War romance grabs global eyeballs

The White Olive Tree, a popular Chinese series centered on a wartime romance, captivated over 5 million viewers in its debut week across 10 countries, including the United States, Canada, Australia, Japan, and South Korea.

Produced by Chengdu Culture & Tourism Development Group Ltd, the drama, which started to stream on iQiyi earlier this month, opens with a gripping scene: A female journalist accidentally steps on a landmine during a reporting mission in a war-torn foreign country. Fortunately, the protagonist, portrayed by actress Liang Jie, is rescued by a Chinese explosives expert, played by actor Chen Zheyuan, who is volunteering on the battlefield. As they face a series of trials and challenges together, the two gradually develop deep feelings for each other.

The drama, consisting of 38 episodes, has also been released with subtitles, including English, Spanish, Portuguese, Korean, Arabic and Japanese. Additionally, it has two foreign dubbed versions, namely Thai and Vietnamese.

Propelled by its online popularity, as evidenced by amassing over 10 billion clicks on major social platforms like Sina Weibo and Douyin, the filming locations in multiple cities in Southwest China's Sichuan province, including Chengdu, Leshan, and Zigong, have become popular tourist destinations.