Year of 'true love' and shame for fame

Celebrities rarely fail to provide fodder for the paparazzi, but 2014 has turned out to be more eventful than expected for some of the bigwigs. Perhaps the most interesting drama of the year was played out by Chinese diva Faye Wong and her former boyfriend, actor-singer Nicholas Tse. The two ex-flames were spotted together in Wong's apartment in September, triggering the rebirth of an unbelievable "love story". Wong and Tse, with an age difference of 11 years, first started dating in late 2000. But their relationship ended after Tse started dating actress-singer Cecilia Cheung in early 2002.

Then came another twist in the Wong-Tse tale. Tse ended his romance with Cheung in July 2002 and reunited with Wong in June 2003, before breaking up again in November. In 2006, Tse married Cheung, and the couple had two sons before divorcing in August 2011. In 2005, Wong married actor Li Yapeng and gave birth to a daughter, but they separated in September 2013.

That the 45-year-old Wong and 34-year-old Tse would reunite after a decade was beyond many people's imagination. In fact, their reunion proves wrong the Chinese saying that a good horse will never turn round to graze, and confirms that "all things will return to their origin".

Like Wong, actor Huang Haibo too found "true love" this year. After being detained by Beijing police for patronizing a prostitute on May 15, Huang's on-screen image of a loving son-in-law took a severe beating. (Huang's popularity among young men and women peaked after the telecast of the popular drama Let's Get Married, in which he starred with actress Gao Yuanyuan). Although he was released in November after spending six months behind bars, many expect both his career and image to suffer, especially because the film and TV regulator and industrial associations have given a call to overlook "tainted" entertainers.

However, the "true love" Huang got in adversity seems to outweigh his losses. During his detention, girlfriend Qu Shanshan announced that she would not "leave and forego" Huang, which moved him so much that he made up his mind to marry her after his release. Huang's readiness to end his life as a single will see the fruition of his "romance" despite the police case and the threat to his career.

But it is still not known whether director Wang Quan'an will be as "lucky" as Huang. Wang, who won the Gold Bear Award at the 2007 Berlin International Film Festival for his film Tuya's Marriage, was caught "in the act" with a prostitute by police in a high-end Beijing apartment in September. The scandal drew explosive comments from netizens, with many wondering why the 48-year-old Wang chose to buy sex when he has 28-year-old Zhang Yuqi, a sexy, drop-dead-gorgeous actress, as his wife.

The year 2014 was also marked by kengdie, an Internet buzzword describing the predicament of a father because of his son's or daughter's behavior. On Aug 14, Jaycee Chan, son of kung fu superstar Jackie Chan, was detained by police in Beijing for drug use. The drug-addiction of Jaycee, also an actor, came as a huge embarrassment for Jackie Chan, who was appointed China's ambassador for the fight against drugs in 2009 but didn't live up to the honor or his reputation. Jackie Chan once said that what he detested most was drug use and promised to send anyone who used drugs - his son included - to rehab. It remains a big question why the senior Chan's image and his role as the country's ambassador for the anti-drug campaign failed to instill in his son any sense of social responsibility.

But perhaps actor Zhang Guoli suffered more embarrassment than Jackie Chan. On Aug 1, Zhang's son Zhang Mo, also an actor, was caught by Beijing police smoking marijuana. Zhang Mo had been detained for 13 days in 2012 for the same offense, following which his father and director Feng Xiaogang issued a public apology and requested people to give the "lost young man" a chance for "a new life". Zhang Guoli did not beg for public forgiveness a second time after his son's detention in August. The public, maybe the senior Zhang himself, could not understand why Zhang Mo couldn't mend his ways.

This year has been one of mixed bags for celebrities. Will the wayward ones change their ways next year? We have to wait for the answer.

The author is a senior writer with China Daily. wuyixue@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily USA 12/31/2014 page6)