Compiled by CHOW HOW BAN, BENJAMIN LEE and R. ARAVINTHAN
EVER since she was blacklisted in 2021, Chinese actress and filmmaker Vicky Zhao Wei has rarely made public appearances.
China Press reported that the 50-year-old recently made a rare appearance in Singapore, attending an event hosted by hairstylist Kim Robinson where she even spoke about her 16-year-old daughter.
Nicknamed “Little April”, the daughter is the result of Zhao’s marriage with Chinese-born Singaporean businessman Huang Youlong whom Zhao divorced in 2021 after 13 years of marriage.
Zhao said her daughter stays by her side whenever she has a school break from a private school in Switzerland.
She said as her daughter grew older, she would feel “more concerned than grateful”.
“Growing up inevitably brings challenges that every individual must face alone. Once the lesson of life begins, it’s filled with the unknown and various trials.
“All I can do is to let go, offer my blessings and allow my daughter to embark on her own life journey,” she said.
On their relationship, Zhao joked that her daughter is her “boss” while describing herself as the “employee”.
She said she would support her daughter to enter show business if she decides to do so.
“But I don’t think she will make the cut. She’s at an age where she’s incredibly shy; she practically goes into a ‘withdrawn’ mode whenever she encounters strangers.
“In fact, she really admires classmates who are socially confident – the ones who can sing and dance in front of a crowd,” she said.
In August 2021, Zhao’s works disappeared from Chinese video streaming services, with no explanation given, though there were claims that the decision stemmed from her former husband’s alleged ties with disgraced Public Security Vice-Minister Sun Lijun.
In February 2024, some Chinese video and social media platforms began to partially lift restrictions on her content.
The above articles are compiled from the vernacular newspapers (Bahasa Malaysia, Chinese and Tamil dailies). As such, stories are grouped according to the respective language/medium. Where a paragraph begins with a >, it denotes a separate news item.
