Many Western audiences are unaware of the beautiful actresses in China having a moment right now. You may not be ready for a crash course in Chinese cinema to discover these women, but that’s okay. We’ve brought you our definitive list of the most beautiful Chinese actresses working today!
Fan Bingbing
In some ways, Fan Bingbing may be one of the most familiar actresses on this list. That’s because this 38-year-old has appeared in movies all across the world!
In China, she is primarily known for movies such as Lost in Beijing and I Am Not Madame Bovary. In other parts of Asia, she is more known for her TV show My Fair Princess.
Meanwhile, France knows her for the movie Stretch and Korea for the movie My Way. Finally, America knows her best for her portrayal of the fan-favorite mutant Blink in X-Men: Days of Future Past.
Yang Chaoyue
Yang Chaoyue was named one of the most influential people in Chinese Newsweek in 2018, and it’s no wonder. She shot to fame as a contestant on reality show competition Produce 101, sort of a Chinese version of Making the Band. She finished in third place and became a member of the resulting girl group Rocket Girls 101.
Along the way, Chaoyue has released several hit singles and starred in the movie Project 17: Side by Side. At 21-years-old, she’s already on Forbes’ China Celebrity 100 list. But she also has several movies currently in the pipeline, so we expect her fame to only grow in the next few years.
Ouyang Nana
19-year-old Ouyang Nana is an actress who holds multiple talents. While we primarily know her for her onscreen exploits, Nana is also an accomplished musician who can play the hell out of both the guitar and the cello.
In fact, she is known as much for music as for acting. She has released two albums (15 and Cello Loves Disney) and has actually impressed Western audiences by singing “See You Again” with Wiz Khalifa at the “Oscars of Science.”
She still found time to charm us in the romantic comedy Beijing Love Story and thrill us in the cyberpunk sci-fi film Bleeding Steel.
Li Xiaolu
37-year-old Li Xiaolu became an impressive actress at a very young age. In fact, she won the Golden Horse Award for Leading Actress for the 1998 movie Xiu Xiu: The Sent Down Girl. She was only 17 at the time.
That movie ended up being a darling at multiple film festivals. And the star took home 3 different awards for “Best Actress” based on the role.
She won more international awards for Best Actress for the films About Love and My Mother and My Mother In-Law. As you can tell, she is much more than just a pretty face!
Angelababy
As you might imagine, “Angelababy” is a stage name. This 30-year-old actress was originally known as Angela Yeung Wing. Her career started back in 2007, and she has only gotten more popular each year.
She started out with a humble cameo in the movie Trivial Matters in 2007. By 2011, she had a leading role in Love You You and even lent her vocal talents to the movie’s soundtrack.
When she joined the variety show Keep On Running in 2014, it helped make her famous all throughout China. She parlayed that into a major role in Mojin: The Lost Legend and even a minor role in the Hollywood video game adaptation Hitman: Agent 47.
Victoria Song
Many of the actresses on this list have multiple talents. However, 32-year-old Victoria Song truly leaves them all in the dust!
Most recently, she is famous for her acting career. This includes roles in When Love Walked In and Beautiful Secret. In the last few years, she has impressed with dramas such as The Chronicles of Town Called Jian.
Before these roles, though, she was a dancer and singer in the South Korean girl group f(x). She even released a book, Victoria’s Hong-Ma, chronicling her travels as a singer.
Jelly Lin
23-year-old Jelly Lin is an actress who goes by multiple names. She is primarily known as Lin Yun in China, but she also goes by her English name of Jelly Lin.
Lin has one of those fun breakout stories where she wasn’t really seeking fame. Instead, fame found her! She had almost no acting experience when she was 18 years old. Nonetheless, she snagged a career-making role in the 2016 Stephen Chow film The Mermaid.
This movie broke box office records in China and propelled her to instant fame. Since then, she has starred in everything from the wuxia-style dramatic series Battle Through the Heavens to the Disney-made romantic comedy The Dreaming Man.
Crystal Zhang
Crystal Zhang was mostly unknown (with the exception of some minor roles) until 2015. Then, she played a role in a web-based drama called Go Princess Go.
Once this series made her famous, she took starring roles in bigger and better projects. This includes the romance I Belonged to You and the fantasy film Legend of the Demon Cat.
From where we’re standing, it looks like this 29-year-old’s star won’t stop rising anytime soon.
Hayden Kuo
Unfamiliar with the name Hayden Kuo? You might know her better by her other screen name Bea Hayden. She debuted as a model back in 2002, and after a few years, this led to a career in TV and film.
She debuted on TV with the show Golden Age and on the big screen with Keeping Watch. While she has had a busy career with many roles, audiences all around the world are likeliest to know her from the Tiny Times series of movies.
Gu Li Zha Na
This next actress also possesses many different names. Sometimes, she goes by Gu Li Zha Na. Other times, it’s Gulinazha. She sometimes shortens this to Nazha — that is, when she’s not going by Gülnezer Bextiyar.
By any name, however, this 27-year-old is quite impressive. She rose to prominence in the TV show Xuan-Yuan Sword: Scar of Sky and made a mark in the movies with Police Story 2013. In-between film and TV roles, she has released a fun music video and even appeared in some hilarious variety shows!