# Zhang Ruonan

Zhang Ruonan (Chinese: 章若楠, born 14 November 1996) is a Chinese actress. She is known for her roles in the films Cry Me a Sad River (2018), My Love (2021), and Love Life Light (2023), as well as the television series The First Frost (2025).

## Early life

Zhang was born in Wenzhou, Zhejiang. She completed her primary education in Shijiazhuang, where her parents were employed.
In 2015, Zhang began attending university in Hangzhou. As a student, she frequently shared photos of herself on Weibo. Encouraged by a classmate, she participated in a campus beauty contest by submitting a photo and placed among the top 30 finalists. This achievement opened the door to modeling opportunities.

## Career

In 2017, Zhang received a private message from the official Weibo account of the anti-school violence film Cry Me a Sad River, inviting her to star in the project. Initially hesitant, Zhang struggled with the decision to accept the role. Noticing her delayed response, the production team contacted her through mutual friends. Eventually, she agreed to join the film and portrayed Gu Senxi's twin sister, Gu Senxiang—a gentle and kind character who tragically falls to her death after being bullied by a rogue hired by Tang Xiaomi. The film marked Zhang's debut as a solo lead and was released nationwide on 21 September 2018.
In 2018, Zhang made her acting debut as Gu Senxiang in the melodrama film Cry Me a Sad River, directed by Guo Jingming. In the same year, she made her small-screen debut in the romance drama Everyone Wants to Meet You, produced by Zhao Wei.
In 2019, Zhang starred in her first historical drama, Love is All, playing the role of a female detective. That same year, she reunited with Guo Jingming in the fantasy romance film The End of Endless Love.
In 2020, the urban emotional drama Everyone Wants to Meet You was launched on IQiyi. In the series, Zhang plays the sunny girl Luo Xi, who helps Zhang Huan, a career-driven man, relieve his headache symptoms. The same year, Zhang starred in the romantic light comedy Love Is All, which was released on Youku. She portrayed Tan Lingyin, a playful and charming storybook writer and county government official. Zhang participated in the realistic short film College Entrance Examination 2020, broadcast during Hunan Satellite TV's "2020 National Day Gift · Hunan Satellite TV Blue Moon Mid-Autumn Festival Night." In the film, she played a senior high school student striving to achieve her dreams. On December 4, the urban fantasy movie The End of Endless Love was released nationwide. Zhang played Ji Ze, a folk song singer suffering from depression. The film's box office exceeded 200 million yuan on the fifth day of its release. Zhang and Wei Daxun performed the song "Diary of Love" during Hunan Satellite TV's Pinduoduo 12.12 Super Fighting Night.
In 2021, the army-themed drama The Glory of Youth was jointly broadcast on Zhejiang Satellite TV and Jiangsu Satellite TV. In the series, Zhang played Liang Nuo, Xia Zhuo's college classmate. The same year, the urban emotional youth film My Love, co-starring Xu Guanghan, was released. Zhang portrayed You Yongci, a character struggling with insecurity due to a broken family. The revolutionary historical film The Pioneer, directed by Xu Zhanxiong, was released that year. Zhang played Li Dazhao's daughter, Li Xinghua. On August 18, the female-themed youth emotional drama Be Yourself premiered, with Zhang playing Huangfu Shumin, a girl with "Princess syndrome" raised in a pampered environment. The urban emotional inspirational drama Psychologist, in which Zhang starred, was broadcast on Youku.
In 2022, Zhang participated in the outdoor trendy camping reality show Let's Camp Together, jointly produced by iQiyi, Caviar, and Jiangsu Satellite TV, and co-produced by iQIYI Encore Studio. The same year, the period drama Defying the Storm, starring Hu Yitian and Wang Jinsong, was broadcast on Hunan Satellite TV. In the series, Zhang portrayed Meng Haitang, a character born into a scholarly family. On August 12, she participated in season 8 of the celebrity reality show Chinese Restaurant, which was broadcast on Hunan Satellite TV.
In 2023, the youth love movie All These Years, in which Zhang participated, was released. The same year, the urban romantic comedy My Boss, starring Zhang, premiered. On May 20, the romantic comedy film Too Beautiful to Lie was released. The television series A Date with the Future, starring Zhang and William Chan, was broadcast on Jiangsu Satellite TV.
In 2025, Zhang's series The First Frost alongside Bai Jingting, an adaptation of the romantic novel by Zhu Yi, which before its release collected over 8M reservations with its first look in the upcoming Youku romantic C-drama list, and was ranked 1st in "Top 5 Popularity List". It set record of fastest 10k popularity index in Youku, within 2 days of its release and trended in "Top 3 Television Show" in Netflix within a week.

