Jiang Ling was stunned, a little slow to react.
She hadn't expected Zheng Xiaolong to be so direct, asking her which role she intended to play right off the bat.
Jiang Ling collected herself and smiled, "Director Zheng is straightforward, so I won't beat around the bush either. To be honest, I like all the female characters in the script, and any of them would be okay. But if I really had to choose, I'd want to play Consort Qi."
"What, you want to play Consort Qi?" Zheng Xiaolong was instantly dumbfounded.
Jiang Ling nodded, "That's right!"
"Why?" Zheng Xiaolong was full of confusion. kuAiδugg
The reason he had let Jiang Ling choose for herself was twofold. Firstly, it was to give her face.
After all, he was notoriously strict with his filming rules; all roles were pre-determined, and actors had almost no room for choice, playing whatever they were assigned.
Jiang Ling being able to choose her role freely was considered a unique preferential treatment.
Secondly, the character of Hua Fei in the script, after revisions, was far more outstanding than in the novel.
He was confident that as long as Jiang Ling had read the script, and couldn't play the female lead, she would definitely choose Hua Fei.
He thought he had her all figured out.
Who would have thought that Jiang Ling would deviate from the expected path, refusing such a good role to play Consort Qi instead?
Was there something wrong with her brain?
Jiang Ling smiled, "I've read the script, and the character Consort Qi is quite comedic, which I like very much, so I want to play her."
How could she not know that among all the supporting roles, Hua Fei was the most outstanding?
The reason she didn't choose it wasn't that she disliked it, nor that she found the character's actions too extreme, but rather for personal reasons, it wasn't suitable for her to play this role.
Since her transmigration, including "The Little Fish and Flowers" which had not yet aired, she had played a total of five roles.
Of these five roles, apart from the Little Fairy, the other four characters all possessed an aura of malevolence, belonging to the demonic woman archetype.
Hua Fei, as the primary antagonist in the early stages of the drama, her devotion to love, her extreme tendencies in palace rivalries, and her cruelty and ruthlessness in persecuting other concubines, all carried the attributes of a crazed demonic woman.
In just over a year, she had played so many demonic women. Looking at the same face, the audience might already be experiencing aesthetic fatigue.
Hua Fei was such a classic role. If, because of her, the audience felt tired of it, thus affecting the brilliance of the character, wouldn't that be too much of a sin?
Even if the audience wasn't tired, she herself was getting tired of playing similar types of roles.
After much deliberation, Jiang Ling decided to give up Hua Fei and play another role instead. This would be better for her and for the audience.
"Consort Qi is quite amusing, but after all, she's older. She's almost forty when she appears, and the Third Prince is already an adult. At your age, how can you possibly play her?" Zheng Xiaolong frowned.
"Age is not a problem; it can be handled by the makeup artists. It's difficult to play younger when you're older, but it's easy to play older when you're younger. I played the 96-year-old Tianshan Tonglao last year; this is a piece of cake," Jiang Ling said with a smile.
Women are all vain, fearing ugliness more than old age.
When actresses in the entertainment industry act, they try their best to choose younger roles, wishing they could play an eighteen-year-old maiden every time.
Among first and second-tier actresses, very few can face their age squarely, and those who are willing to age for a role are even rarer than phoenix feathers and unicorn horns.
Jiang Ling, in the prime of her youth and beauty, was willing to pretend to be old and ugly to play a role well. This was indeed rare.
Zheng Xiaolong secretly praised her professional dedication in his heart, then he became troubled again.