Zhao Liying

Zhao Liying (, born October 16, 1987), also known as Zanilia Zhao, is a Chinese actress. She rose to prominence with the historical drama Legend of Lu Zhen, followed by the television dramas Boss & Me (2014), The Journey of Flower (2015), The Mystic Nine (2016), Noble Aspirations (2016), Princess Agents (2017), The Story of Minglan (2018), Legend of Fei (2020), and The Legend of Shen Li (2024). Zhao won Best Actress at the Flying Apsaras Awards and Golden Eagle Awards for her performance in Wild Bloom (2022). Her notable films include Duckweed (2017), The Monkey King 3 (2018), and Article 20 (2024).

Early life Zhao was born on October 16, 1987, in Langfang, Hebei. She graduated from Langfang School of Electronic Information Engineering, a secondary professional training school.

Career 2006–2012: Beginnings In 2006, Zhao Liying participated in the Yahoo Search Star Game and became the final winner. She subsequently signed with Huayi Brothers. In 2007, Zhao made her acting debut in the family drama Golden Marriage directed by Zheng Xiaolong.

In 2009, Zhao took on her first historical drama role in The Firmament of The Pleiades. The series was broadcast on Japanese channel NHK and earned critical acclaim. Zhao received the Most Popular Actress award at the Chinese Creative Short Video Awards.

In 2010, she first started to gain recognition from mainland audiences after appearing in The Dream of Red Mansions (2010), based on the novel of the same name by Cao Xueqin. In 2011, Zhao's popularity rose following her role as Princess Qing'er in New My Fair Princess.

2013–2015: Breakthrough In 2013, Zhao starred in historical drama Legend of Lu Zhen, based on the novel Female Prime Minister (女相) by Zhang Wei, playing an ordinary girl who worked her way up to become the first female prime minister during the Northern Qi dynasty. The drama was a hit domestically, and also overseas in South Korea and Japan, leading to increased recognition for Zhao in the region. Zhao won several newcomer and popularity awards at local award ceremonies. The same year, Zhao starred in historical romance film Palace: Lock Sinensis, the fourth and final installment of the Gong series by Yu Zheng. Contrary to her usual sweet and nice image, Zhao plays a scheming and evil princess in the film.

In 2014, Zhao starred in the romantic comedy drama Boss & Me, based on Gu Man's popular novel Shan Shan Comes to Eat. The series topped ratings in its timeslot in China, and also earned high popularity overseas. Zhao further solidified her popularity with several high rated dramas in 2014, including The Legend of Chasing Fish and Wife's Secret. Zhao's soaring popularity thanks to her various successful acting projects led to her being crowned the "Golden Eagle Goddess" at the 10th China Golden Eagle TV Art Festival, where she performed as the opening act to the ceremony.

In 2015, Zhao starred in xianxia romance drama The Journey of Flower. The drama was a huge success in China, achieving a peak rating of 3.89 and also became the first Chinese drama to surpass 20 billion online views. The success of the drama brought Zhao's career to greater heights. Zhao won numerous accolades for her role in The Journey of Flower, including the Audience's Choice for Actress at the 28th China TV Golden Eagle Award. Zhao was also nominated for the Magnolia Award for Best Actress in a Television Series. and wuxia drama Legend of Zu Mountain.

2016–present: Mainstream success In 2016, Zhao starred in action adventure drama The Mystic Nine, playing a sassy and haughty heiress. The series was a commercial success, accumulating over 10 billion views in total. Zhao won the Best Actress award at the 3rd Hengdian Film and TV Festival of China for her role. She was then cast as the female lead, Bi Yao, in Noble Aspirations, based on the popular novel Zhu Xian written by Xiao Ding. The drama has over 23 billion views online, the highest record held by a Chinese drama at that time. The same year, Zhao starred in her first war drama, Rookie Agent Rouge. VLinkage reported that as of December 2016, Zhao's combined dramas' views have reached over 110 billion views, which is the currently the most for a Chinese actor.

