Li Yifeng’s account, office, and topics have disappeared from Weibo.
Top Chinese actor Li Yifeng’s Weibo account had 36 million followers, making him one of the most influential celebrities on China’s biggest social media platform. However, only 4 days after his prostitution scandal broke out, Li Yifeng’s personal account, his office’s account and the topic related to the actor have disappeared from Weibo. Li Yifeng’s account on Douyin (Chinese TikTok) also no longer exists.
According to Chinese netizens, Li Yifeng’s social media accounts were removed by the authorities because his shocking scandal has tarnished the image of China’s entertainment industry.
Earlier, on September 11, the Beijing police announced the arrest of Li Yifeng on charges of soliciting prostitution multiple times. He is now placed under administrative detention.
Immediately after the news broke, Li Yifeng started being blacklisted by the entertainment industry. MangoTV, Tencent Video quickly removed Li Yifeng’s name from the dramas he starred in as the lead.
The Huading Awards announced that they had stripped Li Yifeng of the “Best Actor in a Television Series” award (2017) and the “Best Performance by an Actor in The Ancient Television Series” award in 2015. The Sichuan Film and Television Academy has removed posters and related content featuring Li Yifeng.
Before being arrested, Li Yifeng was the face of 14 brands. Among those, globally well-known ones such as Prada, Budweiser, L’oreal, have announced the termination of their contracts with the problematic actor. According to iFeng, Li Yifeng’s endorsement rate is about USD 1.4 million – 2 million. Contract cancellations due to Li Yifeng’s illegal deeds can cause him to face a compensation fee of more than USD 20 million. Besides, two upcoming works led by Li Yifeng, Playground and Animal World 2, will inevitably be affected.
According to Chinese media, after Kris Wu, Li Yifeng’s scandal made the Chinese public once again lose faith in male celebrities in particular and entertainers in general. Sina commented that the collapse of Li Yifeng’s career is the price he has to pay for living an unhealthy lifestyle, having a poor sense of protecting his artist’s image. Apple Daily, QQ called the actor’s scandal “the irrevocable end of an idol star”.
Incidents of Chinese stars losing their fame and careers for breaking the law are continuing to happen. “The entertainment industry is not beyond the reach of the law, and no one has the privilege of violating the law,” said Legal Daily.
The China Television Artists Association said in a statement, “As public figures, their words and actions are paid attention to by people from all walks of life. They have an impact on society. They should obey the laws and value their image more than anyone else.” The China Television Artists Association emphasized that no matter what achievements and titles celebrities have obtained, if they do something illegally, their future is destroyed immediately.
Li Yifeng was a top-tier star, one of the four actors with the biggest resources in the industry alongside Kris Wu, Yang Yang and Lu Han. His fandom is huge. His net worth is estimated to be approximately USD 10 million as of 2022.
However, by getting caught up in a prostitution scandal, Li Yifeng may have put an end to his glorious career at the age of 35. Industry insiders predict that it is highly unlikely that Li Yifeng will ever be able to return to the entertainment industry again.
