Popular mainland Chinese actor Chen Xuedong, who rose to fame with the movie “Tiny Times,” gradually faded from the spotlight after the release of “The Bravest Escort 2: Cold Blooded Party” in 2020. It wasn’t until early last year when he revealed he had been involved in a serious car accident and later shared a photo of himself lying on a hospital bed with white hair, causing significant concern among the public. Recent reports suggest that he may have already retired from the entertainment industry and is currently settled in the United States.
In February last year, Chen Xuedong disclosed on Weibo that the reason for his disappearance from the screen was due to a severe car accident. He posted a photo of himself in a wheelchair and admitted that although he was seriously injured, he was actively undergoing treatment and recovery. In September of the same year, he provided updates on his health, mentioning that his left leg had not fully recovered since the serious car accident at the beginning of the year. Despite having undergone a third surgery, he expressed resignation by saying, “It should be the last one! Finally, the whole process is complete.” Although he stated that he probably wouldn’t undergo further surgery, doctors warned him that he would likely develop rheumatism in the future.
From the photos he shared on Weibo from his hospital bed, his face appeared pale and haggard, with thick bandages wrapped around his legs. It was evident that extensive surgery had been performed on his legs as there were holes and scars from stitches on both sides of his lower legs, possibly indicating the insertion of steel nails and sewing marks. Additionally, there were markings on his legs, likely surgical diagrams. In one photo, Chen Xuedong was shown with an oxygen nasal cannula, needles inserted into his body, and eyes closed; in another photo, taken after he had regained consciousness, he was lying on the hospital bed wearing a mask, with completely white hair, which startled many at first glance.
After publicly sharing this set of photos, Chen Xuedong virtually disappeared from the public eye. Not only did his official studio’s last post date back to 2022, but all of his personal Weibo posts had also disappeared, prompting fans to question if he had retired. In response to speculation, on April 27 this year, he refuted the rumors by posting, “Retire? What retirement? Retirement from what? Music retirement? I won’t retire, give it up.” This post marked his final message on Weibo.
Recently, an unnamed insider revealed, “Chen Xuedong’s current situation is as described, and he is believed to have settled in the United States.” This news instantly made the keyword “Chen Xuedong suspected retirement and settling in the United States” trend as the number one hot topic on Weibo, sparking discussions.
At 34 years old this year, Chen Xuedong gained considerable attention right from his debut with the “Tiny Times” film series and later attracted notice for his roles in the “The Bravest Escort” film series directed by Guo Jingming. Just when fans thought his career was about to take off, troubles hit his co-stars like Fan Bingbing and Kris Wu from the same film series, with Kris Wu even facing legal issues and imprisonment. Furthermore, his co-star in the TV series “To Our Own Desire,” Zheng Shuang, faced scandals of “surrogacy abandonment” and tax evasion, leading to her exit from the entertainment industry, with her works being taken down and being heavily fined by the court. Chen Xuedong, who was indirectly implicated due to these controversies, was humorously teased as having “worked hard for nothing all these years.”