According to Chinese media, last month, director Wang Jing publicly commented that Xiao Zheng had "too narrow acting range, often playing inappropriate roles". This statement created a wave of fierce debate.
Audiences have self-compiled a list of Tieu Chien's works in recent years: from the first-person film "Tran Tinh Voan", the time film "The Sea in Dreams", the power-themed film "Tang Hai Truyen", to the image of a small character in the war film "Dak Nhan Chuan Yeu", and even the upcoming spy work "Diep Bao Khong Quyen"... refuting Vuong Tinh's comments.
This debate made Tieu Chien's career in 2025 the focus. Recently, Tieu Chien was honored by a reputable media outlet as "breakthrough film actor of the year".
Tieu Chien is praised for his ability to transform roles in contrast: at the beginning of the year with the image of martial arts hero Quach Tinh in "The Legend of the Condor Heroes", at the end of the year he is the cooler of the simple mechanical workshop in "Dac Nhan Chuan Mai".
Experts commented that in the movie "Dac Nhan can che", Tieu Chien completely erased his "idole" image, becoming a tanned, rough, shy but masculine man. He speaks Nanjing dialect fluently and truthfully, is a small ordinary person, close to the chaos of war.
From external image to eyes, dialogue and psychological developments, Tieu Chien has successfully broken the "image burden", fully transforming into the character, making the audience sympathize.
These difficulties and the willpower of ordinary people exude a true strength and touch people's hearts, creating a true transformation," Sohu Movie commented on Tieu Chien in "Dac Nhan Chang Ye".
In the television segment, Tieu Chien also has outstanding achievements. The historical drama "Tang Hai Truyen" entered the Top 10 highest-rated TV series on CCTV-8 in 2025, ranking 7th with 1.28%.
The rankings of reputable platforms including Van Hop, Dang Thap, Maoyan have announced "Tang Hai Truyen" as the "champion" movie in terms of views and broadcast effectiveness in 2025. On Douban, "Tang Hai Truyen" received an average rating of 8.4 points from audiences.
The character Tang Hai played by Tieu Chien has a large acting range: from his cold, initially restrained appearance when disguised, to his crazy revenge plan in the middle, and finally the silent despair at the end of the film.
Veteran actor Hoang Giac - who co-starred with Tieu Chien - revealed in an interview that Tieu Chien almost always discusses dialogues and movement details on set with the director.
Director Zheng Xiaolong also publicly praised the actor many times for being both serious and diligent, saying that Xiao Zheng had successfully transformed from an idol star to a talented actor.
The film not only caused a stir domestically but was also sold to 190 countries and territories, reaching a score of 9.5 on IMDb.
Looking back at Tieu Chien's career, he is not an actor who was formally trained in acting from the beginning. In 2015, Tieu Chien was still a design student at Chongqing University of Industry and Trade, stepping into showbiz thanks to the talent search program "X Fire".
In 2019, the explosion of the romantic film "Tran Tinh Muan" made Tieu Chien the leading idol star, but the fierce controversies afterwards also pushed him into a period of silence.
During that period, Tieu Chien chose to operate quietly, switching to the stage to train himself. For 3 consecutive years participating in the play "Nhu mong chi mong" with a total of 72 performances, this experience was considered by experts as a key stage to help his brother practice acting and complete his transformation.
Xiao Zhan has publicly stated many times that he "refuses to repeat himself", persistent in finding a balance between maintaining a fan base and pursuing art.
