Seven years ago, the historical drama “Records of the Zi Zhi” (original name: “Green Hairpin Travel”) was filmed, starring male lead Wu Yifan, but due to his imprisonment, the drama has been shelved. Despite efforts from the production team to find replacement male leads and reshoot scenes with the female lead Yang Zi, Tencent, who invested 400 million yuan (RMB) into the drama, still faces the looming crisis of scrapping the project altogether.
“Records of the Zi Zhi” was originally set to star Yang Zi and Wu Yifan and had wrapped filming as early as 2020 with extensive promotional activities. However, Wu Yifan’s imprisonment in 2021 on charges of sexual assault of a minor led to the drama being put on hold. Despite attempts by the production team to find new male leads, they faced obstacles in restarting production.
In a bid to recoup massive losses, after facing setbacks, in 2024 actor Peng Guanying took over the project at a lower price to salvage the situation, reshooting scenes originally meant for Wu Yifan.
According to reports from mainland media, for the reshoots, many scenes involving interactions between the male and female leads were cut, with an increase in Yang Zi’s screen time, reducing the original 60 episodes to 40. Peng Guanying finished shooting in about 20 days, while Yang Zi, despite a busy schedule, dedicated 20 unpaid days to return to the set and film an additional 20% of modified scenes.
With reshoots and post-production completed, “Records of the Zi Zhi” has been rumored to be picked up for broadcast on various platforms, including potential airing on Disney+. The production team also launched official accounts on WeChat and Douyin in February of last year. However, news of the drama’s broadcast status has been uncertain.
Now, following Yang Zi’s recent success winning the Best Actress award at the Magnolia Awards for her role in “Tree of Life”, reports suggest that Tencent is considering capitalizing on this momentum to finally release the drama that has been shelved for seven years. Although currently undergoing approval processes, recent rumors indicate a crisis in the looming broadcast plans.
Sources reveal that after internal screenings at Tencent, top executives fell into silence. The excessive use of AI facial replacement and green screen reshoots appeared too awkward, with abrupt editing transitions, and most scenes were shot in 2019, making the makeup, hair, and costumes from seven years ago appear outdated by today’s standards.
Top executives at the platform now find themselves in a dilemma. Tencent Video is facing significant financial pressure, with a loss of 1.028 billion RMB in the first half of this year. The executives are reluctant to let go of the 400 million RMB investment in “Records of the Zi Zhi”. However, the poor quality of the final product has made them hesitant to risk broadcasting a potentially poorly received drama and face public criticism, even at the cost of the production fee.