Abstract: A major threat to global rice production, rice blast is commonly caused by Magnaporthe oryzae. Thus, the fungal infection mechanism has been a focal point of the studies aiming to alleviate the disease. As a critical factor, the effector proteins secreted by the fungus target key components in the cytoplasm or organelles of rice cells to manipulate the host immunity and metabolic pathways resulted in weakened resistance to the disease of a rice plant. This article summarizes the advanced understanding of how the effectors act in rice cytoplasm and nucleus. The studies encompass the regulation of gene expression through interactions with nuclear-localized host proteins, the ubiquitination-mediated degradation of immunity-related proteins, and the modulation of ROS production and balance. Some of the effector proteins were found to disrupt energy metabolism and immune signal transduction by targeting mitochondria and chloroplasts in the rice. They not only suppress rice immune defenses but also exacerbate vulnerability to disease by inducing expression of susceptibility-related genes. The recently released reports provide valuable insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying the rice-pathogen interactions and offer promising a new direction for breeding disease-resistant rice varieties.