## Social activities

In May 2019, Zhang participated in the "Youth Season Entering Campus" series of activities organized by China Movie Report. She visited China Agricultural University, learned about the environmental protection efforts of the teachers and students there, and advocated for environmental protection alongside the students. In June, Zhang supported the public welfare initiative "Yi Hu Bai Xing", raising awareness about respiratory health and the plight of pneumoconiosis patients.

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | English title | Chinese title | Role | Notes |
| 2018 | Cry Me a Sad River | 悲伤逆流成河 | Gu Senxiang | |
| 2020 | The End of Endless Love | 如果声音不记得 | Ji Ze | |
| 2021 | My Love | 你的婚礼 | You Yongci | |
| 2021 | The Pioneer | 革命者 | Li Xinghua | |
| 2023 | All These Years | 这么多年 | Ling Xiangqian | |
| 2023 | My Youth and I | 我和我的青春 | Xu Xin | Internet film |
| 2023 | Too Beautiful To Lie | 请别相信她 | Bai Na | |
| 2023 | Love Life Light | 照明商店 | Xu Nian | |

### Television series

| Year | English title | Chinese title | Role | Notes |
| 2020 | Everyone Wants to Meet You | 谁都渴望遇见你 | Luo Xi | |
| 2020 | Love is All | 师爷请自重 | Tang Lingyin | |
| 2021 | The Glory of Youth | 号手就位 | Liang Nuo | |
| 2021 | Be Yourself | 机智的上半场 | Huangfu Shumin | |
| 2021 | Psychologist | 女心理师 | You Na | Guest appearance |
| 2022 | Defying the Storm | 凭栏一片风云起 | Meng Haitang | |
| 2023 | A Date with the Future | 照亮你 | Xu Lai | |
| 2023 | Love is Panacea | 治愈系恋人 | Su Weian | |
| 2024 | My Boss | 你也有今天 | Cheng Yao | |
| 2024 | Born to be the One | 凡人歌 | Li Xiaoyue | |
| 2025 | The First Frost | 难哄 | Wen Yifan | |
| TBA | Fox Spirit Matchmaker: Love in Pavilion | 淮水竹亭 | Yang Yan | |
| TBA | Zhan Zhao Adventures | 雨霖铃 | Huo Linglong | |

## Discography
### Soundtrack appearances

| Year | Title | Album | Artist | Ref. |
| 2025 | "Everything" | The First Frost OST | Zhang Ruonan & Zhang Miaoyi | |

### Music video appearances

| Year | Title | Artist | Channel |
| 2025 | "Willful" The First Frost | Mayday | B'in Music |

## Awards and nominations

| Year | Award | Category | Nominated work | Result |
| 2019 | 2019 iFeng Fashion Choice Awards | Fashion Youth Trend Award | — | Won |
| 2020 | 28th Life Style Gala | Most Promising Artist | — | Won |
| 2021 | 2021 Weibo Movie Night | Promising Performer of the Year | — | Won |
| 2023 | 2023 Tencent Video All Star Night | Promising Drama Performer of the Year | A Date with the Future | Won |