Fungurling (not fangirling, of course) only happened once in a blue moon. And when it happens, I will have a strong urge to write, because my heart can't content the excitement.
As a newbie in the world of Wang He Di, known also as Dylan Wang, it was highly necessary to find more information about him. I watched lots of his videos, listening to his interviews, reading his old and new news, even frequently took a close look to his public appearance pictures, which really candy to my eyes. What first caught my attention were his genuine distinctive qualities, which would be materials for my writings. I will start with his journey to Hall of Fame.
In one of his interview, he said that instead of taking an internship related to his profession as Flight Attendant, he was boarded the flight to Changsha and went to audition for a variety show (Youku Super Idol). Not that his parents supported him, because they want him to work. But he has no regrets. He just thought it was his time to make a decision, and that was his decision. No one knew by that time, that eventually, his decision to join the "Super Idol" was an entrance to the Hall of Fame.
The more I learned about Dylan, the more I understand the reason of my star crushing, because I found similarities between Dylan Wang and my long lasting star crush, the British actor, Ben Barnes. Like Ben, Dylan was not entering the hall of fame only by flicking his fingers. His journey to finally reach that stage of being famous was quite long and not easy.
Back to 2017 when Dylan joined a Youku Reality show competition "Super Idol", because of his lack of confident, he was on the brink of elimination at the first round. In order to stay, he must wear a mask and only can take it off when he won a challenge. Though he was angry, threw the mask on the floor, feeling humiliated, it was He Jiong (Television host, singer, actor, director and a former Arabic lecturer in Beijing Foreign Studies University) who consoled him and encouraged him to stay. At the end of the show, he emerged as the final winner.
Upon his unexpected victory, he remembered He Jiong's encouragement, "Perhaps wearing a mask will give you a push. Please don't give up on the hot point we added to you."
Dylan expressed his gratitude.
"This place, [Super Idol] is the place where I was born. If there wasn't Super Idol, then there would be no me. My growth and my improvement were all due to the two Teachers He who love us and also due to my other companion."
But was it really because he's talented, so he won that competition? Is there any real talent along with his good looks and charming personality? I found his journey from the first episode of Super Idol amusing. He grew from someone who's not confident because of his non-acting background, forced to wear a mask to cover his good looks, into someone who believes that acting is what he really wants.
One of his distinctive qualities that caught my attention was how he responded to a question about him being the only one participant who has no acting background. Would he feel that as disadvantage?
"Maybe if I compare myself to them, then my advantage would be that I have no training. It's that I'm a blank piece of paper. I have more space on that piece of paper to draw more things. Now, I'm taking advantage of this opportunity to take some of the outlines and set a foundation on the blank paper. Being a blank piece of paper is my strength as well as my shortcoming."
In my opinion, though he's only 19 years old that time, he already seen the glass as half full, describing his optimism.
In the same year, he was picked by the producer of the original and current remake of Meteor Garden, Angie Chai to play the titular role as Dao Ming Si. But it was not one direct decision. Angie Chai has dilemma when it comes to a decision. The main requirement was all the boys should have certain height (A/N: 185cm) and he was the shortest among the other member of F4 (Connor and Caesar were both 186 cm and Darren was 184 cm). Dylan was "only" 183cm in height. I found it funny to see them comparing legs length.
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On the other hand, Angie was also contemplating whether to choose one with good acting skills or one with good looks. When she saw Dylan, she decided to choose the good-looking one. It seems like his good looks was his lucky card. He was selected from 30 thousands candidates from various universities in Taipei, Hong Kong, Singapore and Los Angeles (I really don't know whether this info is exaggerating or not, but if that what was happened, it surely surreal)
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But it was not just that, Dylan realized he has to find way to prove himself.
"But I feel that I was working hard and learning on the set, step by step, I believe she can see that. When we wrapped up filming, I feel that she watched me grow and improved."
That statement answered what Angie Chai thought about him being Dao Ming Si "He has a strong aura, and his eyes are also fierce and speak ."
She considered that Dylan was very fitting for playing the role of the F4 gang leader. Dylan was able to appear convincing even though he was still very young and had no acting experience.
And yes, though Meteor Garden remake received mixed reviews, but for sure the role of Dao Ming Si has propelled him to international stardom. I may say, for someone with no acting background, he almost perfectly nailed his role.
This will be end of the story about his journey. He already entered the Hall of Fame. Then another question bothers me, would his package be enough to make him a good and award-winning actor? Would his name becoming a guarantee for great movies? How long can he stay in this business? My next writing will be on what is in his package. His appearance, his talents and his personality, which I think could be strong points of being a great actor.
These are what I had in mind when I looked at his pictures. I write so I can share what I see through my heart, my personal point of view and my own analysis.
The biggest challenge is language. I have zero understanding on Mandarin. I am surely depending on English articles and English subbed videos. Therefore, I give my special thanks to wanghediarchive; DylanWang Daily; Merrygoround777 Wei and WANGHEDL subs for their English subbed videos, for I can get more information about Dylan Wang.
All writing materials used in this blog including pictures and videos are belongs to their rightful owners. No copyright infringement intended.
