Frequent exposure inevitably leads to backlash—no surprise there. Yet, so many celebrities seem unaware of this, hitting the trending lists with absurd topics: "XXX's pink sweatshirt" or "XX's toothbrush bristles have worn out," leaving everyone puzzled about how these topics even made it.
But in reality, most celebrities, managers, and companies understand this very well. Excessive exposure does generate backlash, sure, but that very backlash keeps them in demand. Even negative sentiment is data, a measurable currency that translates to revenue.
Zoe was worried about overexposure, but these trending topics weren't her doing—they just kept coming, seemingly by pure chance. Once she hitched onto Song's wave of popularity, the exposure didn't stop.
At least the online negativity remained online; Zoe still had plenty of real work to do, such as filming this show in Hainan. Her popularity kept climbing, and the show's producers were thrilled. The director greeted her with an enthusiastic "Ms. Zoe," which made her laugh nervously as she quickly waved it off. "Please, just call me Zoe," she said. "I'm no teacher!"
Unexpectedly, she ran into Yan again. It was like a twist of fate. The last time they'd filmed together, things had turned tense between them—no need for words, they both knew they were now rivals.
It was a silly feud, honestly. Yan had a conflict with Qing, and because Zoe didn't take Yan's side, Yan had "accidentally" kicked her during one of the games. Zoe had been irritated; Yan probably thought she could get away with it because Zoe was just a newcomer, a tabloid regular who'd soon fade away. Who could've guessed they'd be thrown together on set again so soon?
This time, Zoe was invited last minute when the producers noticed her rising popularity. The show was about cultural legends, where celebrities role-played to complete storyline tasks.
The night before filming, Zoe met with her segment producer to discuss the next day's plans. She was surprised when the producer explained the storyline: this episode cast her in a leading role, essentially making her the female lead of the episode.
"Wait, how did this happen?" Zoe asked Lan, astonished. "Has this show ever given a guest star the lead role? Usually, the spotlight's spread across everyone unless a guest is way more established than the rest, so one person isn't the clear focus."
Lan was equally surprised. "When the director reached out, they didn't say anything about giving you this special role. Maybe they saw how you're trending lately and decided to make adjustments to the script?"