5. Zhang Ziyi vs. The Public, Zhang Ziyi vs. Other ActressesDoes anyone even like Zhang Ziyi? lol serious question tho. You might have heard that the Chinese public don't like her. Zhang Ziyi is often portrayed as greedy and rude in the Chinese media and generally considered less attractive (small eyes, plain jane) and less talented compared to her peers. Ironically enough, she is one of the actresses with the most international success and has maintained her A-list status for 10+ years.In 2009, paparazzi photos of Zhang Ziyi and her billionaire ex-boyfriend in indecent postures were published. They were partially nude. And these photos led to a general soured opinion towards her. In 2010, Zhang was caught in a donation fund scandal after the 2008 Sichuan Earthquake, which killed over 70,000 people. Zhang pledged to donate one million yuan ($147,000) to the disaster-relief fund, and she also said she would raise money from her overseas funds. After netizens discovered some indiscepancies in the numbers reported, they accused her of looting the money from donations. Zhang donated another 160,000 yuan ($23,430) to make up for the shortfalls (Weirdly worded in multiple reports, so IDK if the numbers are off and how many outside funds/donations she had) In addition, she supposedly snagged Shu Qi's role in CTHD, Maggie Cheung's role in Memoirs of Geisha, and almost Gong Li's role in Curse of the Golden Flower (foundless rumors imo). Zhang Ziyi vs Maggie Cheung In 2013, at the 50th Golden Horse Awards (basically the Taiwanese Oscars), Zhang Ziyi finally won her first Golden Horse Best Actress award for The Grandmasters. Andy Lau (Infernal Affairs, House of Flying Daggers) and Maggie Cheung (2046, Hero) were co-presenting the award. After the best actress was announced, Andy Lau was about to hand it over to Maggie Cheung, who awkwardly would NOT pick up the award and hand it to Zhang Ziyi, with Zhang finally asking, "Can I have my award now?".Later when Andy Lau was asked if there was a rife between the two actresses, he politely answered, "We already decided that I was going to be the one to present the award, but I spontaneously passed the trophy to Maggie who was shocked." Hmm surejan.gifInitial rumors of Zhang Ziyi and Maggie Cheung not getting along go back to Zhang Yimou's 2001 film Hero, when Maggie was apparently not happy with Zhang requesting for more screentime. The two actresses collaborated again for Wong Kar Wai's 2046, but Maggie quit during the filming after the filming was delayed, leaving Zhang being promoted to lead actress.Zhang Ziyi vs Gong Li vs Fan Bingbing Zhang Ziyi and Gong Li's rumored rivalry go way back because both actresses were "discovered" by director Zhang Yimou. Gong Li collaborated with Zhang Yimou for six films from 1988 Red Sorghum to 1995 Shanghai Triad and Gong Li was basically his mistress until 1995 when she suddenly broke off the relationship and married a wealthy Singaporean businessman less than a year later. For Zhang Yimou's next film The Road Home, 19 year old Zhang Ziyi was chosen, who was then a second year at the Beijing Drama Academy and perhaps had a personal relationship with Zhang Yimou.In 2000, after Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon came out, TIME wrote: "Gong Li was always all woman: insolent, stern and sturdy, a threat to the men who wanted her. Zhang Ziyi is a promise of girlhood ripening, inside, to womanhood. If Gong was an image of China's power and defiance, Zhang is a China ready to conquer the world with charm."There really isn't a lot on why Zhang Ziyi and Gong Li don't get along (that I can find from english sources), but again, reports say that they did not get along while filming Memoirs of a Geisha and Gong Li did not like how Zhang Ziyi was her "replacement". In 2011, after Fan Bingbing was seen wearing the "crane" red dress at Cannes, Gong Li reportedly hinted that Fan Bingbing was brainless for walking the red carpet at Cannes even though she was not promoting a film. Fan's rival Zhang Ziyi also commented that she would only walk the red carpet if she was involved with any of the movies. Fan responded by saying, "[Gong Li] is one of my favorite actresses, ever since I saw her performance in Red Sorghum. I can't believe she actually said that about me."Zhang Ziyi vs Fan Binging vs Prostitution Rumors In 2012, a Chinese newssite claimed that Zhang Ziyi earned more than $100 million from having sexual relations with high-ranking Chinese officials. The story grabbed headlines around the world, with many believing this to be true. Zhang Ziyi's team quickly sued for defamation and reached a settlement, with the original site retracting the report.And that's not even the scandalous part... Question is: Did Fan Bingbing want to drag Zhang Ziyi down with these prostitution rumors? Were other rival actresses behind this defamation (hmm Gong Li)?Prominent film critic Bi Chenggong left a vague weibo message possibly referring to Fan, stating "While ruthlessly attacking someone who is better than herself, she forgot to make herself stronger. Therefore, no matter how relentlessly she attacks her opponent, she is still inferior." what an elegant way to tell fan bingbing that she ain't shit lol The film critic hinted that this actress appeared in international film festivals and had many brand endorsements but did not have a hot acting career at the moment. He later deleted his messages and denied that he was referring to Fan.Fan Bingbing has been widely regarded to be Zhang Ziyi's main rival because they are close in age and hit it big around the same time (Fan's Princess Pearl drama series first aired in 1998, and Zhang's The Road Home came out in 1999). Although Fan Bingbing may be China's #1 celebrity now, her filmography leaves much to be desired (and I think Zhang has the opposite problem: great films, bad celebrity). 