# Xu Kai

Xu Kai (simplified Chinese: 许凯; traditional Chinese: 許凱; pinyin: Xǔ Kǎi, born 5 March 1995), also known by his nickname "Soso", is a Chinese actor and model. He is known for his roles in television series Story of Yanxi Palace, The Legends, Arsenal Military Academy: AMA, Falling Into Your Smile, Royal Feast, She and Her Perfect Husband, Best Choice Ever and As Beautiful As You. He was listed in Forbes China's "Top Elites Under 30" list in 2019.

## Early life

Xu Kai was born on 5 March 1995 in Shenzhen, Guangdong, China. He studied finance at South China Agricultural University. Later, he voluntarily quit his education during freshman year to work as a model, citing family reasons. He has an elder brother. He bought a house in Shenzhen for his family when he was around 20 years old. His hobbies include playing basketball, skating, and bike riding. He began acting in the year 2016 as he had signed a deal with Huanyu film entertainment production firm.

## Career
### Beginning

In 2013, Kai started his career as a model by winning the 1st place in the print ads/ graphic category at "China's International Model Contest" held in Guangzhou. Later, he noticed limitations within the industry, hence explored for more opportunities. In 2016, he entered the entertainment industry after signing a contract with Huanyu Film, a company owned by Yu Zheng He was cast in the series Zhaoge, where he played "Yang Jian".

### 2018–present: Rising popularity

In 2018, Xu Kai starred in the historical romance drama Untouchable Lovers. Later, he starred in a palace drama Story of Yanxi Palace, where he gained mainstream recognition for his role of "Fucha Fuheng". The drama was enormously popular in China and international markets. The series trended at No. 1 and was most searched drama globally.
In 2019, Kai made his big-screen debut in the romance film Autumn Fairy Tale. He played his first lead role as "Li Chenlan" in historical drama The Legends. his role as a loyal and reticent demon prince in the series received positive responses and a surge in his popularity. He starred in the youth based military drama Arsenal Military Academy as "Gu Yenzhen". His portrayal of rich playboy earned him the "Best Actor Award" at the "Hengdian Film" and at "TV Festival of China and Singapore’s "StarHub Night of Stars". Later in the same year, he starred in the series Once Upon a Time in Lingjian Mountain, based on the manhua Congqian Youzuo Lingjianshan.
In 2020, Kai starred in the historical fantasy drama Dance of the Sky Empire.
In 2021, Kai starred in the Chinese e-sports romance comedy series Falling Into Your Smile as "Lu Sicheng", which was popular in the international market. He also starred in the Chinese Xianxia fantasy romance series Ancient Love Poetry as "Bai Jue".
In 2022, Kai played lead role of "Zhu Zhanji" in the historical fiction drama Royal Feast, which gained more than 400M in the viewership. He played "Ding Yunqi", in a treasure hunter series Lost in the Kunlun Mountains. Later, he played an innocent soft-spoken "Yang Hua", in a modern drama She and Her Perfect Husband. All the series received decent response.
In February 2023, Xu Kai began filming for his upcoming modern drama titled As Beautiful As You. The drama is based on the Chinese novel "As Beautiful as Beijing" by author "Jiu Yue Xi".

## Endorsements

From 2018 onwards, Xu Kai has collaborated with various luxurious international brands such as Givenchy, Adidas, Versace, Tom Ford, Tiffany & Co., Roger Dubuis, Disney, Ralph Lauren, Bvlgari and Brunello Cucinelli.
Since 2018, Kai has collaborated with the Italian luxury house Fendi. In August 2021, the brand officially announced Xu Kai as its brand ambassador. He also appears in the brand's campaign for Qixi, one of China's local iterations of Valentine's Day, which falls in August.
In October 2021, C. & J. Clark International Ltd, a British international shoe manufacturer, announced Xu Kai as the brand's first spokesperson for Greater China. Later in the same year, the global fashion lifestyle brand Samsonite, announced Kai as its brand ambassador in China.
In May 2022, Kai was cover star for Grazia China Magazine. In December 2022, Kai takes the cover story of Harper's Bazaar China. He also stars in the cover story of Elle Men Fresh China Fall 2020 Issue.
On April 26, 2023, Xu Kai as brand ambassador for Bvlgari attended Avrora Awards Ceremony in Beijing, China.

