Drama Academy Head Purged! Peng's Circle Impacted? The Truth About Jackson Yee's Score

The head of a so-called star-making academy has suddenly turned himself in. Identical arts exam score sheets matching down to the decimal point have resurfaced. Teacher-student ties lead straight to some of the biggest names in Chinese cinema. And behind it all lies a troubling question. Is this merely an individual disciplinary case or a sign that the very headquarters of China's entertainment industry is on fire? The Hao Rong case goes far beyond a rules violation. It strikes at the core of the regime's soft power, arts, propaganda, and the cultivation of symbolic elites. When the gatekeeper of the entertainment talent pipeline comes under investigation, what's at stake is not just one position, but an entire chain of interests involving money, fame, and political loyalty. The case is especially sensitive as signs point to links with the first lady network, unfolding amid intense turmoil at the top. This is not a simple entertainment scandal. It is a symbolic purge where stage, screen, and politics collide. As the star-training machine begins to shake, the real question is who is making the move and what message is being sent? Let's break it down in today's program. And a quick note, some viewers have said they're not seeing our videos in their feed or receive notifications. To help more people find this content, please like, subscribe, and leave a positive comment below. Thank you for your support. President of China's Central Academy of Drama, Hao Rong, under investigation. According to the Epoch Times, on December 19th, Chinese authorities announced that Hao Rong, Deputy Party Secretary and President of the Central Academy of Drama, is suspected of serious violations of discipline and law. He reportedly turned himself in voluntarily and is now under investigation. Public records show that Hao Rong was born in 1971. He is a member of the Chinese Communist Party, a professor, and a doctoral supervisor. He served as both President and Deputy Party Secretary of the Central Academy of Drama. In addition, he held numerous influential positions, including member of the 14th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, CPPCC, Deputy Director of the Ministry of Education's Steering Committee for Drama, Film, and Television Studies, Vice Chairman of the Beijing Film Association, Vice Chairman of the China Musical Theatre Association, Secretary General of the World Theatre Education Alliance, and President of the Asian Theatre Education Research Center, among others. Hao Rong graduated from the Performance Department of the Central Academy of Drama in 1995. He stayed on as a faculty member at the age of just 24, later completing his graduate studies and earning a master's degree. Over the years, he held a series of positions, including Head of the Speech and Dialogue Department, Deputy Dean, Party Branch Secretary of the Performance Department, Dean of the Performance Department, Assistant President, and Vice President. In November 2018, he was officially appointed President of the Academy. News of Hao Rong's downfall quickly sparked heated discussion online. Some netizens sarcastically remarked that he had truly put into practice the saying, Life is like a stage, and the stage is like life. As of now, reporters from Dahi Daily have noted that Hao Rong's profile has been removed from the Current Leadership section of the Central Academy of Drama's official website. Once known as the Teacher of the Stars, Hao Rong was closely associated with the Academy's famous Class of 1996, which produced many major Chinese film and television stars, including Zhang Zi, Liu Ye, Yuan Quan, Qin Hailu, and Jin Dong. By most accounts, Hao Rong's career progressed smoothly, with a clear and steady rise through the ranks. In mainland China, however, when an official with such an apparently flawless career trajectory ultimately falls from power, it is often believed that deeper backing and more complex forces are involved, almost an iron rule. Hao Rong's decision to turn himself in may therefore point to much deeper underlying reasons. THE BUYING SCORES SCANDAL IN ARTS ADMISSIONS After Hao Rong came under investigation, netizens began revisiting a series of controversies surrounding the Central Academy of Drama in recent years, many of them involving well-known celebrities. The most prominent allegations center on suspected corruption in the Academy's arts entrance examinations. Online sources claim that competition for admission to the performance department at the Central Academy of Drama can be as fierce as 246 applicants for a single spot. Every year, countless hopefuls chase the dream of stardom, fighting for these extremely limited places. Yet the fairness of the admissions process has long been questioned. Beyond rumors of a so-called guaranteed admission fee, reportedly as high as 500,000 yuan, the Academy has also been accused of irregularities after it was discovered that arts exam scores for two consecutive years were suspiciously identical, both during Hao Rong's tenure. Recently, an arts exam score sheet circulated online showing that in 2018, several celebrity candidates took part in the Central Academy of Drama's entrance exam, including Yi Yangqiangxi, Li Landi, Hu