Category: Interview

240122 [Interview] Wu Lei and Zhao Jinmai Interview in ELLE Magazine for Amidst a Snowstorm of Love

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Wu Lei and Zhao Jinmai, a two-way journey in the snowstorm

Original author: Teresa

ELLE Mainland China February 2024

Issue Posted in Shanghai 2024.01.22

English translation: Eowuli

Under their feet is ice and snow, behind is the aurora. When such a nordic winter ambience appears in the same frame as Wu Lei and Zhao Jinmai, the story of Amidst a Snowstorm Of Love seems to come to life instantly. At this moment, they once again transformed into Lin Yiyang and Yinguo from the drama series, it’s about a sweet couple who met and fell in love in a distant country, it’s about two billiards players standing side by side on top of the arena. It’s also about healing each other, it’s about the unique and mutual understanding of ‘it’s you and no one else’.

No.1 Wu Lei’s courage to move forward

« Sometimes, you don’t need a specific solution, you just need some faith and encouragement »

A while ago, it was snowing heavily in Beijing. When he played with the snow, Wu Lei didn’t make a snowman, but buried his face directly in it instead. “That day, I felt like I was the snowman!” In the past year, Wu Lei and snow have had some fate. The drama Amidst a Snowstorm of Love which was filmed earlier this year slowly unfolded in a snowy foreign city. Through this story, Wu Lei also challenges himself in various dimensions, guarding his fiery passionate heart under a vast expanse of ice and snow.

Exactly one year ago, Amidst a Snowstorm of Love started shooting in Helsinki, a distant city by the Baltic Sea, 6508 kilometers away from Wu Lei’s hometown in Sichuan. After a long flight of more than ten hours, Wu Lei’s first task for himself was to work hard to familiarize himself with the local surroundings and make sure he assimilated the local customs. After all, Lin Yiyang, whom Wu Lei is about to interpret, has been living here for many years in the story. Wu Lei needs to find ways to get close to him and become familiar with the sunrise and sunset Lin Yiyang sees daily in order to become him in front of the camera.

“At that time, I was just hoping to restore the story of the novel in a foreign land“. Before setting off, Wu Lei did some research and knew that the pace of Helsinki was very slow. However, when he truly arrived, he was still slightly ‘shocked’ by the actual situation. “After I arrived, I found out that the city was even less in a rush than I had imagined“.

So he also slowed down his pace. It’s not about grabbing a random person to explore his inner feelings, nor is it about finding a few standard samples to imitate, but about naturally walking and stopping on the street like every local person here, doing things that should naturally happen. “Helsinki is not big, and by the time I finished shooting, I got an understanding of the whole city. In fact, it’s about finding a sense of comfort in an unfamiliar environment, such as immersing oneself in the atmosphere like fish in water and adapting to the local language. These are all important for grasping the texture of this character“.

He even jumped into the contrasting ‘ice and fire’ sea water pool like a real local. “I jumped into the sea during the coldest time of winter, immediately ran to the sauna to get some steam and then jumped back into the cold seawater!” Describing this moment, Wu Lei seemed to have returned to the small ‘amusement park’ that he didn’t understand at first, but later enjoyed it tirelessly. “When I came out of the sea, my muscles were trembling, and then I went into the sauna to bake until I started sweating, chatting with strangers about everything and nothing and listening to everyone talk, which was very amusing“. Speaking of excitement, he specifically added another detail: “But I had my pants on!” However, in his speech, the focus was not on his clothes, but on that environment. He could take off his guard like everyone else around him, focus solely on jumping or not jumping. “Local people can jump five or six times, but I can only jump up to two times“.

Unlike the relationships between strangers walking on the streets, when everyone gathers in this small world, everyone can break free from various objective constraints. Wu Lei also captured the true inner temperament of the locals here. “At first, I thought Finns were very social phobic, but it seemed like they were quite talkative in the sauna. They would talk about many interesting things and even make plans to jump into the iced pool once more“.

In addition of that, Wu Lei also found many openings to become the specific Lin Yiyang.

“I not only have to play snooker, but also nine-ball, and I have made a lot of preparations in terms of professional skills. As for the novel, I also studied the characters and the plot“. In the TV drama, Lin Yiyang is a genius player who once reached the peak but later fell into a slump. As a super sweet romance drama in an environment of competitive sports, the main plot of the story is the two-way journey and mutual healing between the male and female protagonists, filled with a lot of sweetness and excitement. Therefore, as Wu Lei gradually enters the character, he also needs to get intimate with this Lin Yiyang. Although it may seem difficult to get close to,, in fact, once Wu Lei started to be moved, he just fully immersed himself in.

