Lei Jiayin: The Life Story Behind China's Beloved Actor

Lei Jiayin has a face that looks like someone you already know. He does not look like a distant movie star. He looks like a neighbour, a cousin, or a friend from school who grew up, got a job, and came back home for dinner. That ordinary look is his greatest gift as an actor, because it lets him play ordinary people in a way that feels true. When he plays a tired policeman, a divorced father, a soldier, or a man trying to save his city in a single day, the audience believes him, because he looks and sounds like a real person, not like a hero from a poster.

He was born in Anshan, a steel city in north east China, and he grew up far from the bright lights of Beijing and Shanghai. He studied acting in Shanghai, and he worked on the stage for years before television made him famous. His big break came late, in his thirties, when he played a divorced husband in The First Half of My Life, a drama about modern marriage and work in Shanghai. The audience loved him, not because he was handsome, but because he was honest. He played a flawed man who was trying to do better, and millions of viewers saw themselves in him.

Since then, Lei Jiayin has become one of the most trusted actors in China. He played Zhang Xiaojing, a tough former soldier, in The Longest Day in Chang’an, a drama that follows one man through twenty-four hours in the Tang dynasty capital. He played in films such as Full River Red and Home Coming, and he became known as an actor who could be funny, sad, brave, and tired all at the same time. This is the story of how a boy from a steel city became the actor that China trusts to play its ordinary heroes.

A Boy from Anshan in the North East

Lei Jiayin was born on 22 August 1983 in Anshan, a city in Liaoning province in north east China. Anshan is known for its steel industry, and for many years its people worked in factories and mines. Life there was hard and honest. Winters were long and cold, and people learned to work together and to look after each other. Lei Jiayin grew up in this world, and he learned the values of the north east, which are directness, humour, and loyalty to family and friends.

As a boy, he was not quiet. He was lively, funny, and full of energy, and he liked to make people laugh. He enjoyed performing, and he found that he could hold the attention of a room by telling a story or by acting out a character. His teachers noticed that he had a natural gift for performance, and they encouraged him to try acting. He was not the best student in his class in every subject, but he was good at making people feel something, and that is a rare gift.

His family supported his interest in acting, even though it was not a safe career. In a steel city, most parents wanted their children to get a stable job in a factory or in an office. Acting was uncertain, and it meant leaving home and going to a big city to study. Lei Jiayin’s family believed in him, and they let him follow his dream. He applied to drama school, and he was accepted into the Shanghai Theatre Academy, one of the best acting schools in China. Leaving Anshan for Shanghai was a big step, and it was the first time he had lived far from home.

Shanghai was very different from Anshan. It was warmer, busier, and full of people from all over China. Lei Jiayin had to learn to live in a new city, to study hard, and to compete with talented students from every province. He was not the most handsome student, and he was not the most polished one, but he was hard working and honest, and his teachers began to see that he had something special. He could play a real person, not only a hero, and that skill would become the centre of his career.

Studying in Shanghai and Learning on the Stage

At the Shanghai Theatre Academy, Lei Jiayin learned the craft of acting in a serious way. He studied voice, movement, and stage history, and he rehearsed plays for hours every day. The training was strict, and the teachers were honest. They told students when a performance was weak, and they expected them to work harder. Lei Jiayin took the criticism well, because he wanted to learn. He was not afraid to look foolish in rehearsal, and he was not afraid to try a character in a new way.

After drama school, he worked on the stage in Shanghai. He acted in plays, and he learned the discipline of live performance. On a stage, there is no second take, and the audience is close enough to see every mistake. Lei Jiayin learned to be brave on stage, to trust his preparation, and to keep going when something went wrong. He also learned to work with other actors, to listen to them, and to build a scene together. These skills are hard to learn, and they take years to master, but Lei Jiayin was patient.

The stage years were not rich years. Theatre pays less than television, and many young actors struggle to pay their rent. Lei Jiayin lived simply, and he focused on his work. He took small television roles when he could, and he learned how a television set worked. He played supporting characters, and he tried to make each one feel real, even if the part was small. He did not complain about the size of his roles. He treated each one as a chance to learn, and as a step towards a bigger part.

He also learned something important during these years. He learned that his ordinary look was not a problem. It was a strength. Many young actors wanted to be handsome leading men, and they were disappointed when they were not chosen for those parts. Lei Jiayin did not try to be a handsome leading man. He tried to be a real man on screen, a man with a tired face, a warm smile, and a sense of humour. That choice would later make him famous, but at the time it was simply the honest thing to do. He played who he was, and he played it well.