Xianqiu, and Luo Yizhou. Strikingly, their rankings appeared to correlate closely with their level of fame. A similar situation occurred in 2019, which also featured several high-profile candidates. When netizens carefully compared the score sheets from the two years, they found that all the scores were exactly the same, even down to the decimal points, making it look as though only the names, hometowns, and genders had been changed, while the scores themselves were simply copied and pasted. Traditionally, the performance department's arts exam evaluates four core skills— voice, speech, physicality, and overall performance ability. Candidates are assessed on how they use sound, language, movement, and comprehensive acting skills to create a clear and convincing character. Given this highly subjective and performance-based evaluation process, many netizens argue that it is difficult to believe the exam results could be so uniform or entirely fair. Some critics point to the 2018 exam as an example. Yi Yangqiangxi, a top idol who debuted with the teenage boy group TFBOYS, ranked first with a score of 94.85. Meanwhile, television drama actors Li Landi and Hu Xianqiu placed second and third. In terms of acting form and speech skills, many believe Yi Yangqiangxi would have found it hard to significantly outperform the other two, and his appearance alone did not create a clear advantage either. As a result, some speculate that Hao Rong placed excessive emphasis on star power and favored famous candidates during the scoring process. Although there is currently no definitive proof that the Central Academy of Drama, Hao Rong, or the candidates were involved in any exchange of interests or improper collusion, Hao Rong is widely seen as a figure positioned at the crossroads of the arts and culture world, the education system, and the high-stakes stage of fame and fortune within China's entertainment industry. Why did Hao Rong fall at this moment? According to the independent media channel Qianmeitongren, Ordinary People Inside the Wall, the Central Academy of Drama is the true headquarters of China's Communist Party-controlled entertainment industry, having trained many famous actors such as Gong Li and Zhang Zi. Because Peng Liwan herself rose to prominence as a singer after Xi Jinping came to power following the 18th Party Congress, China's entertainment industry was, in practice, taken over by Peng Liwan. This mirrors the case of Zhang Qing, who had been a film actress and went on to control the cultural and arts world during the Cultural Revolution. Political commentator Zhang Feng shares this view. He argues that Hao Rong's downfall strikes directly at one of Xi Jinping's most sensitive pressure points, his public image, specifically the image of First Lady Peng Liwan. So who exactly is Hao Rong? According to Zhang Feng, if one sees him merely as an acting professor or a theater director, one seriously underestimates the nature of the Communist Party's arts and cultural apparatus. Within this circle, anyone who manages to rise to the position of president of one of China's three top arts academies, the Central Academy of Drama, the Beijing Film Academy, or the Shanghai Theater Academy, inevitably has a powerful patron behind them. Hao Rong's rise can be described as rocket-like. In 2016, he was promoted to vice president, and just two years later, in 2018, he was formally appointed president. Zhang Feng urges people to recall what period 2016-2018 represents. It was the critical phase when Xi Jinping amended the constitution, abolished term limits, and concentrated power in his own hands. At the same time, Peng Liwan began appearing frequently on the public stage as an arts advisor, a professor, and a WHO ambassador, becoming increasingly dominant in the fields of culture, arts, and education, arguably the peak of her public influence. According to Zhang Feng, Hao Rong carried two extremely important labels. Once these are examined, it becomes clear why he had to fall. The first label, he was the mentor of Jin Dong. Who is Jin Dong? Over the past two years, he has been one of the most prominent actors in mainland China. Most notably, he recently starred as the male lead in the major state propaganda drama, Northwest Years, portraying Xi Zhongshun, Xi Jinping's father. Within the Communist Party's propaganda system, actors selected to portray national leaders or even their parents must undergo extremely strict political vetting. This is not about acting ability, but about political reliability. That Jin Dong was chosen for this role shows that he is a trusted actor personally approved by the Xi family. Hao Rong was Jin Dong's head teacher and mentor at the Central Academy of Drama, and the two shared a very close relationship. Consider the symbolism. The disciple has just immortalized the supreme elder on screen, shedding tears in a glorifying performance, only for his teacher to be swiftly taken down by the discipline authorities. According to Zhang Fen, the message sent to the entire party and the public is stark. Xi Jinping cannot even protect the teacher of the man who portrayed his own father. In imperial times, this would be akin to an emperor still on the throne while the head of the imperial theater troupe is dragged off to be executed. Where, then, does