“He is very talented and hardworking. At an early age, due to a mistake he made in his youth, due to the knot in his heart and his pride, he withdrew from the competition field. However, in the years he has been away from the arena, he has never given up on billiards. At the same time, he was also studying other majors and had established his own life abroad“.

This is not the first time Wu Lei plays an athlete who has experienced a downturn. In the process of understanding the role, he always remembers a sentence he has read, which says that even if you have talent, if you don’t work hard, your talent will be gradually taken back. “Effort is a fundamental way to maintain talent, or rather, effort itself is also a form of talent“.

This sentence is not only about Lin Yiyang, who is an athlete, but also a warning to himself who has been an actor since childhood. “When filming, sometimes the more you shoot, the more nervous you become. Actually, it’s not that you want to put pressure on yourself, but rather, unconsciously, you want to create a good character. When you have urgent expectations, pressure naturally forms”.

The entire process, not only limited to the few months of filming but also from receiving a character to being seen by the audience through the screen was heavy for Wu Lei. “Especially when it comes to dubbing, I would be very nervous. It’s not the nervousness of dubbing itself, but the nervousness of seeing the achieved project. This is the result of several months of work, and you just want to know, ‘Hey, how is it? Will it be bad?'”

Since his first acting role in 2005 until now, Wu Lei has long learned to accept regrets, but it does not mean he can escape himself from occasionally encountering difficult moments. “Sometimes, for different reasons, I persistently don’t dare to take on a certain drama, it’s always my family and staff around me who encourage me. A lot of times, what you need is not a specific solution, but some faith and encouragement“.

A sweet love story is about to be shown on the screen. Outside the screen, Wu Lei, who brings healing and energy to the audience through his characters, is also searching in his each of his performance the courage to move forward.

No.2 Zhao Jinmai’s new role and new beginning

« Every new character brings me a brand new experience, which makes me nervous but it also stimulates me »

As a typical I-person (introverted), Zhao Jinmai has to slowly find her own pace to feel at ease whenever she joins a filming crew. Although she started filming at the age of 7, she has long had enough experience in acting. For every new beginning, she is able to feel a strong sense of freshness. She has her own steady rhythm from the moment she blends with the environment.

“I landed in the early morning local time, so what I saw is a city that had not woken up yet. It had a blue tone and I really liked that kind of atmosphere.“

This new drama called « Amidst a Snowstorm of Love » has a large number of scenes filmed in the distant country of Finland in the first half of it. Before arriving, Zhao Jinmai had a vague idea of Northern Europe, she didn’t know how life was like over there. But when she truly stepped foot there, she quickly found a sense of familiarity from the unknown. “The temperature there was quite similar to Northeast China, it was not as cold as I had imagined, some buildings resembled those of my hometown’s style too, so they looked quite familiar.” It was also in this process of adapting herself unconsciously that she found her own way of acting.

Later, she started to focus her energy on exploring her character. Although others cannot perceive what happened during this process, she knows she was experiencing a sort of tug of war between two people. Standing on either side, one side being herself, the other being her character, she could feel an invisible sense of exploration. “Every new character brings me a brand new experience, which makes me nervous but it also stimulates me.“

This time, the person she wanted to find as soon as possible was a nine-ball player named Yinguo, gentle and soft in real life, scarily competitive in the arena. She compared her to a red cherry, sweet and beautiful on the outside, tenacious on the inside. To embody this sweet yet unconsciously sweet Yinguo, Zhao Jinmai seemed to have awaken the “little girl” from within. This side of her is a potential possibility, but she has never seen it before.

“My first scene, which concerns a plot line that happens quite early in the drama was when I texted Lin Yiyang in my bedroom. I had to act out the shyness after seeing his message, and also some excitement. As someone who doesn’t usually act cute in my daily life, I did feel a bit embarrassed at first.“

Just like a real relationship between young guys and girls, the characters Lin Yiyang and Yinguo don’t voice a lot of things face-to-face but express their emotions through emojis or texts even if they are under the same roof. In this situation, Zhao Jinmai inevitably has to show some expressions when staring at her phone screen how to deliver the love she has no control over in this limited interaction was the first challenge she had to overcome.

