Zhang Ruonan
Zhang Ruonan is a Chinese actress and model. She is known for her roles in the films Cry Me a Sad River, My Love, and Love Life Light ; for series A Date with the Future, Love is Panacea, My Boss, and The First Frost. She is nominated for Best Actress at the notable Asian Television Awards for her role in The First Frost.
In 2025, she won awards at Dragon TV Drama Quality Festival and Bazaar Gala in Shanghai. She is regularly ranked in the "Top 10 C-Drama Artists in Global Markets".
Early life
Ruonan was born in Wenzhou, Zhejiang. She completed her primary education in Shijiazhuang, where her parents were employed. She has three younger siblings: two sisters and a brother.In 2015, Ruonan studied at the Hangzhou Dianzi University. She worked as a model during college years and shared her portfolio on Weibo. She participated in a campus beauty contest and was selected among the "Top 30 Finalists", which led to modeling opportunities.
Career
In 2017, Ruonan was invited via a private message from the official Weibo account of the film Cry Me a Sad River to play a role in the project; she portrayed "Gu Senxiang", who meets a tragic end after being bullied. On 21 September 2018, directed by Guo Jingming the film's nationwide release, marked her solo lead debut.In 2020, Ruonan made her small screen debut in iQIYI's romantic series Everyone Wants to Meet You, produced by Zhao Wei. She starred in Youku's historical romantic comedy Love is All, where she portrayed Tan Lingyin, a writer and government official. In the realistic short film College Entrance Examination 2020, she portrayed as an aspiring student, this aired during the "National Day Gift: Hunan TV's Blue Moon Mid-Autumn Festival". In December, her fantasy romance film The End of Endless Love exceeded ¥ 200 Million within five days; she played Ji Ze, a folk singer struggling with depression. She performed a song "Diary of Love" alongside Wei Daxun during Hunan TV's "Pinduoduo 12.12 Super Fighting Night".
In 2021, Ruonan starred as Liang Nuo in the army themed series The Glory of Youth aired on Jiangsu Satellite TV. She appeared in the emotional youth film My Love, alongside Greg Hsu, she played a character insecure due to a broken family. She starred in the revolutionary historical film The Pioneer, directed by Xu Zhanxiong. In August, she starred in the female oriented drama Be Yourself, she played a girl with "Princess syndrome" raised in luxury. She appeared in Youku's emotional inspirational drama Psychologist.
In 2022, Ruonan participated in the iQIYI' s outdoor camping reality show Let's Camp Together. In Defying the Storm she portrayed "Meng Haitang", a character born into a scholarly family. In August, she participated in season 8 of the celebrity reality show Chinese Restaurant. In 2023, she starred in the youth love All These Years, and in the romantic comedy Too Beautiful to Lie films. She also starred in the romantic series A Date with the Future, alongside William Chan. In 2024, she starred in the romantic comedy My Boss.
In 2025, Ruonan starred in the series The First Frost alongside Bai Jingting, an adaptation of the romantic novel by Zhu Yi. It set record of fastest 10000 popularity index in Youku, within two days of its release, trended in "Top 3 Television Show" in Netflix, and earned her "Top C-Drama artists in the Global Market".