'Medical miracle': Chinese actor re-does cosmetic surgeries, now a legit heartthrob

Cosmetic surgeries can be risky — botched ones have left some celebrities arguably less attractive, disfigured, or even dead.

For Chinese actor Lin Haoyang, however, it got him first brickbats and later, newfound fans. 

According to media reports, the 29-year-old — who went by the name Liao Jinfeng previously — has had cosmetic surgeries since he was in school.

He went on to play the snake immortal Lord Pu Chi in the popular 2018 drama Ashes of Love, but his unusual sharp chin and large eyes left some to call him a shejingnan, translated literally as snake spirit man. 

Following criticism of his looks from viewers, he underwent further surgery and cleansed his social media accounts of pictures and videos of himself.

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He uploaded photos of his metamorphosis and became a hot topic on Chinese media platforms due to his new 'au naturale' handsomeness. Netizens are now praising his surgeon's skills and his brand new face.

One implied his heavily doctored face has now become one that looks naturally attractive. Another proclaimed it a "medical miracle", while others jokingly stated that Haoyang is Jinfeng version "2.0".

Delving deeper into his past in a Weibo post on Wednesday (March 23), Haoyang gave insight into his life after Ashes of Love.

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"I felt apprehensive when I trended these last few days but I'm thankful for everyone's attention. It's recognition of my long-time efforts to adjust myself," he said. 

He admitted he received a lot of criticism after the drama and he constantly "adjusted and improved" on himself while digging himself out from under his collapsing mental state.

"I'm very happy I've not given up on myself, and I'm very grateful for the praise," he said, calling the latest round of negative comments "accurate" and "meaningful".

"Those who have experienced the rain will want to hold out their umbrellas for others... For me, this isn't just a change in appearance, but also spiritual growth."

Although he doesn't encourage others to go for cosmetic surgery, he added that people "must have the courage to face the world at all times".

"I'm actually pretty ordinary, if I can, so can you," Haoyang said. 

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khooyihang@asiaone.com