Well, if you’ve been wondering why they haven’t started filming Joy of Life 庆余年’s second installment as early as they possibly could when it became apparent they had a hit on their hands, I guess this is our answer. Joy of Life star Zhang Ruoyun has been very busy filming his new wuxia Sword Snow Stride 雪中悍刀行 which broke ground last January. Based on the novel of the same name by Feng Huo Xi Zhu Hou, Zhang Ruoyun plays Xu Fengnian, the son of the Bei Liang king. And as with any hero worth his salt, the drama takes us through Fengnian’s long road of trials and tribulations he had to overcome before becoming king.
Not to over hype the drama or anything but judging from the long list of names and notables bringing life to the story of Xu Fengnian’s journey, I’ve no doubt this is going to be one big production. For one thing, it’s worth mentioning that Wang Juan, the person responsible for the screenplay of both Joy of Life and Young Blood, both of which were good enough to merit a second season, has also been tapped to write the script for this drama.
And then there’s the cast – starting off the roll call of names, the drama also stars Hu Jun, Teresa Li Gengxi, Qiu Xinzhi, Tian Xiaojie, Wang Tianchen and Yu Xiaowei. It will also feature Du Yuming, Liu Tianzuo, Shen Baoping, Tao Hai, Wang Tonghui, Xuan Yan, Yang Haoyu, Yu Yang, Zhang Tianyang, Ding Xiaoying, Tong Yan and Liao Huijia in supporting roles with appearances from Rong Zishan, Crystal Zhang Tianai, Wang Xiaochen, Meng Ziyi, Sui Junbo and Zhang Yishang.
Speaking of the drama’s cast, it’s going to be a mini reunion of sorts for Joy of Life alums in this drama too. Like My Heroic Husband 赘婿 which stars Guo Qilin and Song Yi together with Gao Shuguang, Hai Yitian and extra cameos from Zhang Ruoyun himself and Tian Yu, you’ll be seeing some familiar JoL faces in Sword Snow Stride. Starting with Liu Duanduan who played second prince Li Cheng Ze, actress Li Chun who played a spy from Northern Qi and young actor Han Haolin who portrayed the young Fan Xian, all three have also signed on to feature in Zhang Ruoyun’s new wuxia drama.