Small Roles, Long Nights, and the Will to Keep Going

For many years, Lei Jiayin was a working actor, but not a famous one. He appeared in television dramas, and he played in films, but the audience did not always remember his name. He played policemen, workers, soldiers, and ordinary men, and he did his work well. Directors liked him, because he was reliable and because he came to the set prepared. Other actors liked him, because he was funny and kind, and because he did not act like a star. He was a professional, and he was proud of that.

He faced the same problem that many actors face. He was good, but he was not yet known, and the best roles went to actors who were already famous. He had to wait, and waiting is hard. He had to watch other people get the parts he wanted, and he had to keep working on small parts without losing hope. He did it by focusing on the work itself, not on the fame. He told himself that if he kept doing good work, the right role would come. That is easy to say and hard to believe, especially after ten years of small roles, but Lei Jiayin believed it.

He also had to deal with the pressure of life in a big city. Shanghai is expensive, and an actor without a steady income has to be careful with money. Lei Jiayin lived a simple life, and he saved where he could. He did not buy expensive things, and he did not try to live like a star. He lived like a working man, and that helped him to play working men on screen. He knew what it felt like to be tired after a long day, to worry about money, and to keep going anyway. That knowledge showed in his acting, and it made his characters feel true.

During these years, he also built a reputation as a funny and warm person off screen. He was known for his sense of humour, and for his ability to make people laugh on set, even during long and tiring days of filming. That humour was not only a way to pass the time. It was part of his character, and it became part of his acting. When he played a serious man, he could still show a flash of humour, and when he played a funny man, he could still show sadness. That mix of humour and sadness is what makes his performances feel like real life.

The First Half of My Life and a Divorced Man the Audience Loved

In 2017, Lei Jiayin played Chen Junsheng in The First Half of My Life, a drama about modern marriage, work, and divorce in Shanghai. Chen Junsheng was a successful businessman who left his wife, Luo Zijun, for another woman, and who then had to live with the results of that choice. It was not a heroic part. Chen Junsheng was flawed, selfish, and confused, and many viewers disliked him at first. But Lei Jiayin played him with such honesty that the audience began to understand him, even when they did not agree with him. He showed a man who was trying to be happy, who made mistakes, and who paid for them.

The drama was a huge success, and it made Lei Jiayin famous. People talked about his performance, and they talked about the way he played a divorced man without making him a villain or a hero. He was simply a man, and that was new. Many dramas show divorced men as either bad or perfect. Lei Jiayin showed a man who was both good and bad, who loved his son, who was weak with women, and who was trying to find his way. The audience recognised that man, because they knew men like him in real life. He won awards for the role, and producers began to offer him leading parts.

The success changed his life, but it did not change his manner. He remained funny, direct, and humble in interviews, and he continued to talk about his home town of Anshan and about his years on the stage. He did not pretend to be a different person now that he was famous. He was the same man, only more people knew his name. That honesty earned him even more fans, because people could see that fame had not gone to his head. He was still the boy from Anshan who liked to make people laugh, and who worked hard every day.

The First Half of My Life also showed that Chinese audiences were ready for stories about real adult life. The drama was not about young people falling in love for the first time. It was about married people, divorced people, and people trying to build a new life in their forties. Lei Jiayin’s performance was at the centre of that story, and it proved that an actor who looked ordinary could carry a major drama. That was an important moment for Chinese television, and Lei Jiayin was the actor who made it happen.

The Longest Day in Chang’an and Twenty-Four Hours as a Hero

In 2019, Lei Jiayin played Zhang Xiaojing in The Longest Day in Chang’an, a drama set in the Tang dynasty capital of Chang’an, which is now the city of Xi’an. The story took place over a single day, and Zhang Xiaojing, a former soldier who had been sentenced to death, was given one day to find and stop a group of terrorists who planned to attack the city during the Lantern Festival. The part needed an actor who could be tough, tired, clever, and brave, all at the same time, and Lei Jiayin was perfect for it.

The drama was a great success, and it is now seen as one of the best Chinese historical dramas of recent years. The production was large and detailed, with beautiful costumes, sets, and music, and the story was clever and exciting. Lei Jiayin’s performance was praised by critics and by audiences. He played Zhang Xiaojing as a man who had seen war, who had lost friends, and who was tired of fighting, but who still cared about the people of Chang’an. He did not play him as a perfect hero. He played him as a man with scars, with doubts, and with a strong sense of duty.