“At the beginning, the director kept telling me I could do more, a lot more. We have many WeChat messaging scenes, only reading the texts may not reflect our emotions. So in such cases, we should adjust our acting degree. Actually, I think it’s similar to people dating, you can’t help but have some small expressions when texting someone you like. Even when you’re happy, you will even let out a small scream, it’s just quite realistic.“

After shooting the scenes where she screamed at her phone out of excitement, and after looking back at these images where they were both getting to know each other through WeChat, Zhao Jinmai realized she had progressively found the state Yinguo should be in. “And that is the straightforwardness of bravely showing all the love she has between the corner of her eyes and eyebrows. When I got to know my character better, I found out she could actually open herself even more.“

In addition to emotions, Zhao Jinmai also uses various small device to make it easier for her to find Yin Guo’s feelings. “I have never played billiards before, but Yin Guo is a very professional player and has been practicing since she was a child. So for a while, I specifically found a coach to learn billiards. I wanted to find some characteristics of the character, like a player who plays billiards all year round.”

In order to fully understand Yin Guo, Zhao Jinmai studied many documentaries and competition videos of athletes. Through these materials, she began to imagine what kind of world Yin Guo lived in. “Listening to their stories, I can imagine what Yin Guo was like when he was practicing football as a child.” Going to the smaller details, Zhao Jinmai also thought about what kind of gestures Yin Guo used when applying powder. “Everyone applies the powder in a different way. Some people apply it twice, and some people apply it three times. The process of applying the powder is also a thinking process, so I was thinking about how to use the rhythm changes of this action to reflect the different emotions of each scene.”

To prevent the tip of the cue stick from slipping after hitting the ball, billiards players need to frequently chalk their cue on the competition field. If sending a text via WeChat is a way to express her devoted love, then chalking the cue stick is also a small stage for her to showcase Yinguo’s another side. Everything happens within a few seconds, but a lot of times acting is about creating something big from the small. Even some small actions can make the audience instantly grasp what kind of character she is.

She doesn’t know what kind of particularities the original author had in mind when naming the female lead, but at least while portraying Yinguo, Zhao Jinmai compared this girl who had shaped her temperament in the billiards field from childhood to a cherry. “She is gentle without an ounce of aggressiveness on the outside, but she is tenacious and precocious on the inside. Whether on the competition field or in life, she can maintain her own rhythm and turn things around despite being against the direction of the wind.” When Lin Yiyang is faced with difficulties, she can become his strong backing, and tell him, it’s fine, you can go forward, I’m right behind you.” Sweetness and resilience both are inside Yinguo at the same time, which are not contradictory.

“Scent often affects people’s emotions. During this shooting, I wanted to make myself “sweeter” so I brought a box of incense stick on purpose with me. Their sweet scent was therapeutic and made me happy, it seemed like it made me approach Yinguo more easily.” To this day, Zhao Jinmai still remembers that scent that accompanied her during those months. This is a special memory that she has hidden in her heart, exclusive to Yinguo, brave and sweet.

In the future, as she greets and bids farewell to one character after another, Zhao Jinmai’s fragments in her memory will progressively accumulate. Maybe it will be a certain scent, a certain song or some places and images that will linger in her head. They will mark her life little by little, converging into vivid and fulfilling growth and experience.

No.3 Q&A

ELLE: When you are the viewer, do you prefer HE (happy ending) or BE (bad ending) ?

Wu Lei: Both are fine when I’m watching movies or other stories, I don’t particularly choose a specific ending, but if it’s watching an anime that has already been completed, I will deliberately search if the ending is HE or BE. Because I consider watching anime to be the most relaxing thing in my life, I hope to see something that makes me happy, and I don’t want my favorite characters to end up dying or BE.

Zhao Jinmai: I like when it’s sweet and ‘tormenting/emotional’ but if it’s BE, I will be sad so it has to return to being sweet. I once read a novel, the tormenting part made me so heartbroken in the middle of the night. If it becomes tormenting after being sweet, I will really not feel great.

ELLE: What do you think is the sweetest scene in this drama?

Wu Lei: For me, it was the scene where Xiaoguo rushed across the arena and shouted to Lin Yiyang, “You are my Queen”.

Zhao Jinmai: The sweetest scene has to be the declaration of love in the laundry room. Of course, the rest of their scenes are also very sweet. Actually every scene is sweet, really! Everything is said in silence, it’s a two-way journey.

