Song Wei Long’s Lin Yusen now in business suit, shedding his doctor’s coat after a tragic accident (Image from mydramalist.com)
That Chinese actor-model Song Wei Long is back in the public eye is reason for his fans and those rooting for underdogs to celebrate. His new series for 2025, The Seven Relics of Omen, Youthful Glory, and Shine on Me, where he’s cast in the lead roles, are streaming on Netflix, alongside Find Yourself and Go Ahead, his breakthrough series for 2020.
Wei Long’s three-year absence from the screen left people wondering if he’d been blackballed by the entertainment industry. He wasn’t involved in any scandal or controversy. In fact, he was acclaimed for his performance as Yuan Song in Find Yourself and as Ling Xiao in Go Ahead — young men with emotional complexities.
In 2019, he was named Best Male Newcomer in the China Movie Channel Media Awards for the film Love the Way You Are, and was part of Forbes China’s 30 under 30 Asia list recognizing people under 30 years old with substantial influence in their fields.
Likewise, he had been sought after for endorsements. In 2020, he was Burberry’s Beauty spokesperson and Burberry’s brand ambassador. In 2022, he was Mikimoto’s first male global brand ambassador.
Then suddenly, it was radio silence from Wei Long except for intermittent Instagram selfies: with his sister’s dog, looking like a skater boy, twirling a flower or holding a bouquet, strolling at night, and gazing yonder at the horizon.
Wei Long’s good looks not only brought him fame and admiration, but also ignited rumors that turned him from darling to underdog
It was in 2015 when Wei Long caught the attention of photographers and management companies with a video he and a friend posted on Weibo. He stood out for what his admirers called his “unmatched visuals” — i.e., striking facial structure, broad shoulders, and statuesque physique (he stands at 6 feet).
The FB group I love Cdrama said his gorgeous face earned him the nickname the “last unbeatable 95-line visual king,” a fan-created moniker for male celebrities born beginning in 1995 (Wei Long was born in March 1999), who are exceptionally handsome. Another sobriquet was “Little Takashi Kashiwabara,” referencing the similar facial features and icy aura of Wei Long and the 1990s Japanese heartthrob from the drama Itazura na Kiss, according to I love Cdrama.
As it happened, Wei Long’s good looks not only brought him fame and admiration, but also ignited rumors that turned him from darling to underdog. His foothold in the industry via a face card was ultimately viewed negatively; the situation was compounded by the knowledge that he had no formal training in acting, unlike other actors.
The video podcast Criminal Tracks (CT) on YouTube said the industry “valued Wei Long’s face, not his craft,” and the early hype focused on the boy who was “too young, handsome, and visible.”
“The focus was on his relationships and his personal life moved faster than his professional life. There were rumors about him falling in love easily, (which) didn’t need to be proven to do damage. They just needed to linger,” CT explained.
Things came to a head when Wei Long filed a lawsuit against his agency terminating his long-term contract that “locked him in,” CT said, pointing out that Wei Long signed it when he was young and, entering adulthood, now found the partnership “a trap.”
Wei Long’s agency, on the other hand, asserted that the contract was still legally binding, CT added.
From 2021 to 2023, Wei Long was left out in the cold—placed on “refrigerator” status, in the industry’s parlance—until the case was settled. His career stalled, and his presence was felt only through his IG posts.
“Without an agency, (he had) no projects; without a clear victory, no producer wanted to work with him because it was a financial hazard (with an) actor caught up in a legal case. His absence fueled speculations—Was he banned? He was stuck in limbo,” CT said.
The dispute between Wei Long and his agency was resolved. According to I Love Cdrama, he left a clue of his imminent return: He removed the name of his agency from his Weibo bio.
Picking up where he left off, his fans saw more of him in 2025. He starred opposite Angelababy in the historical romance Everlasting Longing, which Netflix has yet to add to its catalogue. Then he segued into the 32-episode sci-fi series The Seven Relics of Omen, working alongside good friend Liú Hàocún. Per I love Cdrama, they became friends over a shared experience of going through a rough patch—Hàocún faced cyberbullying while he was locked in a legal battle—and that Wei Long booked 500 seats in support of Hàocún’s drama Be Passionately in Love.