In 2017, Zhao starred in the Han Han-directed film, Duckweed, alongside Deng Chao and Eddie Peng. The sleeper hit was a commercial and critical success. She won her first film award, the Favorite Actress at the Beijing College Student Film Festival. Zhao returned to the small screen with historical action drama Princess Agents, playing a slave girl who rises up to become a powerful female general. Princess Agents was a commercial success both domestically and internationally, and held the record as the most watched Chinese television series at that time. The same year, Forbes China named Zhao in their 30 Under 30 Asia list which comprises 30 influential people under 30 years old who have made substantial effect in their fields.

In 2018, Zhao starred in the fantasy adventure film The Monkey King 3, playing the role of the Women Country's Ruler. Zhao then starred in the historical drama The Story of Minglan produced by Daylight Entertainment. The drama received critical acclaim and topped television ratings with over 2% in its final episodes. Zhao was nominated at the Magnolia Award for Best Actress in a Television Series for the second time.

On February 10, 2024, the comedy drama film Article 20 featuring Zhao was released. The same year, Zhao became the vice president of Yi Xia Technology.

Zhao unveiled her wax figure at Madame Tussauds Beijing in May 2017. The same year, Zhao was chosen as a brand ambassador for Dior in China.

In March 2019, Zhao announced her partnership with Hesong Media.

Personal life On October 16, 2018, Zhao announced her marriage to actor Feng Shaofeng on Sina Weibo. On March 8, 2019, Zhao gave birth to a boy.

On April 23, 2021, Feng and Zhao announced their divorce on Sina Weibo, ending their two-year marriage. They share custody of their son.

Filmography Film

Short film Year TitleRole 2006 Gui Zu PianNoblewoman from Zhou clan of Runan 2017 Who Loves You The Most Love of JasmineFemale lead Wang You Jiu Guan: Xiang Si Men Wang You Jiu Guan: Wang You ZhenMysterious Woman 2018 The Real Illusion GoodbyeXiao Han Bobo Snap Wang You Jiu Guan IIIDu Guxue 2022Hello, HelloLin Yin

Television series Year Title Role Notes 2006 Century Endless Love Lin Shanshan 2007 King of Nanyue Kingdom Empress Golden Marriage Tong Duoduo The Dream of Red Mansions Xing Xiuyan 2011 Goddess of Mercy A Jing New My Fair Princess Princess Qing'er 2012 Best Quality Men and Women Chu Yang Palace II Tunggiya Baihe Cameo Cuo Dian Yuan Yang Su Huan'er / Yang Yiliu 2013 Legend of Lu Zhen Lu Zhen Ex Liu Li Cameo 2014 Wife's Secret Jiang Baihe Boss & Me Xue Shanshan 2015 The Journey of Flower Hua Qiangu Legend of Zu Mountain Yu Wuxin The Mystic Nine Yin Xinyue Rookie Agent Rouge Lan Yanzhi 2017 Princess Agents Chu Qiao The Story of Minglan Sheng Minglan 2022 The Story of Xing Fu Xing Fu Wild BloomXu Banxia 2024 The Legend of Shen Li Shen Li 2025 What A Wonderful World Jia Xiaoduo Also producer The Unclouded Soul Dreamshard Immortal Cameo 2026 The Dream Maker Li Qiuping

Television shows Year Title Role 2015 Up Idol Cast member 2017 72 Floors of Mystery 2020 Chinese Restaurant 4

Music video appearances Year Title Artist 2016 "To Love You" Kenny Kwan 2017"Miss You"Kris Wu 2021"You Deserve Better"Jason Zhang

Discography

Singles Year English title Chinese title Album Notes 2013 "Mood" Legend of Lu Zhen OST with Chen Xiao 2015 "Not to Mention" The Journey of Flower OST with Wallace Huo "You're an Idol" Up Idol theme song with various artists "Ten Years" Days of Our Own OST Rendition of Eason Chan's song "Destruction in Chaos" Legend of Zu Mountain OST with Andy Hui "I Have Never Existed" with Yilia Yu 2016 "Yearning" Rookie Agent Rouge OST 2017 "Gaze" Princess Agents OST with Zhang Bichen "Miss You" with Kris Wu 2018 "Don't You Know" The Story of Minglan OST with Feng Shaofeng

Awards and nominations

Forbes China Celebrity 100 YearRank 201480th 201543rd 20174th 201915th 20207th 20217th