Beers Group.^[43]

In September 2023, American clothing brand Tommy Hilfiger announced that Li would officially serve as brand ambassador in China, alongside Greg Hsu.^[44]

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes	Ref.
2011	Mr. and Mrs. Incredible	Lan Fenghuang		[45]
	Distressed Thief	Li Manzhen		[46]
	The Founding of a Party	Yang Kaihui		[9]
	Guo Mingyi	Guo Ruixue		[47]
2012	Joyful Reunion	Bai Ping		[48]
2013	Amazing	Xiao Ke		[49]
2016	Never Gone	Meng Xue		[50]
	Love O2O	Meng Yiran		[51]
2017	The Founding of an Army	Yang Kaihui		[26]
2019	Jade Dynasty	Lu Xueqi		[31]
	The Captain	Zhou Yawen		[32]
	The World Stands Still for a Second		Short film	[52]
2020	First Shot			[53]
	Warm Hug	Song Wennuan		[37]
TBA	The Perfect Blue	Wu Guan		[54]

Television series

Year	Title	Role	Notes	Ref.
2010	The Dream of Red Mansions	Xue Baochai (young)		[6]
2011	China 1921	Yang Kaihui		[11]
	General's Diary	Xiao Li		[55]
2012	Mother's Scheme	Jin Puhe (young)		[56]
	The Watchful Sky	Pu Tao		[12]
2013	Shining Days	Yu Fei		[14]
	The Return of a Princess	Shen Changqing		[57]
	Flower Pinellia	Xia Ruhua		[58]
	Protecting the Grandson	Li Xiao'ai		[59]
2014	Expiration Date to Fall in Love with You	Qi Xiaoyu		[60]
	If I Love You	An Ning		[16]
2015	My Amazing Bride	Tang Doudou		[18]
	Sunflower Love	Ye Mingzhu		[61]
	Return of Happiness	Yu Youwei		[62]
2017	White Deer Plain	Tian Xiao'e		[19]
	Undercover	Tang Guo
	Princess Agents	Yuan Chun		[24]
2018	Battle Through the Heavens	Xiao Yixian		[63]
	Ruyi's Royal Love in the Palace	Han Xiangjian		[28]
2019	Joy of Life	Lin Wan'er	Season 1–2	[64]
2020	The Song of Glory	Shen Lige		[36]
	With You	Li Tian Ran	Segment: "I Am Dalian"	[65]
	The Wolf	Ma Zhaixing		[66]
2021	My Dear Guardian	Xia Chu		[67]
	Tears in Heaven	Du Xiaosu	Filmed in 2016	[68]
2022	From Love to Happiness	Gu Xiaowei	Filmed in 2014
	Thousand Years For You	Yu Dengdeng / Yunxi		[69]
2023	Miles to Go	Liu Qiaozhen
	Where Dreams Begin	Tong Xiao Mei
2024	War of Faith	Shen Jinzhen

Variety show

Year	English title	Chinese title	Role	Notes/Ref.
2015	We Are In Love	我们相爱吧	Cast member	with Wei Daxun[70]

Discography

Year	English title	Chinese title	Album	Notes
2010	"Zang Hua Ci"	葬花词	The Dream of Red Mansions OST
	"Song of Chasing Kites"	追风筝的歌
2013	"Hug Me Tight"	抱紧我	The Return of a Princess OST
	"Shadow"	影子
2015	"Left Hand Hold Right Hand"	左手牵右手	My Amazing Bride OST
2019	"Year of Reunion"	团圆年		Performance for CCTV Lantern Performance with Luo Yunxi & Zhang Binbin[71]
2020	"Hello 2020"	你好2020		Performance for CCTV Spring Gala with Li Xian, Zhu Yilong, Ma Sichun & Zhou Dongyu[35]
	"Live Up to the Prime of Youth"	不负韶华		with Yu Menglong

Awards and nominations

Year	Award	Category	Nominated work	Result	Ref.
Major awards
2012	31st Hundred Flowers Awards	Best Newcomer	The Founding of a Party	Nominated	[10]
2018	24th Shanghai Television Festival	Best Supporting Actress	White Deer Plain	Nominated	[22]
	5th The Actors of China Awards Ceremony	Outstanding Actress (Emerald Category)	—	Nominated	[72]
	34th Hundred Flowers Awards	Best Actress	The Founding of an Army	Nominated	[27]
2019	32nd Tokyo International Film Festival Gold Crane Awards	Best Supporting Actress	The Captain	Won	[33]
	3rd Golden Screen Awards			Won	[73]
2020	7th The Actors of China Awards	Best Actress (Web Series)	Joy of Life	Nominated	[74]
		Outstanding Actress		Won
	29th Huading Awards	Best Actress		Nominated
2021	34th Huading Awards	Best Actress	The Wolf	Nominated
2023	14th Macau International Television Festival	Best Actress	Miles to Go	Nominated	[75]
2024	32nd China TV Golden Eagle Awards	Best Actress		Nominated	[76]
Other awards
2010	TV Drama South Awarding Ceremony	Best Newcomer	The Dream of Red Mansions	Won	[77]
	The Mango TV Fan Festival	Best Couple		Won	[78]
2011	China Power Awards	Most Beautiful New Star	—	Won	[79]
	Sohu Entertainment Award	New Face	—	Won	[80]
2013	SMG Hope Tour	Best Newcomer	—	Won	[81]
2014	6th China TV Drama Awards	Most Promising Actress	If I Love You	Won	[17]
2016	ifeng Fashion Choice Awards	Most Popular Actress	—	Won	[82]
	Netease Crossover Awards	Breakthrough Actress	—	Won	[83]
2017	Netease Attitude Award	Most Anticipated Actor	—	Won	[84]
	L'Officiel Fashion Night Influence Award	Hot Era Reader	—	Won	[85]
	24th Cosmo Beauty Ceremony	Beautiful Idol Award	—	Won	[86]
	9th China TV Drama Awards	Young Acting Idol Award	—	Won	[87]
2018	25th Cosmo Beauty Ceremony	Beautiful Idol Award	—	Won	[88]
	12th Tencent Video Star Awards	Rising TV Actress	—	Won	[89]
2019	China Literature Award Ceremony	IP Breakthrough Actress	—	Won	[90]
	Sina The Most Beautiful Performance	Outstanding Actress	The Captain, Jade Dynasty	Won	[91]
	Jinri Toutiao Awards Ceremony	Charismatic Actress of the Year	—	Won	[92]