ELLE: What scenes were you most anxious about before starting filming? What is the difference between reality and imagination when actually shooting the scenes ?

Wu Lei: I was quite nervous about many scenes, such as the “You are my Queen” scene mentioned earlier, and some important emotional scenes. Lin Yiyang has a very “B King” side, as well as an arrogant side. There are also some flirting scenes in the drama… These all make me feel like, oh my, what should I do?! when I was reading the script. However, the entire drama was smoothly shot, even more so than expected.

Zhao Jinmai: I thought every scene was sweet when reading the script. But it was also those scenes that gave me the hardest time and stressed me out during filming. Especially the scenes where I had to act cute in the early stage. I kept asking the director “how to act cute”, our director is very gentle, very adorable but also a little bit shy, he was also embarrassed. When he was faced with a scene filled with Intimate hugs, he would say “Well, you know, it is how it is.” He gave me a lot of practical help, taught me how to act cute so later I just completely freely performed.

ELLE: When you were filming abroad, what was the most memorable filming location for you?

Wu Lei: Two places that appear a lot in the beginning of the drama, the billiards hall and a bar called Red Fish, they were both real locations. There are many stories in the drama that happen in these places.

Zhao Jinmai: It was the snow mountain. In the drama, Lin Yiyang took Yinguo from the beach to the snowy mountains to watch the sunrise, then he drove back to the beach. That snowy mountain was so beautiful!

ELLE: What is the biggest difference between yourself and your character in your mind?

Wu Lei: Lin Yiyang has more business acumen than me, which may be the biggest difference between us.

Zhao Jinmai: Yinguo is too sweet, and more gentle than me. When I just finished portraying her, I became sweeter too but now I’ve gradually gone back to my old self.

ELLE: What is your most commonly used stickers and emojis, yours and your character’s?

Wu Lei: I like to use some elderly stickers, and I like using the emoji that smiles while covering their eyes. Lin Yiyang used the coffee emoji the most in the early stage, and in the later stage, many WeChat messages were sent via voice notes. And after being together, it’s inevitable to have some ‘cheesy’ emojis, to give the audience a space for their imagination I guess.

Zhao Jinmai: I like using the tears of joy emoji but the common emojis in the drama were the coffee and laughing face. Back then we even thought, there are two laughing face emojis, one is a simple little smile, the second is with a little reddish face, so which one is Yinguo using? If she’s using the little smile, then it’s too mean. Lin Yiyang will think she is being sarcastic! But we thought, using this one doesn’t seem too bad? In the end, we still used the cute one anyway.

ELLE: Seeing your partner again for this photoshoot, what changes have you noticed in the other person?

Wu Lei: You’ve grown taller, haven’t you?

Zhao Jinmai: I feel like he is smiling more!

Source: WeChat article. Translation credit to @Eowuli (1, 2, 3).

231226 [Interview] Wu Lei’s 24th Birthday Interview

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Fans: ‘Sometimes you don’t have a reason to start & try’. Besides cycling in Xinjiang, have you had an experience this year where you can just go, go somewhere & do things you want to do right away? Do you have any plans for riding in the new season? Is there anywhere you want to go?

Wu Lei: This year during the filming of <Amidst a Snowstorm of Love> I went to see the aurora once. At that time, I just met an aurora hunter by chance. I didn’t know if I could really catch it, so I set off as soon as my mind got excited. For the upcoming season of 骑有此理 I’m planning it cautiously, aiming to bring more better memories for the audience & myself. Of course, I’d love to explore the magnificent landscapes of our motherland.

Fans: What do you think about the process of growing plants? When the flowers sprouted & bloomed, were you so excited that you wanted to tell the whole world?

Wu Lei: This year during the filming of <Amidst a Snowstorm of Love> I went to see the aurora once. At that time, I just met an aurora hunter by chance. I didn’t know if I could really catch it, so I set off as soon as my mind got excited. For the upcoming season of 骑有此理 I’m planning it cautiously, aiming to bring more better memories for the audience & myself. Of course, I’d love to explore the magnificent landscapes of our motherland.

Fans: As a qualified sh*it cleaner (pet owner), are there any amusing moments you can share with xlm (xiaoleimi)?

Wu Lei: When it snowed a few days ago, I saw a video of Xiaobei running in the snow. She completely lost her expression control, just pure happiness, truly heartwarming.

Fans: Do you know about pet communicators? If you could talk to Xiaobei, what would you like to ask?

Wu Lei: How does the dog food taste today?

