LayarHijau.com — On March 21, 2025, a post from the Weibo account of the Chinese media outlet 大象新闻 (Elephant News) became trending and ignited both support and criticism among users. The post contained statements from Zhao Liying regarding her character in the film "We Girls."
The debate arose after Zhao Liying shared a screenshot of the media post along with the comment, “No interview, fake news.” In their post, Elephant News stated, “Zhao Liying and Gao Yuexiang (the character portrayed by Zhao Liying) have a very high degree of compatibility. On March 19, the film 'We Girls' released a creative special titled 'Kindness of the Edge.' Star @赵丽颖 mentioned that she gained insights into the angular and unique kindness of the character Gao Yuexiang. 'No matter how difficult life is, she still does not give up her desire to survive, demonstrating the strength of the fate of a small person.'"
The claims made by Elephant News led many netizens to feel that the media outlet had misinterpreted or distorted Zhao Liying's actual statements, prompting criticism of the post. Shortly thereafter, the media outlet uploaded a video interview with Zhao Liying featuring updated captions.
“On March 19, the film 'We Girls' released a special feature about the making of 'The Edge of Kindness.' While introducing the film, Zuo Yi, the producer of 'Towards the Sun·Flowers,' stated that the movie tells the story of a kind-hearted 'bad girl,' Gao Yuexiang, and her sisters who are reborn in the sunlight after being released from prison. Among them, star @赵丽颖 appeared in an interview. When discussing the character Gao Yuexiang, Zhao Liying said: 'No matter how difficult her life is, she still does not give up her desire to survive, showing the strength of the fate of a small person,'” the media wrote.
It appears that the media outlet also deleted the controversial post referenced by Zhao Liying. However, the revisions still received criticism from several netizens regarding the statement written in the earlier caption. The disputed statement claimed, “Star @赵丽颖 said that she gained insights into the angular and unique kindness of the character Gao Yuexiang.”
Some netizens argued that in the included video, Zhao Liying did not say that. Thus, even though she was interviewed by Elephant News, the statement was not made.
The director of "We Girls," Feng Xiaogang, released a statement responding to the controversy. He clarified that the statement in question was indeed not made by Zhao Liying during her interview with the media.
“However, the statement originated from other behind-the-scenes staff in the special production feature released by the film company on March 19. The filmmakers have not accepted any media interviews,” he wrote.
He continued, “After this incident, we have actively communicated with all parties to clarify the cause of the situation and to resolve any misunderstandings.”
The film "We Girls" is scheduled to be released on April 4, 2025. In the film, Zhao Liying's character, Gao Yuexiang, is imprisoned for committing a crime to purchase a cochlear implant worth 200,000 yuan for her daughter. However, through this experience, she meets Hei Mei, Deng Hong, Hu Ping, and Guo Ai Me. Despite their differing personalities, they all share an attitude of "fighting life head-on." They refuse to admit defeat and reject their fate, supporting each other throughout their journey as they face the challenges of destiny and strive to live toward the sun.