Bulgari Says Goodbye, Kris Wu, Hello, Yang Yang

After severing ties with scandal-ridden Kris Wu, Bulgari has appointed Chinese actor Yang Yang as its new spokesperson.

What Happened: Seems like luxury can’t resist a pretty face — or the millions of followers attached to it. After cutting ties with long-time ambassador Kris Wu in July over alleged rape allegations, Bulgari has now appointed Chinese actor Yang Yang as its new spokesperson. The 30-year-old, who already represents Dunhill and Hogan, starred in one of the most popular Chinese dramas of the year, You Are My Glory, which has accumulated over 2.5 billion views since it was released in late July. The LVMH-owned jeweler is riding this high as well, with the announcement post receiving over 20,000 comments on Weibo.

The Jing Take: In light of China’s recent crackdown on celebrities, choosing the right ambassador has become a daunting task. Over the past few months, authorities have taken measures to curb the influence of the rich and famous, from removing popularity rankings and regulating fan merchandise sales to recently banning “effeminate men and other abnormal esthetics” on TV.

As such, Bulgari should keep a close eye on its newest appointment. Although Yang Yang does not fall under this vague (and derogatory) label of “effeminate” — often depicted as the strong, brooding male lead in action and sports dramas — he commands a passionate fanbase that could stir trouble. In fact, when the final six episodes of You Are My Glory dropped on Tencent Video, netizens ended up crashing the site and caused the glitch to soar to the top of Weibo’s hot searches with almost 20 million mentions. Continue to read the full article here