The role was physically hard. Lei Jiayin had to run, fight, and work for long hours in heavy costumes, and he had to do it in hot weather. He worked hard, and he did not complain. He said in interviews that he enjoyed the challenge, and that he wanted to show a hero who was tired and dirty, not clean and perfect. That is a very Lei Jiayin way of thinking. He likes heroes who look like real people, who sweat, who get hurt, and who keep going anyway. The audience loved that honesty, and the drama made him even more popular.

The Longest Day in Chang’an also showed that Lei Jiayin could carry a large and expensive drama on his own. He was the leading man, and the whole story depended on him. He did not disappoint. He gave a performance that was strong, funny, and moving, and he proved that he was not only a supporting actor or a man for modern dramas. He could play a hero from history, and he could make that hero feel like a man from Anshan who had been given a hard job and who was determined to finish it.

Films, Full River Red, Home Coming, and the Big Screen

After his television success, Lei Jiayin moved into films in a bigger way. He played in Full River Red, a historical film directed by Zhang Yimou, in which he played a soldier in the Song dynasty who was caught up in a plot to kill a corrupt official. The film was a great success at the box office, and Lei Jiayin’s performance was praised. He played a man who was clever, brave, and funny, and who used his wits to survive in a dangerous world. The film showed that he could work with China’s most famous directors, and that he could hold his own on the big screen.

He also played in Home Coming, a film about Chinese diplomats who helped to rescue Chinese citizens from a war zone in Africa. Lei Jiayin played a diplomat who had to make hard decisions under pressure, and who had to stay calm when everything around him was falling apart. The film was based on real events, and it was a serious and moving story. Lei Jiayin’s performance was quiet and strong, and it showed a different side of him. He was not only a funny man or a tough soldier. He could also be a thoughtful and responsible leader.

He continued to work in both television and film, and he chose roles that interested him. He played in A Little Reunion, a drama about parents and children preparing for university entrance exams, and in other dramas about family life. He played fathers, husbands, and workers, and he played them all with the same honesty. He did not try to be a glamorous star. He tried to be a good actor, and he let the audience decide whether they liked his work. They did like it, and they kept watching.

Lei Jiayin’s film career also showed that he was willing to take risks. He worked with different directors, in different kinds of films, and he did not stay in one safe place. He played comedy, drama, history, and action, and he did them all well. That range is rare, and it is the result of years of stage work and small roles. He had learned to play many kinds of people, and now he was using that skill on the biggest stages in China. He was no longer a small actor from Anshan. He was one of the most trusted actors in the country.

The Actor China Trusts to Play Ordinary People

Lei Jiayin matters because he has changed what a leading man can look like in China. For many years, leading men on Chinese television were expected to be young, tall, and handsome in a certain way. Lei Jiayin is not that kind of leading man. He is shorter, rounder, and more ordinary looking than many stars, and he has a face that shows his age and his life. Yet audiences love him, and producers trust him with leading roles. That has opened the door for other actors who do not fit the old idea of a star, and it has made Chinese television more honest and more interesting.

He also matters because he plays ordinary people with respect. When he plays a policeman, a soldier, a father, or a divorced husband, he does not make the character a joke or a saint. He makes the character a real person, with good points and bad points, with humour and sadness, with strength and weakness. That respect for ordinary people is important, because most viewers are ordinary people. They want to see themselves on screen, not only perfect heroes. Lei Jiayin gives them that, and they are grateful for it.

He has also shown that humour is a serious part of acting. Lei Jiayin is funny, and he uses humour to make his characters feel alive. But his humour is not silly. It is the humour of a man who has seen hard times and who has learned to laugh anyway. That is a very north east Chinese kind of humour, direct and warm, and it has made him beloved by audiences across the country. He can make people laugh in one scene and cry in the next, and that is a rare gift.

Today, Lei Jiayin is one of the most popular actors in China. He is not the loudest star, and he does not try to be in the news every day. He works, he goes home, and he prepares for his next role. He is still the boy from Anshan who likes to make people laugh, and who works hard every day. His story is a reminder that you do not need to be perfect to succeed. You need to be honest, patient, and willing to work, and if you are, the audience will find you, even if it takes twenty years.

