LayarHijau – Tian Xiwei has once again found herself in the spotlight following the premiere of her latest drama, Genius Girlfriend (天才，女友). The actress has been widely discussed not only for her role as Lin Zhixia, but also after Chinese netizens criticized her for repeatedly wearing a similar bangs style across multiple dramas.
Earlier this year, Tian Xiwei starred alongside Zhang Linghe in Pursuit of Jade (逐玉). The drama further boosted her popularity, with her follower count reportedly seeing a significant increase afterward. She is now starring opposite Hu Yitian in Genius Girlfriend, playing Lin Zhixia, a brilliant girl who struggles with social interaction.
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Lin Zhixia has even topped the VLinkage Drama Character New Media Index with a score of 8.92. The ranking placed Tian Xiwei’s character ahead of Zhang Qishan, played by William Chan in Mystic Nine (九门), and Murong Qingyi, played by Zhang Linghe in Overdo (这一秒过火).
However, amid the growing attention surrounding Lin Zhixia, Tian Xiwei’s appearance has sparked another debate. Some netizens have pointed out that she frequently wears a similar straight-bangs hairstyle in her dramas.
Netizens subsequently circulated a compilation of photos showing Tian Xiwei with similar bangs across a number of dramas. They claimed the compilation covered 16 consecutive dramas. The titles included New Life Begins (卿卿日常), Moonlit Reunion (子夜归), Guardians of the Dafeng (大奉打更人), Wrong Carriage, Right Groom (花轿喜事), Ms. Cupid in Love (姻缘大人请留步), Romance on the Farm (田耕纪), My Little Pet General (我的宠物少将军), Pursuit of Jade (逐玉), Where the Mask Ends (嫁金钗), First Love (初次爱你), Genius Girlfriend (天才女友), My True Friend (我的真朋友), In Between (半熟男女), Born with Luck (低智商犯罪), and Lovely Us (如此可爱的我们).
However, the compilation should not automatically be treated as an official list of Tian Xiwei’s 16 most recent dramas. A look at her filmography shows that several dramas she has already appeared in are missing from the compilation.
These include Waiting for You in a Long Time (在悠长的时光里等你), which aired in 2018 and was one of Tian Xiwei’s early works, The Song of Glory (锦绣南歌) in 2020, My Fated Boy (我的邻居长不大) in 2021, and Guo’s Summer (张卫国的夏天) in 2022. All four are part of Tian Xiwei’s filmography but do not appear in the 16-photo compilation circulated by netizens.
At the same time, the compilation includes Where the Mask Ends (嫁金钗), even though the drama has yet to air. As a result, the list cannot accurately be described as Tian Xiwei’s 16 most recent aired dramas.
There is another detail that could cause confusion. In the photo associated with Genius Girlfriend, Tian Xiwei can be seen holding a board that reads “开机大吉” (may the filming go smoothly). The phrase is simply a good-luck expression used when a production begins filming, rather than the title of another drama. The drama in question is still Genius Girlfriend (天才女友).
The compilation is therefore better viewed as a collection of photos put together by netizens to highlight similarities in Tian Xiwei’s hairstyles across several projects, rather than as an official list proving that she wore bangs in her last 16 dramas.
Nevertheless, criticism over the similarity of her appearance has continued to fuel discussion. Some netizens believe Tian Xiwei’s hairstyles look too similar across several projects, making the characters she plays appear less visually distinctive. Others have questioned whether the actress relies too heavily on bangs as part of her on-screen appearance.
The debate has also sparked wider discussion about whether repeatedly using the same hairstyle can make an actress look less distinctive from one role to another.
Tian Xiwei herself did not respond to the criticism aggressively. Through her studio account, she offered a relaxed yet confident response.
“Beautiful. Beautiful with bangs, beautiful without bangs. Big eyes are beautiful, small eyes are beautiful too. Smiling is beautiful, not smiling is beautiful too. Being slim is beautiful with a defined, sculpted look, while being fuller is beautiful in a cute and soft way. In the end, there will always be someone who considers you the most beautiful person.”
Her response was praised because Tian Xiwei did not directly attack the netizens who criticized her appearance. Instead, she used the debate to convey the idea that beauty does not depend on a single hairstyle or a particular standard.
Meanwhile, Tian Xiwei’s portrayal of Lin Zhixia in Genius Girlfriend has also received mixed reactions. Some viewers have criticized her facial expressions and gaze as too stiff, arguing that Lin Zhixia’s intelligent, lively, and distinctive personality has not always come through.
Despite the criticism, the debate over Tian Xiwei’s acting and appearance has only generated more discussion around Lin Zhixia. The character’s popularity is reflected in her No. 1 ranking on VLinkage’s drama character list, where she scored 8.92.
Tian Xiwei’s fans have also pushed back against the claim that the actress always appears with bangs. They have highlighted appearances from several of her projects in which she wore her hair without bangs or had her forehead visible.
Some examples can be seen in Moonlit Reunion (子夜归), Romance on the Farm (田耕纪), New Life Begins (卿卿日常), and Where the Mask Ends (嫁金钗). Fans have used these examples to challenge the idea that Tian Xiwei consistently relies on bangs in every drama.
Ultimately, the “16 dramas with bangs” debate is better viewed as a discussion about the similarity of Tian Xiwei’s hairstyles across several projects, rather than proof that she has used the exact same hairstyle throughout all of her dramas. The compilation itself does not cover her complete filmography and includes a drama that has yet to air.
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