Fans: Did you spend quality time with yourself in 2023? What do you like to do most when you have time alone?

Wu Lei: This year is the year I have a deeper understanding of “getting along with myself.” I began reconciling with myself & considering the moments of relaxation as a reasonable break rather than seeing it as “wasting time alone.” Spending time alone usually spent at home, playing games, watching movies

Fans: In 2023, you have also working hard to become a “mature adult”, is there any experience this year “after completing a wonderful adventure, you said to yourself well done!”

Wu Lei: I went to a place I had never been to before & experienced a life that can be called a “spiritual & physical fantasy adventure”. I can’t spoil too much yet, I can only say that it is fantastic, very fantastic…

Fans: It’s so cool that Wu Lei learns a new skill every time he’s filming a drama. Is there anything you learn that you feel is very meaningful & you will stick to it? Besides cycling, have you picked up any new hobbies or new skills recently?

Wu Lei: Now I still play billiards when I have time. In terms of this sport, I feel I have some talent. During the filming of <Amidst a Snowstorm of Love> there was a game where I unexpectedly defeated my master, hahaha I also learned some kung fu this year. Although I didn’t use it much during <Decent Things> it also taught me a lot of new things in terms of fighting scenes.

Fans: The new characters that xlm will meet this year are great! For leilei, are there any achievements or accomplishments this year that you particularly satisfied with?

Wu Lei: For me, the most significant accomplishment so far would be gaining new recognition from the audience. For example <Ride Now>, I was actually very nervous when it was 1st released. Fortunately, I got some positive feedback from everyone after it was released & I finally felt relieved. The same goes for <Nothing But You> at the beginning of the year. The character Song Sanchuan was well received by the audience. I also received positive feedback from some professional athletes. It was the most significant recognition for me this summer

Fans: The most challenging part & the happiest part of acting in 2023

Wu Lei: I feel that there is no comparison. I’m very happy every day when I’m on the set. Filming consecutive nights or challenging intense scenes can be tough. However, the difficulty also brings happiness. The harder the day, the more lessons learned & resting on days off feels twice as joyful

Fans: This year Leilei has encountered new roles & new challenges. Has there been any change in your perception of “actor”? Are there any new types of roles you would like to try?

Wu Lei: Although I’m still exploring deeper aspects of the path of an “actor” with the accumulate experience, I feel that my control of the “role” has become a little more “fine”. But I still feel that “actor” is a very important term that requires ample patience & accumulation to truly earn its recognition. This year is no exception, I’m eager to take on any type of roles. It’s my actor’s competitive spirit hahaha

Fans: This year, Leilei has already celebrated a mature 20 years career milestone just after graduation! From being a college students to graduation, is there anything you want to say to xlm who are currently studying or have entered society? How can you encourage urself to find the direction when you are confused?

Wu Lei: When you are full of energy, gather your courage to move forward. When you are tired, take a break & rest. Then continue moving forward when you are fully charged. Don’t be afraid of stagnation or confusion, remember to regain your strength & stand up

Fans: Your birthday happens to be at the end of the year. When you celebrate your birthday every year, do you look back on what happened this year? Do you have any prospects for the new year?

Wu Lei: Honestly, I’m not a person who loves celebrating birthdays very much, but when the “birthday” occasion arises, I can’t help but review the experiences of the past year including how many places I have been, how many kilometers I have flown, how many times I received letters & how many memories I’ve created. In the new year, we will still say the same old saying, “Good_____, good _____”

Fans: If you regard life as a game of leveling up & beating the boss, what does Leilei think is the main plot of his life?

Wu Lei: I should be a junior novice, wandering around the world, looking for entrances to dungeon worlds, playing various roles, battling monsters in each new scenario. Every time I cleared a dungeon plot, I gain a little experience, which allows me to level up my equipment & skills



#WuLei: Hi, it feels amazing to grow up together, right? I will always remember the sincere gazes & companionship from this group of people over the past 20 years. Aiya, no more cheesy words. See u in the next “Where Are We?”

Bonus: This year marks 20th anniversary of Leilei’s debut. Is there anything u want to say to xlm?

Wu Lei: Hi, it feels amazing to grow up together, right? I will always remember the sincere gazes & companionship from this group of people over the past 20 years. Aiya, no more cheesy words. See you in the next “Where Are We?”

Source: Weibo. Translation credit to @5051sm.

