(OSEN)

Hallyu star Lee Min-ho’s followers on Chinese microblogging site Weibo hit 26 million on Saturday, reflecting his surging popularity in China.

The-27-year-old heartthrob’s Weibo followers hit the mark after he shared a photo of his big-screen debut film “Gangnam 1970” on Saturday, outpacing top-rated Chinese actress Fan Bingbing (21.7 million).

Lee’s followers on Weibo already surpassed 20 million in March last year and have been gradually increasing.

Notably, the number of followers spiked after the premiere of his film noir “Gangnam 1970” released in Korea on Jan.21.

Chinese news outlets have attributed the increase to the Chinese fan’s anticipation toward his new film.

Meanwhile, “Gangnam 1970” is close to notching up 1 million viewers nationwide since its release.

By Hong Hye-jin (honghyejin@heraldcorps.com)