Qu Chuxiao

In this Chinese name, the family name is Qu (屈).

Qu Chuxiao (born 28 December 1994) is a Chinese actor and singer. He is best known for the sci-fi film The Wandering Earth,^[1] and the television series Bloody Romance^[2] and Shining for One Thing.^[3]

Qu Chuxiao
Qu Chuxiao
Born	(1994-12-28) 28 December 1994 (age 30) Meishan, Sichuan, China
Alma mater	Central Academy of Drama
Occupation	Actor
Years active	2016–present
Agent	2016-2020 FWS (北京喜天影视文化有限公司)
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese	屈楚蕭
Simplified Chinese	屈楚萧
Hanyu Pinyin	Qū Chǔxiāo

Career

Qu made his acting debut in 2016 with a leading role in the romance web series My Fair Lady.^[4] He then starred in the historical fiction dramas Ruyi's Royal Love in the Palace, playing Yongqi,^[5] and Rule the World, playing Dorgon.^[6] In 2018, Qu gained popularity for his starring role as a shadow assassin in the wuxia web series Bloody Romance.^[7][8][9]

Qu debuted on the big screen with a minor role in the comedy film Father and Son in 2017.^[10] He then starred in the films Twenty, Graduating,^[11] and Oh Boy!. In 2019, Qu starred in China's first interstellar science fiction film The Wandering Earth, playing the lead role.^[12] The film was a major success and became the fifth highest-grossing film of all time in China.^[13] Forbes China listed Qu under their 30 Under 30 Asia 2019 list.^[14]

Qu then starred in the 2021 films Love Will Tear Us Apart and The Yinyang Master. In 2022, he starred in the coming-of-age television series Shining for One Thing.^[15]

Controversy

Homophobia and misogyny

In 2019, after the release of The Wandering Earth, Qu's previous social media activities came under scrutiny. These included his involvement in online groups related to PUA and stalking, as well as his anti-gay and anti-feminist statements.^[16]

Recasting Dispute

In July 2018, Qu established his own studio, leading to a tense relationship with his agency, Top High Pictures. By late March 2020, despite Qu having already started martial arts training for the role, he was replaced as the male lead in the costume drama The Long Ballad, with Leo Wu stepping in as a substitute. On March 27, Qu posted an Instagram story expressing gratitude to the director and crew for their support while jeering at Top High's alleged attempts to blacklist him by forcing his replacement due to contractual disputes.^[17][18]

Ex-girlfriends' allegations

In April 2020, Qu and actress Wan Zilin were photographed on a date in Beijing. However, Qu denied the relationship on Weibo. A few minutes later, Wan posted on Weibo, "I was just told that I had a breakup. Thank you for your concern."^[19]

Four days later, Li Fan (Helen), who identified as Qu's ex-girlfriend, published payment records of Qu's hush-money and photographs of her whip marks and bruises, claiming that she had been abused by Qu in their relationship.^[19] In December 2020, another woman made similar claims, alleging that she had been physically abused and thus suffered a miscarriage. The second woman later posted a phone recording in which she was threatened by Qu's agent, but also admitted that she had never been pregnant. Both women claimed that they became depressed and suicidal because of Qu. Qu's lawyers denied all the allegations while his agent claimed the recording was "maliciously edited."^[20][21]

Box office fraud allegation

Qu's vehicle Shining for One Thing (2023), the film adaptation of his breakout TV drama of the same name, grossed over 70 million yuan in pre-sale box office on December 5, 2023, making it China's highest first-day pre-sale box office earner. By December 15, half a month before its official release, the total pre-sale box office had surpassed 250 million yuan. However, by December 16, over one million people had received refunds on Maoyan and Tao Piao Piao, two of China's largest ticketing platforms, with an average refund rate of 18.1% across both platforms. During the New Year's holiday period, Shining for One Thing achieved a first-day box office of 400 million yuan and 326 million yuan on the second day. On the third day, the box office dropped to 57 million yuan, a steep decline of nearly 83%. Both the abnormally high refund rate for pre-sale tickets and the steep box office decline after release led to allegations of box office inflation and fraud.^[22][23]

Filmography

Film

Year	English title	Chinese title	Role	Notes
2017	Father and Son	父子雄兵	Michael	Cameo
2018	Twenty	二十岁	Liu Da
2019	The Wandering Earth	流浪地球	Liu Qi
2021	The Yinyang Master	侍神令	Yuan Bai Ya	[24]
	Love Will Tear Us Apart	我要我们在一起	Lv Qinyang	[25]
2023	The Breaking Ice	燃冬	Han Xiao
TBA	Graduating	毕业进行时	Xiao Jin
TBA	Oh Boy!	男生向前冲	Yang
TBA	Crisis Route	危机航线

Television series

Year	English title	Chinese title	Role	Network	Notes
2016	My Fair Lady	我的朋友陈白露小姐	Chen Yan	iQiyi
2017	Rule the World	独步天下	Dorgon	Tencent
2018	Bloody Romance	媚者无疆	Chang An / Xie Huan	Youku
	Ruyi's Royal Love in the Palace	如懿传	Yongqi	Tencent
2020	Mystery of Antiques III	古董局中局3：掠宝清单	Xu Yicheng		[26]
2022	Shining for One Thing	一闪一闪亮星星	Zhang Wan Sen	iQiyi
TBA		皓月当空—牧星战队		iQiyi

Soundtrack

Year	English title	Chinese title	Album	Notes
2016	"Lacking Abit"	只差一点点	My Fair Lady OST
2018	"Waiting For You (Male Version)"	一生等你	Bloody Romance OST
2022	"For Lovers"		Shining For One Thing OST

Awards and nominations

Year	Award	Category	Nominated work	Results	Ref.
2017	Men's UNO YOUNG Awards	Future New Talent Award	—	Won	[citation needed]
2019	GQ 2019 Men of the Year	New Actor of the Year	The Wandering Earth	Won	[27]
	6th The Actors of China Award Ceremony	Best Actor (Web series)	Bloody Romance	Nominated	[28]

See also

• Qu (surname 屈)