A Little Reunion and the Life of a Modern Father

Lei Jiayin also played in A Little Reunion, a drama about parents and children preparing for the university entrance exams, one of the most stressful times in a Chinese family’s life. He played a father who wanted the best for his child, but who also wanted his child to be happy, and who struggled to balance those two wishes. The drama was watched by millions of parents, because they recognised their own lives in it. Lei Jiayin played the father with humour and warmth, and he showed the worry, the love, and the tiredness of a parent who is trying to do the right thing. It was a quiet performance, but it was one of his most loved, because it felt so true.

He continued to play fathers, husbands, and workers in dramas about family life, and he became known as an actor who understood modern Chinese families. He did not play perfect fathers. He played fathers who made mistakes, who argued with their wives, and who tried to fix their errors. That honesty made his performances feel real, and it made audiences trust him. He was not a star who lived far from ordinary life. He was an actor who lived in it, and who told its stories with care and humour.

Lei Jiayin also spent many years working in the theatre in Shanghai, at the Shanghai Dramatic Arts Centre, where he learned his craft on a live stage in front of real audiences. The theatre taught him to speak clearly, to listen to the other actors, and to keep going even when something went wrong, because on stage there is no second chance. He has said that the stage was his true school, and that everything he knows about acting began there, in small rooms, with few people watching. That long training is part of why his television performances feel so natural. He is not acting for the camera. He is acting for people, in the same way he did on stage, and the camera simply watches what the theatre taught him to do.

My Take:

I like Lei Jiayin, and I want to say why in a plain way. I like him because he looks like a real person. That sounds like a small compliment, but I think it is a big one. Most actors on television look like they have never had a bad day. Their hair is perfect, their skin is perfect, and their clothes are perfect. Lei Jiayin does not look like that. He looks like a man who has worked hard, who has eaten well, who has laughed a lot, and who has worried about money and family. When I see him on screen, I believe him, because he looks like the men I know in real life. That is a rare thing, and I think it is worth praising.

I also like his humour. He is funny in a way that feels natural, not forced. He does not tell jokes to show off. He makes people laugh because he sees the funny side of a hard situation, and he is not afraid to laugh at himself. I think that kind of humour comes from growing up in the north east of China, where people are direct and where laughter is a way of getting through a cold winter. I also think it comes from his years on the stage, where he learned that a laugh from the audience is a gift, and that you have to earn it by being honest. I wish more actors were funny in that honest way, instead of trying to be funny by shouting or by making silly faces.

The part of his story that I keep thinking about is the long wait. He worked for many years in small roles, and nobody knew his name. I try to imagine how that felt. You go to work every day, you do your job well, and nobody notices. You watch other actors become famous, and you wonder if your turn will ever come. That is a hard life, and it takes a strong person to keep going. Lei Jiayin kept going, and I admire that. I think many people give up too early, not because they are not good enough, but because they are tired of waiting. Lei Jiayin did not give up, and his patience was rewarded. That is a lesson I want to remember for myself.

I also think about his role as Chen Junsheng in The First Half of My Life, and I have mixed feelings about it. Chen Junsheng was not a good husband. He left his wife for another woman, and he hurt his family. I did not like what he did, and I do not think the drama wanted me to like it. But Lei Jiayin played him in a way that made me understand him, even though I did not agree with him. That is a hard thing for an actor to do. It is easy to play a villain as a bad man, and it is easy to play a hero as a good man. It is much harder to play a flawed man as a real man, with good points and bad points. Lei Jiayin did that, and I think it made the drama better, because it made the audience think about real marriage, not only about a simple story of good and bad.

I also think about Zhang Xiaojing in The Longest Day in Chang’an, and I like that role for a different reason. Zhang Xiaojing was a hero, but he was a tired hero. He had been a soldier, he had lost friends, and he did not want to fight any more. But when his city was in danger, he fought anyway. I think that is a more honest kind of hero than the perfect hero who never gets tired and never doubts himself. Real heroes get tired. Real heroes doubt themselves. Real heroes keep going anyway. Lei Jiayin showed that kind of hero, and I think the audience loved him for it, because they recognised themselves in him. Most of us are not perfect heroes. We are tired people who keep going, and Lei Jiayin plays that truth very well.

