Taiwanese disgraced TV host Mickey Huang and his wife, actress Summer Meng, seem to have called it quits.
This comes on the heels of Huang’s various scandals, including possession of sexually explicit material involving minors.
According to a tip-off received by Taiwanese news website CTWant, the couple have quietly completed divorce procedures, ending five years of marriage.
Huang’s appointed lawyer Hsiao Chi-yun neither denied nor confirmed the news when he was approached by CTWant, only saying: “Thank you for your concern. They will place the family as priority.”
Huang, 53, and Meng, 33, registered their marriage in March 2020 after dating for about seven years. Their plans to hold a wedding banquet were subsequently thwarted by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Meng, known for roles in idol dramas such as Love, Timeless (2017) and Single Ladies Senior (2018), confirmed on social media in November 2021 that she was pregnant. She gave birth to their daughter in May 2022.
Huang and Meng often shared about their family life on social media and were once seen as an enviable couple in Taiwan’s entertainment industry.
Huang, a prolific television presenter who has won several Golden Bell awards, fell from grace in June 2023. He was accused by two female netizens of sexual harassment that took place about 10 years ago.
A criminal investigation into Huang was conducted, and he was indicted in May 2024 after raids on his residence and studio uncovered several pornographic videos. They included sexually explicit videos involving minors, which he bought online between 2017 and 2023.
He was sentenced to eight months in jail and fined NT$100,000 (RM14,174) in December 2024 for possession of more than 2,200 sexually implicit images involving 35 minors. Both the prosecutors and Huang have appealed the ruling.
Meng stood by Huang throughout the whole saga, but she was criticised by netizens after she expressed support for him, with her acting career heavily affected.
She quit the TV series The Thrifty Family (2024) in July 2023, with her role of a single mother taken over by actress Beatrice Fang.
Netizens have also called for her role in the upcoming drama The World Between Us: After The Flames to be removed, threatening to boycott the show otherwise.
The TV series is the second season of social drama The World Between Us, which was well-received by both critics and audiences when it aired in 2019.
The production team has since confirmed that it is cutting down the size of Meng’s role, without comprising the flow of the show. – The Straits Times/Asia News Network