4. Justin Lee Drug/Sexual Assault Case(trigger warning: rape is mentioned) I hate to put this on a scandal list, but this issue plagued the Taiwanese entertainment circle for much of late 2012. Taiwanese socialite playboy Justin Lee was revealed to have raped nine women (actual number was like 30+). He first met the women in bars and then spiked their drinks after taking them home and recorded the act. Celebrities such as his ex-girlfriend Maggie Wu and Bianca Bai, as well as small time models, were among the rumored women in the videos. The scandal took an even worse turn as it was revealed that he also raped his own step-mother. After finding out that she was pregnant, his father had ordered her to cover it up and forget about it, which is why she is not listed as a victim in the original charges. She later revealed some details on her personal blog and fought for the date-rape drugs online store to be shut down. Lee was initially sentenced to 14 years of prison. After appealing(?), Taiwan's High Court sentenced him to 79 years and seven months, with a necessary 30 year sentence and a compensation fee of NT $27.75 million. 3. Carina Lau Abduction CaseTo preface: the Hong Kong triads (criminal gangs) had/has a large presence in the HK entertainment industry. Carina Lau is also Tony Leung's long time partner
(
copied from wiki)
In 1990, during the filming of Days of Being Wild,
Lau was abducted for several hours, and topless photos of her were taken. Lau revealed in 2008 that she was abducted by four men working for a triad boss,
as "punishment" for having refused a film offer. She said that she had not been taken advantage of during her two-hour ordeal.
In 2002, the naked pictures of Carina Lau were published in East Week magazine, 12 years after the kidnapping. Massive protests and petitions were held by fellow HK celebrities and media ethics by HK tabloids were questioned. The magazine was shut down in Nov. 2002, but resumed later in 2003, while the publisher of the photo received a 5 month jail sentence after pleading guilty in 2008.
2. Edison Chen Sex Scandal (This is a good photo of him because he looks hella busted now). You've probably all heard of this scandal so I don't need to explain it that much. It was basically the HK version of The Fappening that started in 2008, when Edison Chen went to repair his computer at some shady place that stole all his private pictures. Except the negative effects of this scandal on the actors' careers were way more obvious and immediate. The female stars involved were all hugely impacted, and a lot of blame was put on Edison Chen's slow movement to come out and claim copyright for those pics and make a statement. Cecilia Cheung later divorced her husband Nic Tse (dunno if related but Nic was great friends with Edison Chen and some cheating on both sides may have happened), Bobo's engagement was put on hold and she later left the entertainment industry after this, and Gillian Chung, known for her innocent image, was the first starlet to make a public appearance and has since struggled to rebuild her career. Edison Chen's scenes were deleted from The Dark Knight lol and he took an "indefinite" leave from the entertainment industry.
The leaker of the pictures went by the name Kira online. Stupid asshole thought he was in Death Note. I think seven people were arrested in the end (but given too light sentences imo)
1. Faye Wong + Nicholas Tse: A True Love Story? "
Love is all a matter of timing. It’s no good meeting the right person too soon or too late. If I’d lived in another time or place. . .my story might have had a very different ending." - 2046 (my post lookin like the beginning of a sad fanfic lol)
Chinese-HK diva singer Faye Wong first announced her relationship with teen heart throb Nicholas Tse in 2000. This announcement caused massive media frenzy because Wong was 11 years Tse's senior - Tse was only 19/20 years old at the time. The couple broke up in 2002 and briefly united in 2003 before breaking up again.
Later in 2006, Nicholas Tse married HK previous It-girl Cecilia Cheung (who he first met on set in 2001), while Faye Wong later married actor Li Yapeng. In 2011, after a high-profile breakup (and this was after the Edison Chen scandal), Nicholas Tse filed for divorce. In 2013, Wong and Li also surprised the public by saying they were divorcing, with Li leaving a weibo message, stating, "What I want is a family, but you are destined to be a legend."
In late 2014, Faye Wong and Nicholas Tse were spotted together again and confirmed their relationship. Is it ~tru luv~ that they reconciled 10 years later? Rumor has it that A-list actress Vicki Zhao set them up. Their renewed love led to a lot of speculation over whether Nicholas Tse had always loved her/was waiting for the right time lol (Tse openly stated that he loved Faye Wong the most out of all his exes in 2012). Also, people are more willing to accept their relationship now as Tse is way more established and successful, not just riding on his parents' money, and can match Faye Wong.
After their reconciliation, a lot of people had pity towards Cecilia Cheung. There were a lot of media reports saying that Cecilia felt jealous and she said that she felt like Tse did not care for their two sons. Tbf she and her sons live in Singapore now while Tse is based in Beijing. Wong's ex-husband Li Yapeng sent out another message, "Mother of my child, I give you my blessing, go for it!"
This is/was like the Brad Pitt/Angelina Jolie/Jennifer Aniston relationship of the HK/Chinese world (in terms of media coverage) .
her best song imo
Sorry, this really wasn't supposed to be this long... but it kept growing and growing. Thanks for reading/skimming lol!
source: me and my knowledge, wikipedia, google :)