## Public image

Xu Kai was listed in Forbes China "Top Influential People under 30 years old", for his substantial impact in the entertainment fields. By February 2023, he had more than 20.4M followers on Weibo. He ranked 2nd in "Most Handsome Chinese Idol 2021". He is ranked 2nd in "Best Chinese Actor", "Popular Actor" as per media index and "Most Handsome Chinese Actor 2023". He is "Top 5: Most Famous, Under 30 Chinese Actor" in terms of popularity.

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | English title | Chinese title | Role | Ref. |
| 2019 | Autumn Fairy Tale | 蓝色生死恋 | Han Tai | |

### Television series

| Year | English title | Chinese title | Role | Ref. |
| 2018 | Untouchable Lovers | 凤囚凰 | Shen Yu | support role |
| 2018 | Story of Yanxi Palace | 延禧攻略 | Fucha Fuheng | |
| 2019 | The Legends | 招摇 | Li Chenlan / Mo Qing | |
| 2019 | Arsenal Military Academy | 烈火军校 | Gu Yanzhen | |
| 2019 | Once Upon a Time in Lingjian Mountain | 从前有座灵剑山 | Wang Lu | |
| 2020 | Dance of the Sky Empire | 天舞纪 | Li Xuan | |
| 2021 | Court Lady | 骊歌行 | Sheng Chumu | |
| 2021 | Falling Into Your Smile | 你微笑时很美 | Lu Sicheng | |
| 2021 | Ancient Love Poetry | 千古玦尘 | Bai Jue / Qing Mu / Bo Xuan | |
| 2022 | Royal Feast | 尚食 | Zhu Zhanji | |
| 2022 | She and Her Perfect Husband | 爱的二八定律 | Yang Hua | |
| 2022 | Lost in the Kun Lun Mountains | 迷航昆仑墟 | Ding Yunqi | |
| 2023 | Snow Eagle Lord | 雪鹰领主 | Dongbo Xueying | |
| 2023 | Wonderland of Love | 乐游原 | Li Ni | |
| 2024 | Sword and Fairy 6 | 祈今朝 | Yue Jinzhao / Bian Luohan | |
| 2024 | Best Choice Ever | 承欢记 | Yao Zhiming | |
| 2024 | As Beautiful As You † | 你比星光美丽 | Han Ting | |
Key :
| † | Denotes series that have not yet been released |

## Discography

| Year | English title | Chinese title | Album | Notes | Ref. |
| 2019 | "Entering a Dream" | 入梦 | Arsenal Military Academy OST | with Bai Lu | |
| 2021 | "Soulmate" | 第一默契 | Falling Into Your Smile OST | with Cheng Xiao | |

## Awards and nominations

| Year | Award | Category | Nominated work | Result |
| 2018 | 7th iQiyi All-Star Carnival | Promising Actor Award | — | Won |
| 2018 | 12th Tencent Video Star Awards | DOKI New Force Award | — | Won |
| 2019 | 6th The Actors of China Award Ceremony | Best Actor (Web series) | Arsenal Military Academy | Nominated |
| 2019 | 6th Hengdian Film and TV Festival of China (Wenrong Awards) | Best Actor | Arsenal Military Academy | Won |
| 2019 | StarHub Night of Stars 2019 | Best Actor (China) | Arsenal Military Academy | Won |
| 2019 | Golden Bud - The Fourth Network Film And Television Festival | Best Actor | The Legends, Arsenal Military Academy, Once Upon a Time in Lingjian Mountain | Nominated |
| 2019 | 8th iQiyi All-Star Carnival | Most Popular Drama Actor | — | Won |
| 2019 | 16th Esquire Man At His Best Awards | Television Actor of the Year | — | Won |
| 2019 | Tencent Video All Star Awards | Trendy Figure of the Year | — | Won |
| 2020 | Tencent Video All Star Awards | Most Leap Actor of the Year | — | Won |
| 2020 | 17th Esquire Man At His Best Awards | Breakthrough Artist of the Year | — | Won |