Nowadays, actors who have any decent movie resources are generally reluctant to act in television series, as most of them view such a move as a "demotion." There are several reasons for this.
From an artistic standpoint, film is regarded as "high-end art," focusing on visual texture, cinematic language, and detail. The sheer detail required for widescreen formats demands that an actor's performance be far more subtle and precise—something television simply cannot match. At the same time, television dramas of this era easily span dozens of episodes, and directors cannot possibly demand meticulous performances given the budget constraints. As you can see, even when Wong Kar-wai later invested so heavily in *Blossoms Shanghai* and achieved such massive success, that kind of production is virtually a one-off.
From the actors' perspective, long-form dramas also mean spending more time tied to a crew. A multi-month shoot inevitably impacts their earning potential; after all, in the same amount of time, even if they couldn't squeeze in two movies, at least one film plus some promotional events would be more than manageable.
Chapter 156