Wei Long played Luo Ren, leader of the five-member Phoenix Squad looking for ancient relics housing parasitic alien entities causing murder and mayhem. His Luo Ren combined the smarts and derring-do of Indiana Jones and James Bond, impressing viewers with his action and fight sequences. Google said Wei Long trained in wushu in junior high school and studied kung fu at the Shaolin Tagou Martial Arts School, touted as one of China’s largest and best martial arts schools.
In Youthful Glory his acting showed more maturity and depth
In Youthful Glory, a 30-episode historical romance, Wei Long again displayed his skills in acrobatics and handling weapons as Prince Jiang Xu of Dongbei, who finds himself fighting new enemies following his return to the kingdom after eight years of patrolling the border. The good action sequences aside, his acting showed more maturity and depth, belying the persistent tale that his expressions were flat or stiff. Wei Long’s Jiang Xu showed convincing expressions and gestures of navigating court politics, outmaneuvering shadow enemies, and wrestling against romantic feelings for the daughter of a suspected enemy.
The fashionable appeal of Gucci ambassador Song Wei Long enhances the brand’s traditional craftsmanship with contemporary style. (Image from @songsongswl)
Endorsements also returned. In 2024, he became Gucci’s brand ambassador, debuting in the 520 Chinese Valentine’s Day campaign and attending Gucci’s men’s shows in Milan and events in Shanghai. There was also Gucci’s summer campaign on friendship with actress Wen Qi in August 2025. In November 2025, Omega made him its brand ambassador, finding his on-screen persona of calmness, refinement, and quiet ambition reflective of the narrative premium watch that buyers identified with “self-possession and success, earned rather than flaunted” (daoinsights.com).
Song Wei Long lends contemporary look to Omega’s long history. (Image from @songsongswl)
He plays drop-dead handsome heir Lin Yusen with the effortless ease and charm of Korean actor Lee Min Ho
Wei Long’s comeback is successful, as seen in the reception of his 36-episode series Shine on Me. The modern romance is popular, garnering a rating of 28, 000 in December on Tencent’s heat index (mydramalist.com)—a metric that measures the popularity of Chinese dramas. (Netizens on Threads wrote that it has already crossed the 30,000 mark, making it a major success or “super hit.”)
Song Wei Long and Zhang Jinmai are Lin Yusen and Nie Xiguang, respectively, in ‘Shine on Me’ (Image from mydramalist.com)
He plays drop-dead handsome heir Lin Yusen—a top neurosurgeon-turned-hotshot executive in the solar energy industry— with the effortless ease and charm of Korean actor Lee Min Ho when portraying his chaebol scion roles. (Chaebol is Korean for family-owned conglomerate.) He imbues Lin with a likable aura that’s an exciting blend of intellect, steely confidence, and genuine humility. Lin is the ideal relationship partner— calm, stable, and supportive. His pursuit of Nie Xiguang (Zhao Jinmai) is a master class on courtship, highlighting communication and patience as pivotal in making Xiguang accept him willingly.
Lin Yusen and Nie Xiguang brave the complexities of modern love in ‘Shine on Me.’ (Image from mydramalist.com)
Comparatively, Lin is the more eloquent, well-to-do version of snooker player Lin Yi Yang in Amidst a Snowstorm of Love (2024) played by Leo Wu. Both are the green flag men of modern romance, who love and pursue their women—played both by Zhang Jinmai— tenaciously and with breathtaking romantic gestures.
But a committed lover is only a part of Lin’s character. Wei Long conveys another side of Lin through a gamut of emotions, ranging from the angst of abandoning his medical career (he got in a car accident), vengefulness towards Xiguang (someone misused her identity to con him), to falling hard for Xiguang. Lin’s feelings are seen through a carefully timed raised eyebrow, smirk, smile, frown, words of anger or exasperation, or soft or piercing gaze.
Song Wei Long shows off snowboarding skills, as Lin Yusen, on the slopes of Changbai Mountains. (Image from @songsongswl)
Being gorgeous isn’t a crime, but Wei Long was born in a world where, in my view, irrationality gets the best of everyone. People he was close with—even strangers—maliciously sought to bring him down. Fortunately, he climbed out of the abyss and strutted back to center stage.
With Wei Long’s new beginning, it’s safe to conjecture that he’s grown wiser and protecting himself from haters and opportunists. The spunky underdog’s place is under the spotlight.
