While I don’t normally cover Chinese entertainment news, mostly due to my unfamiliarity with the scene, one story has unfortunately recently made waves on social media recently. Actress Zhao Lusi‘s management recently announced that she would take a hiatus due to health issues, which only seemed to happen after disturbing video of her emerged in a wheelchair and seemingly being unable to function.
That was concerning enough, but soon after an alleged friend came forward and revealed (with Zhao Lusi’s permission) that the root cause was the abuse she suffered at the hand of her agency for years.
“In April 2019, during a break in her schedule, Lusi was in Beijing auditioning for roles. At the time, she didn’t have a place to stay, so she stayed at my house. During the day, we were both busy with our own work and only occasionally ate and talked together. But one night, I came home, turned on the light, and found her curled up in the living room in the dark. I asked her what was wrong, and she said, ‘I don’t know why they hit me. I’m really scared.’ I was shocked. ‘Why? There has to be a reason, right?’ She told me about someone who had dragged her into the bathroom and berated her for two hours, saying things like how useless she was, why she couldn’t land a role, and how she should reflect on why she hadn’t been cast as a lead actress before. They criticized her weight and said she wasn’t as good as others, just constantly putting her down. This went on until 2 AM. Finally, because Lusi stayed silent, that person slammed the door and left. Lusi, feeling aggrieved, grabbed her bag and opened the door to leave. It was drizzling outside. and the person chased after her, seemingly trying to grab her. We’re not sure whether they intended to slap her or pull her hair and missed, but either way, she was hit. She was terrified. Over the years, we’ve talked about this incident many times, and I’ve always felt guilty for not realizing how much it had been weighing on her. Both she and I thought that openly discussing what happened meant she had moved on. Lusi has been doing better and better, so we assumed she wasn’t dwelling on it anymore. However, when I learned that she still wakes up in terror from nightmares about it, I realized that this issue was far from resolved. “
They go on to say how much it weighed on the actress, including recurring night terrors. At the time they considered going to the police, but worried that they wouldn’t have evidence so justice wouldn’t be served and they would only burn bridges and face potential financial consequences. The agency brushed it aside with an excuse that the person was drunk, but that they had already contacted her mother to complain that she was disobedient.
Then today, Zhao Lusi herself spoke up, starting by talking about mental health, in general.
My career has brought me more help and support than I could have imagined. I am truly grateful and feel fortunate. This has helped me understand all the misunderstandings. I support anyone’s right to choose their desired career at any time because you always have the right to escape situations that bring suffering and exhaustion. You can stop anytime—you are free, and you can be brave. I also understand that everyone has faced grievances and injustices. I’ve heard far too many horrifying stories. When there is no help, and the abuser continues to escalate, regardless of profession, age, or gender, it is wrong. Forcing someone to reopen their wounds to prove “it’s not overthinking,” “it’s not weak resilience,” or “it’s not dissatisfaction” is absurd. No one but a doctor has the right to determine the severity of someone’s trauma or whether it qualifies as an illness.
She then described the progression of her illness since 2019.
In 2019, I experienced depression. People told me, “Don’t overthink it” or “If you think positively, everything will be fine.” I also thought I was being dramatic and sensitive and didn’t take my mental health seriously. In 2021, I felt like bugs were crawling on me, like needles were pricking me, accompanied by allergies. After seeing doctors, getting medications, and receiving injections, the symptoms didn’t improve. I sought out a psychologist to help ease my anxiety. In 2023, I experienced pneumonia, emphysema, pityriasis rosea, urticaria, night sweats, neurogenic hearing loss, and the loss of loved ones and cancer diagnoses among family members. All these events happened in a short period, overshadowing my emotions, and I continued to neglect my health. In 2024, frequent retching, dizziness, joint pain, neck pain, and other obvious physical symptoms appeared, along with worsening allergies. I thought these were normal side effects of allergy-targeted medication.
She also confirmed the abuse she had suffered, both as a child and then later as an adult.
When I was a child, people called me a useless “pretty face.” During extracurricular tutoring, I was beaten in the teacher’s dormitory. At the time, I thought it was right to be punished because I wasn’t good at studying. I didn’t dare speak out because I was taught to “always find the problem within yourself.” When I grew up, I was beaten again for not securing an acting role. I thought it was my fault, so I didn’t dare make a fuss—I just wanted to escape. I was used to handling my problems alone and didn’t have the habit of seeking help. Later, when my work was recognized, I gained the courage to say goodbye to those who hurt me. In the end, the person demanded a huge “breakup fee” before they were willing to stop their manipulative behavior. Countless defamation attempts inside and outside the industry followed, with people coming to me after gossiping about me. Each time, the pain only deepened. The harm has never stopped.
All of that and her current situation is obvious tragic, but she ends it on a positive and hopeful note going forward.
To those of you who can relate to me: in such circumstances, whether you are truly “understood” no longer matters. What matters is breaking free from the endless cycle of proving yourself and finding a way to save yourself. Understanding mental health and prioritizing psychological treatment is truly important. Regret is a useless emotion. Treat this as a “special time” to overturn inner conflicts and rebuild yourself. I am grateful to everyone who cares. Because of love, I get to live again.
While there are lessons about how companies/agencies unsurprisingly abuse the leverage they wield over talents no matter where they’re located, mostly I admire Zhao Lusi’s messages to others about mental health no matter how own state and I’m glad she at least seems to be optimistic for herself going forward. I won’t hold my breath about any consequences for those who did this to her, for the reasons already outlined, but that would be nice for once.