imperial dignity reside? The second label, and the more fatal one, Hao Rong was a beneficiary of the First Lady Network. Who promoted Hao Rong? At the time, the vice minister of education in charge of higher education was Lin Huiqing. She was no ordinary technocratic official. In numerous public reports and photos, whenever Peng Liwan appeared at Tsinghua University or at events in her role as an AIDS prevention ambassador, Lin Huiqing was often seen standing right beside her. Their close relationship has long been an open secret within the education and arts circles. During her tenure, Lin Huiqing vigorously promoted officials who knew how to stand in line politically and clearly demonstrate loyalty, and Hao Rong was the most prominent among them. What kind of institution is the Central Academy of Drama? It is the birthplace of China's acting elite. To control the academy is to control the talent pipeline of the entertainment industry. To hold the lifeline of celebrities and, by extension, to command a massive channel for money laundering and a crucial platform for exporting ideology. According to Zhang Feng, Hao Rong went out of his way to curry favor with those in power in order to please his patrons. During the 2023 Two Sessions, in his capacity as a CPPCC member, he put forward a proposal that left many artists stunned. Digitize theater as a driver of digital China. Theater, an art form that for thousands of years has emphasized live presence and face-to-face emotional exchange, was something he now wanted to digitize. Why? Because at the time, Xi Jinping and Ding Shui Xian were vigorously promoting digital authoritarianism, big data surveillance, and the so-called new productive forces. Zhang Feng points out, however, that the political winds have now shifted. The strategy of Zhang Youxia and the elder faction is known as cutting the skirt. Temporarily avoid confronting Peng Liyuan directly, but systematically strip away the people and interests surrounding her. The arrest of Hao Rong, he argues, is a precise execution of this strategy. First, it serves as a warning to the arts and entertainment world. Directors, actors, and academy presidents who constantly orbit Peng Liyuan, hoping to use the First Lady network to climb the ladder and amass wealth, must now think twice. Hao Rong is the cautionary example. No matter how famous you are, or how solid your ties to the Empress Dowager may seem, the discipline authorities can still take you down whenever they choose. Second, it is a purge of the education system. Although Lin Huiqing has already retired, her influence within the Ministry of Education remains. Arresting Hao Rong allows investigators to follow the vines back to the roots, removing those she promoted and replacing them with figures acceptable to the anti-Xi faction. In addition, the media channel Qianmei Peitongren offers another interpretation. As a general rule, when Chinese Communist Party officials voluntarily turn themselves in, it is often because failing to do so carries the risk of being silenced. Turning oneself in is, in essence, a way of proactively seeking protection from the organization. If Peng Liyuan were still firmly in control today, Hao Rong would not have chosen to surrender voluntarily. It is precisely because Peng Liyuan has now lost power and the anti-corruption campaign in the entertainment industry has begun targeting her associates that Hao Rong constantly faced the risk of being silenced. To avoid being disposed of, he was forced to choose the path of voluntary surrender. Jiang Qing and Peng Liyuan, these two women share striking similarities. Both are from Shandong, both were performers, both married conservative Chinese Communist leaders, and both exerted profound influence over the lives of ordinary Chinese people. The difference lies in timing and outcome. When Jiang Qing fell from power, Hong Kong and Taiwanese music, films, and television began to flourish on the mainland. If Peng Liyuan were to fall, it is likely that no one would bother producing grand propaganda dramas like Northwest Years anymore. In summary, Hao Rong's voluntary surrender has led many analysts to conclude that the headquarters of the Chinese Communist Party's entertainment industry is shaking, signaling that Peng Liyuan's power has begun to waver. The anti-corruption campaign in the entertainment world has now started to target her inner circle. Hao Rong's surrender will almost certainly lead to the exposure of a series of officials and industry bosses. At the same time, many directors and actors who habitually glorify the CCP system may soon find themselves implicated as well. This comes as governments at all levels in China are facing severe financial strain, while the entertainment industry still controls large amounts of cash. Taxing and fining this sector is one of the fastest ways to replenish state coffers. Moreover, as China's economy continues to decline, making money in the entertainment industry has become increasingly difficult, forcing many entertainers to seek alternative ways to survive. As a result, the likelihood of further scandals in the industry is steadily rising. What do you think about Hao Rong's downfall? Leave your thoughts in the comments below. Thank you for watching, and we'll see you in the next program.