Popular mainland Chinese actress Zhao Lusi, 27, paused filming at the end of 2024 due to health reasons and has been on a break for the past 20 months. In April this year, she confirmed at a public event that she would return to the set in the summer, but plans to start shooting a new drama in August have reportedly hit a roadblock.
As a leading actress, tickets for Zhao Lusi’s recent large-scale concerts in Bangkok, Thailand, and Macau have been in high demand, sparking discussions about her stage outfits and crossover performances. During the tour, it was reported by the media that several sets of custom-made performance costumes for Zhao Lusi’s concerts were unexpectedly stolen, with no clues left in the surveillance footage, leading the company to report the incident to the police.
Although Zhao Lusi has successfully returned to the public eye, many fans are curious as to why she has been focusing on concert tours instead of returning to filming, especially after making a comeback with the hit drama “Let Me Shine” last year, earning up to 18 commercial endorsements.
In April, during an event, Zhao Lusi tearfully thanked her fans for their unwavering support over the past 10 years and revealed her plans to resume work in the summer, hoping to take on projects that convey “female mentality and lifestyle.” At that time, there were strong rumors in the industry that she would star in a new drama adaptation of a novel by Yi Shu titled “Be As Beautiful As You Want,” with the male lead set to be her former co-star in a film, Xu Kai, although Xu Kai has now explicitly denied taking on the role.
On July 21, Zhao Lusi admitted during a live stream that she had indeed planned to start filming in August, but has yet to receive the finalized script, delaying the production schedule. Her studio is currently seeking original scripts and does not rule out the possibility of investing in producing her own works in the future.
The delay in Zhao Lusi’s return to filming has sparked various speculations. In addition to rumors of her being rejected by multiple production teams, there have been reports that any production willing to work with her has stipulated an additional condition: requiring the artist to sign a “risk responsibility agreement” in advance. According to the agreement, if filming is interrupted or halted due to personal reasons of the artist, all financial losses will be fully borne by the artist.
Due to Zhao Lusi’s collapse on set while filming “Lover” at the end of 2024, she refused to sign such stringent agreements, resulting in a string of canceled film and television invitations.
So far, Zhao Lusi’s studio has not responded to the various rumors circulating.