[Interview] Wu Lei Interview for L’OFFICIEL HOMMES (April 2021)

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Wu Lei: Spring Portrait of a Young Actor

To live, to win, to use life to create life again.

Thirteen years ago, Wu Lei filmed the TV series “The Sword and The Chess of Death”, in which he played the role of “Guan Yunbao”, the son of the hero “Yan Cangfeng”. In the stills, 8 years old Wu Lei is not much taller than the desk, wearing a garcinia-yellow cloth scarf, with the collar of his warm white underwear is exposed. His head is slightly tilted forward, and the child’s round, almond-shaped eyes look at the audience in front of the camera, like the lovely peach tree in full bloom in spring in Van Gogh’s oil painting “Peach Blossoms in Bloom” (1888). 

Thirteen years later, Wu Lei starred in the comic-adapted TV series “The Long Ballad” as the East Turkestan Tegin Ashile Sun. In the trailer, Ashile Sun’s long black hair is tied into a helmet, and the silvery desert wind blew it away. In the young man’s cold eyes, the lively child named “Guan Yunbao” seemed to have disappeared long ago. Wu Lei still reminds people of Van Gogh’s oil painting “Peach Blossoms in Bloom”, with the scorching peach tree in the center of the painting. However, the growth of young people is more like the spring itself evolving in the wind, rain and cold rather than the bright petals burning in the transparent sunlight – the latter is longer, vivid and meaningful than the former.

“You are a person who is not surprised when things happen. A battle-hardened warrior” 

The air leaked out from the half-open door. Wu Lei walked briskly out of the lounge and walked towards the well-lit shooting location. He put the hood of the sweatshirt on his head, like an ancient knight putting on a cape. This “cloak” now protects the owner’s face, which is slightly aggressive due to entering the shooting mood. 

Since entering the entertainment industry in 2005, Wu Lei has appeared in dozens of film and television works. In the audience’s memory, he is the innocent and wonderful Fei Liu in “Nirvana in Fire”, Li Cu in “Tomb of the Sea” who is burdened with a huge secret; he is the blind middle school student Chen Leyun in “Adoring”, and the wheelchair-bound Lu Xiaobei who never give up in “CrossFire”. He is also the Wu Lei who performed ten poses in ten seconds under the flaming red light at this moment, and was praised by the editor as having “an extremely high production rate.” Wu Lei during the filming is like the embodiment of the sound coming from an empty stage, his eyebrows raised high, and his still posture with a serious expression flashed quickly on the monitor screen. The next second after the filming ended, Wu Lei squatted down to take a rest. Unexpectedly, a new smile suddenly appeared. He was completely different from the wild one in the red shadow just now, who was more like the brave and capable Ashile Sun.

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[Interview] Wu Lei Interview for ELLE MEN (April 2021)

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Wu Lei: 21 years old, a young man breaking the wind

Child stars who become famous too early often leave the audience feels that there is a lack of surprises because they are exposed to the camera all the time, but Wu Lei does not – spending most of the day with 21-year-old Wu Lei, we also saw the liveliness and enthusiasm of a young man in him. The ambition of young actors and the calmness of mature artists

“I got hungry on the way. There was a restaurant on the national highway so I stopped to eat. There were workers at the next table who had just come from the construction site. I listened to them chatting about their girlfriends in dialect. I felt very happy.” – Wu Lei shared with us in the RV the last time he felt happy. One day when he was not on set, he rode more than 90 kilometers along the national highway in a different place.

On many occasions, Wu Lei has been asked what his mental age is. The last time he was interviewed by us, he said he was 35. This time, he told us that age is not that important. He just celebrated his 21st birthday at the end of last year. When asked about his age, he jokingly said, “I want to be 18 forever”. But he immediately added seriously that at the age of 21, he wanted to make himself better, “work, family, friends, emotions, you will indeed face more things.”

This boy, who entered the entertainment industry at the age of 5 and has been working for 15 years now, is clearly a mature artist. This is reflected in his speaking speed, which is almost 1.5 times that of ordinary people (supporting this constant speaking speed is his fast-running brain), standard Mandarin with even naturalized pronunciation (and he is from the south), clear control of each work content (during the interview, he spoke very quickly and mentioned to the staff his idea for the video script, which “should arouse the audience’s interest within 15 seconds”, and then seamlessly answer my previous question), and clear understanding and control of self-state ——He mentioned several times that when entering this stage of life, he wanted to slow down, reduce stress, and “lower desires.”

