LayarHijau – Rumors that Cheng Yi will not renew his contract with Huanrui Century have caused the company’s shares to drop significantly.
Cheng Yi’s ten-year contract with Huanrui officially ended on January 18, 2026. Although still labeled as “rumored,” the news sparked a wave of reactions on social media, with fans flooding posts with messages like “Congratulations on your freedom” and “Finally free from suffering.” Reports suggest Huanrui tried to retain him with various incentives, including a 20% stake in a subsidiary and a lead role in an S-level IP drama, but Cheng Yi insisted on going solo.
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As one of Huanrui’s core artists, the news of Cheng Yi’s departure immediately impacted the company’s stock. On January 15–16, just before his contract ended, Huanrui shares fell by a cumulative 12.35%.
The sharp market reaction is understandable given Cheng Yi’s significant contribution to Huanrui’s talent management business. In the first half of 2021, revenue from talent management accounted for 87.35% of the company’s total income, with one top artist—presumably Cheng Yi—contributing 33.08% of half-year revenue.
Following Ren Jialun’s departure in 2024, Cheng Yi’s role in supporting the talent management segment became even more crucial. That year, revenue from talent management rose to 164 million yuan, up 86.86% year-on-year, while drama production revenue fell 5.15%. Cheng Yi’s commercial activities and drama profit-sharing were the key drivers of growth.
This heavy reliance means that Cheng Yi’s departure would not only remove nearly half of the talent management revenue but also affect copyright negotiations and the market appeal of Huanrui’s productions. This explains the market’s sharp reaction.
Huanrui’s business model, built on both talent management and drama production, once formed a “dual-engine” driving the company’s growth and emphasized the importance of its artists.
Huanrui was once a leading player in China’s idol drama industry. Founded in 1997 as Xingmei United, the company went public in 2016 via a reverse merger. Its rise was closely tied to the post-2010 fan traffic boom in the industry.
The company produced blockbuster dramas such as Palace, Swords of Legends, The Legend of Fragrance, and The Glory of Tang Dynasty, while launching top stars like Yang Mi, Yang Yang, Yang Zi, Cheng Yi, and Ren Jialun. Its business model followed a cycle: produce popular dramas → boost artist popularity → artists support the dramas → monetize through endorsements and commercial deals.
However, entering the post-fan era, Huanrui’s large-scale productions began to lose their appeal. Early stars like Yang Mi, Yang Yang, and Yang Zi developed independently, and Ren Jialun left in 2024. Huanrui’s “star-making factory” gradually lost influence.
In practice, the old Huanrui model faced challenges: resource allocation issues, limited artist autonomy, and difficulty balancing company-artist profits. The loss of core artists began to weaken drama appeal, leaving the company struggling with a lack of leading stars.
The impact of artist departures and shrinking fan markets is reflected in the company’s financials over the past five years. From 2021–2024, Huanrui’s annual revenues were 388 million, 596 million, 336 million, and 385 million yuan, with net profits of -339 million, 7.65 million, -409 million, and -241 million yuan, respectively. In the first three quarters of 2025, the company earned 342 million yuan in revenue with a net loss of 35.01 million yuan, still far from profitability.
Content performance has also declined. After 2023, apart from Mysterious Lotus Casebook, there were few standout productions; many dramas received criticism for repetitive themes and low production quality. In 2024, drama sales revenue was only 220 million yuan, down 5.15% year-on-year.
The news of Cheng Yi’s rumored departure and the share price drop highlight the concentrated “growing pains” of Huanrui’s transformation. The former idol drama giant faces five years of losses, the exit of core artists, and shrinking traditional revenue streams.
Nevertheless, Huanrui has begun exploring short dramas and AI-driven projects. Its Star Romance Theater and Phoenix Theater on Douyin have accumulated over 4.5 billion views, providing momentum for entering a new era.
Huanrui’s crisis reflects broader industry trends: the era of fan-driven traffic has passed. Only companies that adapt to trends and focus on high-quality content can overcome the crisis and regain their position in China’s evolving drama industry landscape.
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