NEW YORK -- Right up to the time when China began putting cities under lockdown to combat the coronavirus outbreak, Xiao Zhan was the country's most sought-after star, endorsing everything from skin care products to beer. By the time the country lifted the shutters months later, Xiao's celebrity status was in tatters and his commercial power hanging by a thread.
Unlike most of what has unfolded over the past two months, Xiao's abrupt reversal of fortunes was not a direct result of the pandemic that started in Wuhan and swept from China through the world. Rather, what has killed Xiao's career is an extreme case of what some call "toxic fans."