There is something else I want to say about him, and that is about his home town. He talks about Anshan with pride, and he does not pretend to be from a big city. I like that. Many famous people try to hide where they came from, because they think it makes them look less important. Lei Jiayin does the opposite. He is proud of Anshan, proud of the north east, and proud of the people who work in factories and who live simple lives. That pride is important, because it tells young people from small cities that they can succeed too. You do not need to be born in Beijing or Shanghai to become a good actor. You can be born in a steel city, work hard, and make your own way. That is a hopeful message, and I think Lei Jiayin carries it well.

I also think about his work in films, especially Full River Red and Home Coming, and I notice something. In both films, he plays a man who has to think quickly and act bravely under pressure. He does not play a man who is strong because he is big. He plays a man who is strong because he is clever and because he cares about other people. I think that is a good kind of strength to show on screen, especially for young viewers. Strength is not only about muscles. It is about making good decisions when you are afraid, and about protecting the people around you. Lei Jiayin shows that kind of strength, and I think it is a useful lesson for anyone who watches his films.

If I am honest, there is one thing about his career that worries me a little. He is now very popular, and popular actors are often asked to work too much. They are offered many roles, and they are tempted to take them all, because the money is good and the fame is exciting. I hope Lei Jiayin does not do that. I hope he keeps choosing carefully, as he did for many years, and that he says no to roles that do not suit him. His strength has always been his honesty and his patience, and those qualities need time. If he works too much, he will lose the time to prepare, and his performances will suffer. I do not know if that will happen, but I hope he remembers the long wait, and that he protects the quality of his work.

I also want to say something about his face, and I want to say it kindly. People sometimes make jokes about his looks, about his big head or his ordinary face. I think those jokes are unfair, and I think they miss the point. His face is the reason he is a great actor. It is a face that can show humour, sadness, tiredness, and kindness, all in a few seconds. A perfect face cannot do that, because a perfect face has nothing to say. Lei Jiayin’s face has a great deal to say, and the camera loves it, because the audience can read it like a book. I think we should stop joking about his looks and start praising his face for what it is, a wonderful tool for acting.

In the end, what I take from Lei Jiayin is a simple idea that I want to keep. Be honest about who you are. Do not try to be someone else. Work hard, wait patiently, and when your chance comes, use it well. Make people laugh when they need to laugh, and make them think when they need to think. Be proud of where you came from, and do not forget the people who helped you. That is what Lei Jiayin has done, and it is why I like him. He is not a distant star. He is a neighbour, a friend, a man from Anshan who became a great actor by being himself. I think that is the best kind of success, and I think it is a success that will last, because it is built on truth, not on tricks. I also think about his role as a father in A Little Reunion, and I find it very moving, because it is about a problem that many families know well. Parents want their children to do well in exams, but they also want them to be happy, and those two wishes do not always go together. Lei Jiayin played a father who was caught between those wishes, and he did it with great honesty. He did not play a perfect father. He played a tired, worried, loving father, and I think many parents saw themselves in him. That is a valuable kind of acting, because it helps people to feel less alone in their worries.

There is another thing I want to say about Lei Jiayin, and that is about his voice and his way of speaking. He speaks in a direct and funny way, with the accent of the north east, and he does not try to hide it. I like that. Many actors try to speak in a perfect, standard way, and they lose something in the process. Lei Jiayin keeps his own voice, and it makes him sound real. When he speaks, I believe him, because he sounds like a man I might meet on the street in Anshan, not like a man reading lines from a script. That is a gift, and it is one that comes from being proud of where you come from.

I also think about his work in Home Coming, and about the diplomats he played. A diplomat is a serious job, and it needs a calm and thoughtful person. Lei Jiayin played that kind of man, and he did it well, because he is himself a calm and thoughtful person, even though he is also funny. I think that mix is important. A person can be funny and serious at the same time, and Lei Jiayin proves it. He can make you laugh in one scene, and make you think in the next, and that is a rare and valuable skill.

I want to say something about his future, and about what I hope for him. I hope he keeps choosing good roles, and that he does not work too much. He is very popular now, and popular actors are often asked to work all the time. That can be tiring, and it can make the work suffer. I hope Lei Jiayin remembers the long years when he waited for good roles, and that he protects his time, so that he can prepare properly for each new part. Quality is more important than quantity, and Lei Jiayin knows that, because he built his career on quality, one good role at a time.

