Yang Mi (), 35, and Gong Jun (), 29, are reportedly starring in a historical fantasy romance, but the actress’ fans are upset about the project.

Gong Jun Is Considered a “Risky” Costar

Yang Mi is one of China’s highest-paid actresses, and fans believe she can star alongside any A-lister in the industry. Instead, fans are perplexed as to why she chose to collaborate with Gong Jun, whose breakout performance in last year’s Word of Honor> helped him gain millions of new fans but has yet to prove whether his popularity is sustainable.

Furthermore, Gong Jun has been embroiled in controversy after Word of Honor co-star Zhang Zhehan () claimed that the former actor’s team purposefully linked them together and used their “CP fans” couple fans) to earn money and gain popularity.

During the filming of Rising With the Wind, Gong Jun revealed that restaurants in Qingdao did not offer in-house services. However, a video emerged showing the actor dining at a local restaurant with his co-star Zhong Chuxi () and his assistant. When questioned by netizens, Gong Jun apologized, and the drama production team came forward to clarify that the restaurant was indeed privately reserved for the cast and crew members. However, netizens were skeptical of their explanation and labeled Gong Jun and Zhong Chuxi as “risky artistes” who attracted negative attention.

Why Should Yang Mi Avoid Idol Dramas?

Aside from her choice of co-star, some netizens criticize Yang Mi for filming another historical idol drama instead of pursuing more diverse genres. Yang Mi will reprise her role as a fox spirit in her new drama, which is based on the popular video game series Fox Spirit Matchmaker>. She has already played a fox spirit twice, once in 2005’s Strange Tales of Liao Zhai> and again in 2017’s megahit Eternal Love>.

“Even though we hoped the rumors were false, it appears that Yang Mi has already accepted the series; we should learn to accept it as well,” one netizen said.