Tibetan herder known as ‘China’s most handsome man’ sues after criticism he is untalented and just pretty
- Dingzhen Zhenzhu shot to fame in November 2020 when a seven-second clip showing his ‘innocent smile’ and ‘pretty face’ went viral
- Soon there was a backlash, primarily from men, who mocked placing so much value on looks, while others said he was not that handsome
Once dubbed “China’s most handsome man”, Dingzhen Zhenzhu is now often used as a reference to anyone who is considered talentless but good-looking.
His name became a derogatory term among some social media users. For example, Wang Bingbing, a famous state media reporter, is often pejoratively called the “Dingzhen Who Interviews”, while Will Liu Keng-hung, a Taiwanese singer and fitness trainer who recently found online fame with his videos in China, is referred to as “Exercising Dingzhen” or “Dingzhen Who Exercises”.
Dingzhen, now aged 21, has issued a lawyer’s letter via his agent on Sunday warning people against making defamatory comments about him, including those containing “insulting, terrifying, vulgar, or vilifying words, pictures and audio”.
A tourism ambassador for his hometown of Litang, in Sichuan province, southwestern China, Dingzhen has already launched legal action against some of those who have made comments about him and warned others to stop posting similar remarks, according to the letter.
“Never dare do anything evil no matter how trivial you think it is,” said a statement from Dingzhen attached to the letter.
Dingzhen shot to fame in November 2020 when a seven-second clip showing his “innocent smile” and “pretty face” went viral. He soon became China’s biggest online influencer and was given an ambassador job by the local government of Litang, one of the most poverty-stricken counties in China.