Chinese actress Fan Bingbing appeared on local live streamer Ryan Low's stream on Jan 1 for about 30 minutes. -- PHOTOS: RYAN LOW/FACEBOOK
SINGAPORE (The Straits Times/ANN): Chinese movie star Fan Bingbing spent part of her New Year’s Day at a local live streamer’s home in Sunset Way, appearing on a stream hosted by father-son duo Patrick Low and Ryan Low for about 30 minutes.
The 44-year-old actress is in town for the Jan 3 launch of her beauty brand Fan Beauty Diary at Watsons and took the time to introduce her line of products on the Lows’ Jan 1 live stream.
Fan, who came on camera around 11pm and spoke in Mandarin, said she would meet local directors to discuss scripts on Jan 2 and meet fans at the Watsons event on Jan 3, before leaving Singapore on Jan 4.
She arrived from Melaka, the Malaysian city for which she is a tourism ambassador, on Jan 1.
After Fan left the stream, the Lows sold $1 million worth of her products in 20 minutes, “breaking all company records”, Mr Ryan Low said on Facebook. Actual sales figures are higher, as the Facebook live stream went on for nearly two hours, till 1.30am.
Fan, the biggest celebrity to appear on a Low family live stream, drew some 20,000 viewers, another personal best for them.
The pair have sold Fan’s beauty line for a year through their live-streaming business Home Family Live Mall, but said on the stream they never expected her to be a guest on a broadcast.
Fan playfully replied: “Wasn’t it you guys who invited me?”
She added that since she had been talking to Ryan, the younger Low, over Chinese messaging app WeChat for business, she thought it would be good to drop by and have a fun conversation face to face.
Mr Ryan Low then asked Fan if she would start her own live-streaming channel, given the sales format’s vogue. Fan said no.
“The main thing is, it’s too arduous,” she said.
She added: “Beauty is my hobby and acting is my profession. I can chat with my fans on live stream, but rarely do I sell products.”
She also confirmed that a popular Fan Beauty Diary sheet mask product sold 200,000 units in China within three minutes on a live stream in June 2025, during China’s annual 618 online sales event, known for its deep discounts.
When asked about her plans for her beauty brand in Singapore, given its rising popularity, she said she is easygoing.
“It’s selling so well in China. Lots of artistes, actors and young people – men and women – are using it, so I think we should let things develop naturally.”
The star of X-Men: Days Of Future Past (2014) most recently won a Golden Horse award for Best Actress for her lead role as a farmer and exorcist in Malaysian film Mother Bhumi (2025).
She is also known as the Mask Queen for her keen love of facial sheet masks, saying on the live stream that she uses two a day, amounting to more than 700 a year.
In her final remarks to viewers, she thanked the Lows for their support and love for her products, spanning everything from sunscreen to face masks to haircare. She also wished for all women to become “very pretty” in 2026 and that her products might help them solve beauty problems.
In 2019, Fan’s launch of a water gel mask, one of her brand’s bestsellers, was reported as evidence of her comeback after a nearly one-year disappearance from the public eye following a tax evasion scandal in 2018.
The brand has been ramping up its South-east Asian presence, in tandem with Fan’s growing activity in the region.
In 2024, Fan Beauty Diary joined Singapore’s TikTok shop. In August, it launched at Malaysia’s Watsons, the same month she was conferred honorary datukship for boosting Melaka’s tourism. -- The Straits Times/ANN
