Zhao Liying and Huang Xiaoming’s new drama stirs up controversy, large group of extras speak out to demand payment.

Recently, it was reported that the new drama “City Makers”, starring Zhao Liying and Huang Xiaoming, had wrapped up filming but allegedly owed a large group of extras four to five months of wages. The whistleblower specifically brought up the topic of Zhao Liying and Huang Xiaoming in hopes of drawing attention to the issue.

According to reports from mainland media, right after the filming of “City Makers” was completed, there were revelations from the film and television team that the drama crew owed wages to the extras, leading to two consecutive blog posts demanding payment. It was claimed in the posts that initially, the “City Makers” crew had recruited them to perform roles, including two bands and lion dance performers, but the wages had been left unpaid for four to five months, prompting the team to publicly expose the unethical behavior of the crew in withholding wages.

To attract more attention, the whistleblower deliberately linked Zhao Liying, Huang Xiaoming, and the wage payment issue together.

In fact, starting from the beginning of the year, there have been posts on social media from extras stating that the “City Makers” crew had not paid them for their performances. In January this year, someone posted demanding payment, mentioning that it was already Chinese New Year and yet the extras hadn’t received their wages. Some extras even discussed reporting to the police in their group chat, but it seemed to have little effect. There were also cases where individuals went to the drama crew to ask for their money, but the staff kept delaying, and as of early April, the extras had still not been paid.

Reports indicate that some extras are students, working ten hours a day for a daily wage of only 70 yuan (RMB), with an overtime pay of 10 yuan per hour, which is lower than the minimum hourly wage standard in Fujian province where “City Makers” was filmed.

Furthermore, some extras criticized the harsh working conditions on set, mentioning starting work in the early hours of a cold winter morning, wearing summer costumes in short sleeves, shivering in the cold wind while waiting. Some individuals who were owed wages posted screenshots of their payment reminders, but there has been no response from the “City Makers” crew, and neither the director nor the actors have shown any concern.

Despite some netizens suggesting not to solely rely on one side of the story and hoping for the production crew to clarify matters, the official account of the crew remained silent, causing some netizens to believe the claims made by the extras.

However, some netizens expressed doubts about the authenticity of the claims due to the lack of conclusive evidence presented by the whistleblower, showing skepticism towards the wage payment issue and suggesting that it could be a case of intermediaries withholding payments, which may not have a direct link to the drama crew, let alone Zhao Liying and Huang Xiaoming.

Additionally, some netizens speculated that it could be due to chaotic management within the crew that led to the wage delays. Even if the issue is not directly related to the actors, as the lead performers, Zhao Liying and Huang Xiaoming should speak out to urge a resolution to prevent any negative impact on the drama series and the reputation of the main cast.