This must be different from peers who are accustomed to being glued to large and small screens in their work, academic and life. One day, Wu Lei was watching a talk show, and it was said that modern people live with more screens in front of them. “With mobile phones, iPads, computers, and Kindles, I wish I could have screens all over my face, taking in all the information in the world today into my brain.” In his own mind.” He realized that he was also talking about himself: after work, he always wanted to watch movies, read scripts, check Zhihu and Moments, and use various electronic products. At the same time, his mind was racing with various tasks, it seems to be spinning around like gyroscope.

“It’s already very complicated, too complicated.” He lamented.

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[Interview] Wu Lei Interview for BAZAAR MEN (May 2021)

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Wu Lei: Simple Method

The most wonderful moments in filming are the small moments. Often when you are waiting for something together, the more you realize that waiting and working hard for something gives you a sense of peace and tranquillity.

Just like some shooting scenes, there will be planes flying by. The sound of the aircraft interferes with the recording when filming is necessary. As a result, everyone will wait for a plane to fly by.

The whole group stopped until you heard the plane zooming by.

When Wu Lei talked about this part of the story, he imitated the sound of an airplane flying by, and he learned it a lot, which was surprising how similar it is.

When the sound of the plane “shooting” passed, everything started again.

He deals with the world in his own way 

 Full of surprises and unknowns

Wu Lei has been filming for more than a year, and even only took two days off during the Spring Festival. One day he accompanies his family to make dumplings, and another one day he plays video games with his friends. When he waited until the first day of the new year, he went out to work.

Such a long work means that after the filming of this scene, Wu Lei will enter a period of rest. At the same time, this also means that even if he takes a short break, Wu Lei will have a lot of new dramas to meet with everyone next time. For Wu Lei’s fans, this year is a good year.

On the second day after our filming ended, Wu Lei was filming on the Hongjialou campus of Shandong University. During the filming, he used a character board to communicate with the onlookers. He stepped on a wooden box and held up the word boards one by one”Hello”. -“Please support”-“The Long Ballad”- “Our Times” “Midsummer/Upcoming””I am Xiao Fang””Thank you”-“Goodbye”. The word boards are all black on a red background, and they look neat and serious. Wu Lei smiled throughout the whole process, he recommended it sincerely and in such an unexpected way.

If you know Wu Lei better, this is just how Wu Lei is. He is willing to share and communicate with others, and get along with the world with the most friendly and open attitude. Take other things in his recent period as an example. There are similar examples readily available to share with you.

For example, Wu Lei often publishes vlog records daily on social platforms. The subject of Vlog is the flow of daily life for many people, getting up early to make up, filming and working, healthy eating, exercise and fitness, plus good things recommendation and experience sharing. But in Wu Lei’s vlog, every video is not so plain and has no new record.

In those vlogs, several records recorded his experience of riding a bicycle from Quanzhou to Xiamen alone. This is actually a transition of the crew, returning from the filming location in Quanzhou to the filming location in Xiamen. Because Wu Lei had no drama filming on the day of his transfer, he chose to use his rest time to complete the journey by himself.

This is no joke. This section of the road is about 90 kilometers in length. He set off in the afternoon the previous day, stayed one night on the road, and rode from morning to evening the next day. Because he promised that the makeup artist of the crew could not tan his face, he kept his promise and waited for a container on the road when the sun was strongest before continuing on the road until the sun diminished. This prolongs the time on the road. It can be seen in the video taken by himself with a sports recorder that he waited until the darkness was over before he arrived at the place where the crew was stationed.

The whole journey is full of unknowns. First of all, the road is unknown. Even if you follow the navigation throughout the entire journey, you will encounter a section of roads with staggered alleys and complex road conditions. Secondly, the person encountered is unknown, which is also something that Wu Lei is willing to accept. While cycling, Wu Lei will take the initiative to communicate with people. When you meet a fisherman, you can chat with them. When you leave, you will leave a sincere wish and wish others for the best. People who help them are particularly grateful for their small acts of kindness, quietly imagining their careers, and praise their virtues.

In addition, there are unexpected sights. In his vlog, there are beautiful views from Wu Lei’s perspective. Even though the journey is short, Wu Lei, who is happy to find out, stops his bike and takes a good look at the scene.

