From domineering, romantic control freak on-screen characters to real-life chilli producer, popular actor comes to terms with digital reality
2-MIN READ2-MINAlice Yanin ShanghaiPublished: 2:00pm, 1 May 2026A Chinese actor who is well-known for playing dominant bosses in miniseries and has taken part in 200 such productions has become unemployed due to the impact of AI technology.
In March, to make ends meet, Zhang Xiaolei, 28, began doing farm work in the northwestern province of Qinghai, Red Star News reported.
Starting with some basic dancing skills, Zhang was introduced by his friend to a miniseries filming crew at the end of 2023.
Since then, he has become a familiar face to viewers of miniseries in China.
In the 200 productions in which Zhang starred, 70 per cent show him portraying a “bossy president”, or ba zong in Chinese.
The term describes a male character in romantic fiction who is a domineering control freak that only shows tenderness to their lover.
