Chinese Actress Gao Yuanyuan was recently spotted at the Yulin Road Market in Chengdu, Sichuan, wearing a red sweater paired with white pants, looking casual and natural. She was photographed with French chef Dai Guangtan, known for his expertise in Chinese cuisine. However, the appearance of another woman wearing almost identical clothing in the same scene led to speculation from the public that Gao Yuanyuan was using a body double for a variety show. The brand promptly responded to the situation.
On December 15th, a netizen captured footage at the Yulin Market in Chengdu, where a woman resembling Gao Yuanyuan and dressed similarly was seen walking with a group of lighting technicians, but the actress herself was not present at the time.
Later, the netizen came across paparazzi photos of Gao Yuanyuan in the same outfit: with shoulder-length brown hair, she was seen buying vegetables and fruits at the market in a red sweater and white wide-leg pants, accompanied by Michelin-star chef Dai Guangtan. The pair attracted many onlookers who stopped to take photos with their phones.
It was then that the netizen realized that the person seen earlier might have been Gao Yuanyuan’s body double for the variety show she is speculated to be filming, “Chinese Restaurant.” The terms “Gao Yuanyuan body double” and “body doubles in variety shows” quickly trended online.
Following the exposure of the footage, many netizens mocked and questioned the situation, commenting “I never knew body doubles were used for filming variety shows,” and “Isn’t it just eating and playing around? Why would a body double be needed for that?”
However, the “misunderstanding” was quickly clarified. The so-called “body double” was actually a “stand-in” for lighting purposes.
Clothing brand edition clarified in a Weibo post that Gao Yuanyuan was not filming a variety show but a brand advertisement. They explained, “For the sake of creative filming, Chef Guangtan arrived in Chengdu ahead of time to explore the local flavors and enthusiastically participated in our pre-shoot work. In order to respect public space order and enhance the efficiency of our team, we arranged for personnel to conduct professional location scouting and lighting testing to present high-quality footage.”
Fans elaborated on the differences between “stand-ins” and “body doubles”: a stand-in is only used for testing lighting and will not appear in the final footage, while a “body double” in film and television participates directly in shooting scenes, with their back appearing in the final footage. A “stand-in” is a “time manager” rather than a “performance substitute,” and it is normal to use one to test camera angles and lighting before the star arrives, saving time.
Despite clarifying the controversy, some netizens recalled past encounters with Gao Yuanyuan during filming, pointing out that even with few people present, she would be accompanied by dozens of security personnel, sparking further discussion. One netizen commented, “It’s good for creating security jobs,” with a hint of sarcasm.
Industry insiders noted that the public’s sensitivity or even aversion to the use of body doubles stems from the rampant abuse of body doubles in film and television, while the roles behind-the-scenes in commercials and variety shows are less known, leading to “stand-ins” being viewed as stars being “lazy.”