Ni made her debut in Zhang Yimou's The Flowers of War, playing the lead female character "Yu Mo". Ni was eventually chosen, and became a new "Mou girl" like Gong Li and Zhang Ziyi.
Ni was born in Nanjing, Jiangsu. She graduated from the Communication University of China, specializing in television broadcasting and hosting.
A cat lover.
Along with actresses Angelababy, Yang Mi and Liu Shishi, Ni Ni was chosen as the one of the New Four Dan Actresses in 2013.
Ni Ni's zodiac animal is Dragon.
Ni Ni won Best Actress award at the 21st Shanghai Film Critics Awards in 2012.