Why Zhou Dongyu fought with her leading man every day

Zhou Dongyu in her first film, “Under the Hawthorn Tree”

Zhou Dongyu and Jing Boran had a “unique” acting exercise during the four-month shoot of Rene Liu’s “Us and Them.” The good-looking actors, cast in the drama as estranged lovers who meet again after 10 years, fought each other on the set every day! This we learned during our recent Q&A with Dongyu to talk about the three-hanky romantic drama that is now streaming on Netflix.

“It’s true, Boran and I fought every day because we had to get into our characters and get to know each other quickly,” Dongyu shared with Inquirer Entertainment, laughing. “I find that I tend to always fight against the actors I work with (laughs).”

But, the charming 26-year-old beauty hasn’t always been this feisty and confident—in fact, it took her some time to adjust to the idea of being an actress the first time stardom came knocking at her door.

It’s been eight years since Zhang Yimou handpicked the waifish newcomer to lead the cast of “Under the Hawthorn Tree.” She has since won acting awards for her performances in “Hawthorn,” Sergio Rubini’s “Soul Mate,” Frant Gwo’s “My Old Classmate,” Lin Yu-Hsien’s “Never Say Goodbye” and Derek Hui’s “This is Not What I Expected.”

Our chat with Dongyu:

What are your similarities with your character? We both dare to love and hate with passion, and we’ve got strong personalities. I don’t dislike anything about Fang Xiaoxiao, my character. She insists on working hard for a better life. It doesn’t matter how hard or exhausting life is, she never forgets her principles and the bottom line. That’s what I particularly like about her.

What did you find most challenging about playing Xiaoxiao? The character I play goes through 10 years’ worth of changes in the film. To allow the audience to clearly see which period she is in without showing the time was quite difficult. I tried to make Xiaoxiao in her 20s more carefree, so there’s sharper contrast.

Why do you think does this story resonate with moviegoers of different nationalities? Although people speak different languages in different countries, I feel that human emotions are universal. I hope that the audiences abroad would appreciate our story and get what we try to convey.

If you could give your character advice, what would you tell her? Although the ending may be the best for them, I think Xiaoxiao could be more sentimental. Sometimes, she’s too sensible and wants to figure out everything. But in that case, she doesn’t necessarily get the best result.

Dongyu (left) and Jing Boran in “Us and Them”

Is it easier or harder to work with a director who’s also an award-winning actor like you? My collaboration with Rene has nothing to do with it. What’s most important is that we get on very well, and it took us such a short time to get to know each other.

What did you discover about your costars while shooting the film? Everybody in the cast and crew trusts each other, so we quickly became a good team.

What have you learned from the story of Jianqing and Xiaoxiao? Try to live a good life while keeping your principles intact.

Do you mind visiting “Us and Them’s” fans in the Philippines? Not at all. Since I’ve never been there, I would like to visit them.