LayarHijau.com—The popular Chinese drama "The White Olive Tree," which tells a romance set against the backdrop of war, has managed to attract over 5 million viewers in its debut week across 10 countries, including the United States, Canada, Australia, Japan, and South Korea.
Produced by Chengdu Culture & Tourism Development Group Ltd, the drama began streaming on iQiyi earlier this month with a gripping opening: a female journalist accidentally steps on a landmine while covering a story in a war-torn country. Fortunately, the protagonist, played by actress Liang Jie, is rescued by a Chinese explosives expert, portrayed by actor Chen Zheyuan, who is volunteering on the battlefield. As they face a series of trials and challenges together, their feelings for each other gradually deepen.
The drama consists of 38 episodes and has been released with subtitles in various languages, including English, Spanish, Portuguese, Korean, Arabic, and Japanese. Additionally, there are two foreign dubbed versions in Thai and Vietnamese, according to China Daily.
Driven by its online popularity, evidenced by over 10 billion clicks on major social media platforms like Sina Weibo and Douyin, the filming locations in several cities in Sichuan province, Southern China, including Chengdu, Leshan, and Zigong, have become popular tourist destinations.
The main filming location, the Red House Film Base in Leshan, which was previously used by a hydropower construction company and redesigned to depict the "foreign country" in the series, has emerged as a new tourist attraction, experiencing a 206.98 percent increase in visitor numbers compared to last year during the Spring Festival holiday.
On TikTok's Thai and English platforms, the show has garnered over 200 million views on related topics, while its related videos on Facebook and Instagram have amassed over 16 million clicks, according to the producers.
Zhao Bin, the chief producer of the show and chairman of Chengdu Tianfu Kuanzhai Culture Communication Ltd, expressed their efforts to adapt a Chinese narrative to gain recognition abroad and resonate with global audiences.