Finally, I want to say that Lei Jiayin makes me laugh, and that is not a small thing. In a world that is often serious and difficult, laughter is a gift, and Lei Jiayin gives it freely. He makes people laugh without being cruel, and he makes them think without being preachy. That is a kind and generous way to act, and I am grateful for it. I will keep watching his films and dramas, because I know that when I see his name, I will see a real person, played with honesty and humour, and I will leave feeling a little bit happier than before. I also think about his stage work, and about why it matters that he still goes back to the theatre. The stage is honest, and it does not forgive laziness. Lei Jiayin learned his craft there, and he returns to it because it keeps him sharp. I think that is a good habit for anyone. Find the place where your work is tested honestly, and go back to it regularly. It will keep you from becoming lazy, and it will remind you why you started. Lei Jiayin does that, and his television and film work is better because of it. He does not forget his roots, and that is why his performances feel so grounded.

I also want to say something about his directness, and about speaking plainly. Lei Jiayin does not use fancy words, and he does not try to sound clever. He speaks directly, like a man from the north east, and people trust him because of it. In a world where many people hide behind complicated language, a person who speaks plainly is refreshing. I wish more people spoke plainly, in acting and in life. Plain speaking is not a sign of being simple. It is a sign of being honest, and Lei Jiayin is honest in everything he does, on screen and off it.

Finally, I want to say that Lei Jiayin is an actor I will keep watching, because I know that when I see his name, I will see a real person, played with humour and with heart. He is not a distant star. He is a neighbour, a friend, a man from Anshan who became great by being himself. That is the best kind of success, and I think it will last, because it is built on truth. I will remember his story when I feel ordinary, and I will tell myself that ordinary is not a weakness. Ordinary is a strength, if you are honest about it, and Lei Jiayin proves that every time he appears on screen.

I want to say something about his years in the theatre, because people often forget that part of his story. The theatre is a hard place to learn acting, because the audience is right there, and they can see every mistake. Lei Jiayin spent years there, playing small parts, learning to project his voice, and learning to trust his fellow actors. I think that training is the secret behind his calm performances on television. When he plays a father, a worker, or a hero, he is not trying to impress the camera. He is doing what he learned on stage, which is to be honest, to listen, and to react like a real person. That is why his work feels so true, and why audiences trust him. Another thing I think about is his home town of Anshan, and the way he talks about it with pride. Anshan is a steel city in the north east, a place of factories, cold winters, and hard-working people, and Lei Jiayin never pretends to be from somewhere grander. He speaks about his home with warmth, and he brings its humour and its toughness into his roles. I think that is important, because many famous people hide where they come from, as if a small town were something to be ashamed of. Lei Jiayin is proud of Anshan, and his pride tells young people from small towns that they do not need to hide. Their home is part of who they are, and it can make them stronger, not weaker. Finally, I want to say something about the way he handles fame, and about the jokes people make about his face. He laughs at the jokes, and he even makes them himself, and I think that takes a kind of strength. It is easy to be angry when people laugh at you, and it is easy to become bitter. Lei Jiayin chose to laugh with them, and that laughter took away the power of the joke. But I also hope that people remember he is more than a funny face. He is a serious actor, trained on the stage, who has played heroes, fathers, and diplomats, and who has earned his place through twenty years of hard work. Laugh with him, by all means, but respect him too, because he has earned that respect many times over.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where was Lei Jiayin born and where did he study acting?

Lei Jiayin was born on 22 August 1983 in Anshan, Liaoning province, and he studied acting at the Shanghai Theatre Academy.

How did Lei Jiayin become famous?

He became famous in 2017 as Chen Junsheng in The First Half of My Life, playing a flawed divorced businessman with such honesty that audiences recognised a real man in the role.

Who did Lei Jiayin play in The Longest Day in Chang’an?

In The Longest Day in Chang’an from 2019, he played Zhang Xiaojing, a tough former soldier given one day to stop an attack on the Tang dynasty capital.

What films has Lei Jiayin starred in?

He starred in Full River Red, a historical film directed by Zhang Yimou, and in Home Coming, a film about Chinese diplomats rescuing citizens from a war zone.

Why do audiences love Lei Jiayin’s ordinary look?

Audiences love his ordinary look because it makes his characters feel real, like a neighbour or a family member, and lets him play policemen, fathers and soldiers with honest humour and sadness.

Did Lei Jiayin work on the stage before television fame?

Yes, after drama school he worked on the stage in Shanghai for years, learning live performance discipline before his television breakthrough in his thirties.

What kind of humour is Lei Jiayin known for?

He is known for warm, direct north east Chinese humour, laughing at himself and finding the funny side of hard situations while still showing sadness and strength.