The Star Return to Motherland

The Star Section: Entertainment Ad Value: RM 28,283 16-Aug-2021 Size : 562cm2 PR Value: RM 84,849 Return to motherland Return to motherland Director Chen Kaige's son drops United States for Chinese citizenship, signalling growing allure of the China market. By REBECCA DAVIS In the entertainment industry, many balance between political correctness top names have changed their passports, and commerce. CHINESE director Chen Kaige's US-born including Gong Li and Jet Li, now This month, he uploaded six posts son Arthur Chen Feiyu has swapped his Singaporean, and Chen Kaige himself advertising makeup, skin-care and tea, American citizenship out for a Chinese who is a US citizen. three posts with attractive photos of one, a change widely viewed locally as a Chen is one of China's most famous himself a post about rising Covid-19 savvy move to boost his burgeoning helmers. numbers, a post encouraging Chinese career in the mainland. As a leading light of the so-called Fifth athletes at the Tokyo Olympics and six The move comes as Chinese public Generation, he won global acclaim for different posts re-tweeting political con opinion about celebrities has hinged his 1984 first feature Yellow Earth, won tent from official state media, celebrat upon questions of nationality. the 1993 Cannes Palme d'Or for his ing everything from the People's For instance, Beijing banned mentions Farewell My Concubine and in the past Liberation Army to the **spirit of the of China-born Chloe Zhao earlier this two years has turned increasingly Long March”. I Chen has year - despite her Oscar sweep - after a towards political films celebrating the a large frenzy of inquiry erupted onlme over Communist Party. Advantages and disadvantages . B following her true nationality among other issues. He(s brought his son along for the ride ■ on Weibo. Arthur Chen, it seems, is preemptively through the years, setting him up step by Arthur Chen's forthcoming collabora -CHEN sidestepping all that drama. step for Chinese industry success from a tions with his father seem set to be even [ FEIYU/ "After a wait of several years, the young age. more high profile. Weibo young man's wishes have finally been Arthur Chen, 21, was bom in the US There are at least three projects cur fulfilled. Mr Chen Feiyu has formally where he attended the storied private rently listed as scheduled for next year, become a Chinese citizen,,, his studio Massachusetts boarding school Tabor all directed by the older Chen and star said in a statement to its official Weibo, Academy before returning to China to ring the younger alongside China's most stamped with the compands official seal. study at the Beijing Film Academy as a bankable acting names. “At the same time, Mr Chen Feiyu has foreign student. The first is a romantic drama that will always steadfastly loved the great moth* He made his film screen debut at the also feature Liu Haoran, star of the erland, and will continue to spread posi young age of 10 with an appearance in Detective Chinatown series. tive energy in the future and use his his father's historical drama Sacrifice. Two more are both Korean War-set power to contribute to the motherland!0 As a teen, he joined the production for propaganda movies, one starring Chen, Below, coininenters congratulated the his father's lavish costume drama The Liu and Wu Jing (Wolf Warrior 2), and young actor for his decision to “return to Legend Of The Demon Cat as an assistant another that has so far revealed just the motherland's embrace". director. Chen and Wu from the cast. Others questioned why Liu Yifei, the A star turn in coming-of-age romance Arthur Chen's change in citizenship, China-born star ofDisne/s Mulan, had Secret Fruit saw him strike out on his itself a strong signal of Party loyalty will not done the same, as she currently has own, playing opposite Taiwan's Ouyang smooth over potential speed bumps in US citizenship. Nana - another hot actor who has his father's career as it veers increasing "Todays audiences have been very pushed aside her affiliations with the ly political, and pave the way for his resistant to the idea of'foreigners' get island to boost her appeal in China. own, another blogger said. ting in on the mainland's *gold rush,w of Since then, he played a role in the ',Given the development of the opportunities and profits as the world's 2019 propaganda omnibus film My Chinese film and TV industries, the largest film market continues to grow, People, My Country, for which his father advantages of this move outweigh the one film blogger said. directed a segment. disadvantages/' he said, noting that films "Isn't it a deception to have a Chinese At the time, there was some online like Wolf Warrior 2 and the more recent face, earn Chinese money, but not have a blowback over the fact that an actor Hi, Mom have outsold even top . Chinese heart?” with American citizenship was playing a Hollywood tentpoles in China, demon role in the year's biggest political state strating the impressive returns available Makeup, skin care and politics ment film. even to films that don,t travel beyond With a Weibo following of already the country. | In years past, China's wealthy and more than 10 million, Chen nonetheless “The era of going abroad to make a powerful have sought to abscond their has significant influence over young name for yourself is already outdated ... riches and children overseas, with some viewers and commercial sway. it's really much better to work harder on paying large sums to secure paths to for His official Weibo account is an inter your acting skills for a few years within eign citizenship. esting case study in how to strike the China/' the post said. - Reuters.

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