When it was announced that Taiwanese heartthrob Jerry Yan, 43, was to star in idol drama Count Your Lucky Stars late last year, netizens weren’t exactly thrilled about him romancing 23-year-old Chinese actress Shen Yue on screen because of their age gap. In fact, she’s so much younger, she even took on Barbie Hsu’s role in the reboot of Meteor Garden, which was the drama that launched Jerry and the rest of the F4 heartthrobs to superstardom in the early 2000s. Feel old yet?

In the days leading up to the premiere of Count Your Lucky Stars today (Aug 3), more promotional images and clips were released online, where they apparently got the attention of South Korean netizens and incited more disapproving comments. Many likened Jerry and Shen Yue’s onscreen coupling to “an uncle being in love with his niece” and expressed that the two do not look compatible with each other as viewers “can feel the age gap”.

According to reports, Jerry himself was feeling the pressure from having to do a fluffy romance drama at his age. He also had issues with the age difference and it's said that him stressing over this issue led to a very tense atmosphere on the set of the drama. The actor has always been known to be very serious when it comes to his work, personally checking the footage after each shoot to make sure it’s up to his high standards and having strict requirements for his diet.

Once, he got so involved in a scene where his character is supposed to start throwing things in anger that he ended up destroying the props, which shocked and frightened poor Shen Yue.

On the other hand, he seems to know when to let loose too. In one of the show’s official behind-the-scenes highlights, Jerry is seen pointing a camera at Shen Yue and saying, “This won’t do! You’re too cute like this, do you have an angle where you look less cute?” Someone certainly has a way with the ladies.

Despite the backlash about the “uncle and niece” romance between Jerry and Shen Yue, there are others who are paying no heed to the criticism and sharing their excitement for Count Your Lucky Stars instead. “Those two make a good match”, “Keeping up with this drama is a must”, “Handsome people still look handsome when they’re a little older”, and “It looks very sweet, the age gap is not a problem” were just some of the more encouraging comments about the drama online.

Of course, fans of Meteor Garden — both the 2001 and 2018 versions — are also looking forward to the ‘reunion’ between the original Dao Ming Si and the new Shan Cai, Jerry and Shen Yue’s respective characters.

Count Your Lucky Stars is based on a novel about a powerful magazine editor-in-chief (played by Jerry) and a struggling fashion designer (played by Shen Yue) who find their fortunes exchanged after an accidental kiss. And that certainly won’t be the only time audiences will get to see them lock lips on the show.

Photos: Count Your Lucky Stars/Weibo