The reason why he wants to accomplish this is because Wu Lei has become obsessed with cycling recently. He often develops various hobbies because of filming. From fitness to DJing to cycling. He is willing to spend time and energy to learn, understand, practice, and immerse himself in the things he wants to understand. In many people with multiple skills and hobbies, similar immersion and practice will make you feel inspired, and at the same time make you feel that they have paid a lot and put pressure on you, but they have a sense of distance to these things. But here with Wu Lei, you will find everything so interesting, relaxing and happy.

Because everything comes from his heartfelt desires. Although likes and impulses will peak during the immersion time, he will not discard these interests after this peak period is over. They will basically stay with him for a long time.

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[Interview] Wu Lei Interview for Men’s Uno (May 2021)

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Free growth of youth

In the early summer, the grass and trees are still green, and the force of joy is bred in vitality. Throughout the past few years with us, Wu Lei has grown up a lot now. Every year, his wish is to “be a good person, make a good movie, world peace, and family health”. Like every young boy, he loves to play games and rides his beloved road bike around with the wind; when he talks about acting, he becomes insightful and confident. In Wu Lei, we can always see the blood of the young man, who grew up in freedom, welcoming every surprise.

One day in 2020, Wu Lei suddenly wanted to ride a bicycle. Before walking into that bike shop, he had never been in contact with road bikes. He didn’t know if he would like this sport or what kind of scene he would face in the future. He just bought a bike and started riding it. “It was the first time I rode a road bike that day. I have been riding a regular bicycle since I was a kid. After riding a road bike, I felt amazing. The speed, the weight of the body, and the feeling of breaking the wind were amazing.” Later, we could often see his bike and different scenery in his Vlog.

Cycling brought Wu Lei a lot of relaxation and relieve stress. “Flying on the ground is great,” he said. The only drawback is that it is easy to be “struck” by experts in Beijing. “You know what I’m saying.” Wu Lei could clearly feel our doubts in the words, and explained, “I was overtaken by the big guys, and couldn’t catch up. This is called a “pull-up explosion” in the road lap. I just went back to Beijing and rode my bike. The big guys are just like you. They surpass me, rushing past like lightning, I can’t even look at their back.”

Riding a bike and performing is about making up with yourself. In 2021, actor Wu Lei handed in a beautiful report card. “Our Time” just finished, “The Long Ballad” which is currently on air, and the upcoming “Faith Makes Great” and the “Upcoming Summer” which will be released in the summer, different eras, different personalities, different stories, each of the roles are devoted to Wu Lei’s efforts.

The heat is Wu Lei’s deep memory of the filming of “The Long Ballad”. Under the temperature of more than 30 degrees, he wears thick costumes to shoot the drama. When he received the script of “The Long Ballad”, he was moved by the vast worldview of the original book. “Ah Sun is very handsome, and many of the scenes look cool, exciting and challenging.” In order to restore Ah Sun in everyone’s mind, Wu Lei read scripts and supplemented comics.

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[Interview] Wu Lei Interview for GRAZIA (June 2021)

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Wu Lei’s alone time

Cycling is a time when Wu Lei can be himself. At this time, he does not have to become another character in the ups and downs story, nor does he have to bear the public spotlight. In his words, he is like a falcon, flying close to the ground, and the wind in front of him is also free. Growth has never been an earth-shattering event like shouting slogans. Wu Lei, who no longer claims that his “mental age is 35 years old,” understands that at this moment, it is happening silently in his body. 

Wu Lei seemed to grow up overnight. Perhaps because he was standing in the spotlight at a very young age, whether ordinary viewers or fans, watching him grow up a little bit, it is always difficult to detect the silent moisturizing (润物无声)*. Until “The Long Ballad” aired, more and more people said that he “grew up”. “I think it’s a good thing, at least it proves that this role is a success in a certain sense, because Ah Sun is a mature man who gives people a sense of security. If one day he’s starred in another role, it will be another kind of success.” For a character, everyone said how Wu Lei is still a three-year-old child! I think that last year Wu Lei published a book “Flying on the Ground”, which was a commemoration of his 20-year-old. He talked about “self” in it, and disassembled the word into “freedom and me”. Balancing them is the process of self- shaping.

*Explanation: refers to those who have a big mind, who have made contributions without publicity, and silently contribute.

Riding a bike happened to let him find the existence of “freedom and me”. “I really like (this) one sentence. If you want to see the scenery, drive too fast and walk too far to complete all kinds of shooting. At night, you can finally have your own time and you can ride home.” In Beijing, sometimes working till late night, if the place of work happens to be in the west, he will choose to ride back alone.

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