In the year 2023, supporting actors such as Gao Qiqiang, Ye Bingshang, and Meng Yanchen made a comeback with their outstanding charisma, heralding the year of supporting roles in cdramas. A year later, this phenomenon not only did not fade away but intensified. In the currently popular drama “In Blossom,” Zheng Hehuizi, in a guest appearance, overshadowed the female lead Ju Jingyi in just two episodes, sparking discussions among viewers.
Even though Zheng Hehuizi personally responded, urging netizens not to create opposition between female actors, it did not quell the audience's desire to resist the mainstream and assert their own voices. From supporting roles stepping up to supporting roles stealing the show, what kind of emotional journey do audiences go through? How will it affect the creative direction of the entire film and television industry?
The Ultimate Characterization of Supporting Roles
For a long time, many people have attributed the unexpected rise of supporting roles to a kind of mystery. However, even in the realm of the mysterious, upon deeper examination, one can find underlying reasons. Firstly, from the perspective of creative norms, it is easier to shape an outstanding supporting role than a main character. The protagonist, as the name suggests, occupies the main part of a work, requiring a well-developed character arc that is logical and substantial. For screenwriters with average skills, a slight oversight can lead to a weak portrayal.
On the other hand, supporting roles, constrained by screen time, often have clear and distinct labels, with singular conflicts, making their characterization less complex. They can make a brief appearance, but as long as the character is engaging, viewers will automatically fill in depth to the role, correcting any imperfections. Thus, supporting roles naturally rise up.
For example, in “My Journey to You,” Guo Jingming's creative ability struggled to shape the two main characters adequately, while the supporting roles were crafted with extreme detail and tension. Even Madame Lan, who appeared for only a few minutes, was considered effectively portrayed by netizens.
Secondly, the creation of main characters inherently comes with undeniable constraints. As the protagonists, the characters must adhere to mainstream values and avoid straying too far from the norm, presenting a somewhat bland and conventional image that may not resonate with audiences seeking a more emotionally engaging experience.
Supporting roles, on the other hand, have a broader and less restricted creative space. They can have obvious character flaws, even behaving recklessly and amorally. In a reality increasingly suffocating and everyone caught in the whirlpool of competition, supporting characters who are internally chaotic, rebellious, and unapologetic become a much-needed source of excitement for viewers. For instance, in “Till the End of the Moon,” Ye Bingshang's character, shaped by a tragic history of bullying, harbors a twisted seed in her heart. Each of her misguided choices is a struggle against an unfair fate, resonating with viewers who both despise and applaud her actions of self-awareness.
Thirdly, the appeal of couple is an indispensable element in the formula for supporting roles to gain popularity. In a time when young audiences are obsessed with sugar-coated interactions, the presence or absence of couple chemistry between characters has become increasingly crucial. Even average works see it as a lifeline, while higher-quality productions aim to break into the spotlight through it.
Similarly, in “In Blossom,” viewers seem to prefer the love between Zheng Hehuizi's version of Yang Caiwei and the male lead over the official pairing after the face swap. Lastly, the ability of actors to bring characters to life is crucial for supporting roles to shine, especially when the main actor fails to accurately portray the character. The visible contrast in performance skills allows the audience to invest more enthusiasm in the supporting roles.
Supporting Roles is Viewers' New Choice
Many times, the presence of supporting roles on stage does not pose any hindrance to the main characters. However, from last year to this year, a trend has become increasingly apparent. The process of supporting roles rising up seems to have difficulty proceeding in a peaceful manner. Whether active or passive, it is inevitably filled with voices of criticize and praise.
In the eyes of the main character's fans, these daring supporting roles who dare to challenge the status quo are definitely taking a proactive stance, flooding the internet with criticism in an attempt to rise to the top. However, with the weak individual strength of supporting roles, it is difficult to reverse the tide. The key to all this is the changing mentality of current audiences and netizens.
In the era of mobile internet, audiences have a more diverse and enriched range of entertainment choices, with their influence growing day by day. This is reflected in the aspect of dramas, where there is a refusal to accept the forced promotion by fan circles and capital, only to embrace works and characters that provide emotional value. In this mindset, possessing top-tier popularity but lacking in professional abilities, the main characters become the royalty in a talent show, supported by fans and capital, yet finding it difficult to win the favor of the general public.
Supporting roles are those elected by the audience's discerning eye, not necessarily because of their outstanding qualities, but because they have become a pawn used by netizens to resist the imposition of content by the industry and the audience.
Just as netizens may not necessarily think that one's acting skills have reached the pinnacle, they find it increasingly intolerable to witness the unchanging, soulless idol-style acting of another over the years. Looking back at the numerous incidents that have occurred from last year to today, the underlying emotional journey of the audience probably resonates with this sentiment.
In a broader perspective, the rise of supporting roles is actually a transformation and upgrade within the industry, forcing the entrenched mindset of film and television production to face new challenges. For production teams, how to deal with the sudden rise of supporting roles has become a new area of study. While an influx of popularity is undoubtedly beneficial, sometimes the heat surrounding supporting roles may not necessarily translate into positive reviews for the drama.
Poor marketing could lead to a situation where praise goes to the supporting roles, while criticism falls upon the drama. Furthermore, promoting supporting roles can easily trigger dissatisfaction among the main characters and their fans, potentially sparking conflicts that leave a negative impression on the audience and harm the overall work. Finding ways to attract viewership without losing control of the situation in the future is a subject worth exploring for platforms and production teams.
For actors, the most lasting impact brought about by the presence of supporting roles is perhaps the shift in mindset among some mid-tier actors who were originally inclined to take on leading roles in A-list dramas. They may now prefer to play supporting roles in S+ dramas, even if they are top-billed actors. If they encounter sufficiently complex and vivid characters in top-notch productions, they would willingly take on supporting roles.
It is worth mentioning that even though playing the main character has become a high-risk task at times, they remain the irreplaceable core of the work. If a drama fails to shine a light on both the main characters and supporting roles simultaneously, it indirectly indicates that the content of the drama does not align with the aesthetic preferences of mainstream audiences today. Viewers can only rely on their imagination to fill in the gaps left by supporting roles, trying to reshape the story into something they prefer, which fundamentally differs from the healthy concept of diversity of talents.
Taking the hit costume dramas “Lost You Forever” and “Mysterious Lotus Casebook” from last year as examples, not only was the spotlight not overshadowed by the main characters, but the dividends were not absorbed solely by a single supporting role. Each character exhibited their own shining points of humanity and powerful vitality, truly achieving an all-cast on stage scenario. In the future, as long as such high-quality works continue to emerge, I believe the entire industry will move towards a more healthy development track.