From being shrouded in the media spotlight for every move, to disappearing for three consecutive months, Fan Bingbing's disappearance marks the end of years of lax regulation in China's film industry.
In the male-dominated Chinese film industry, Fan Bingbing was once the country's best-known actress, her confidence and determination earning her a title usually reserved for men.
She once told a Chinese reporter: I don't need to marry into a wealthy family, because I am a wealthy family.
Fan Bingbing was right: she is worth billions, has a string of blockbuster hits, landed roles in Hollywood blockbusters such as X-Men, and has topped the Forbes China Celebrity List several times --dash;mdash;Last year, she earned 300 million yuan ($44 million), according to Forbes.
Then, she disappeared.
Media reports have not seen her for three consecutive months, and it was not until last week that it was announced that Fan Bingbing would be fined for tax evasion.Human rights lawyer Liu Xiaoyuan said: What people worry about is not Fan Bingbing's tax evasion, but her disappearance.
Fan Bingbing's rise to fame has come as China's film industry has grown to become the world's second-largest film market by revenue.Industry insiders say her downfall marks the end of years of lax regulation in which tax evasion was widespread.
Fan Bingbing was born in a relatively ordinary family in Qingdao in 1981. She later recalled that when she entered the entertainment industry, her family had no connections, so she knew she had to take the risk of failure and bear the consequences alone.
She built her network by befriending powerful men, most notably the two founders of Huayi Brothers, China's top film and television company, and director Feng Xiaogang.In 2003 Feng cast Fan Bingbing in the hit film Cell Phone, in which she played the mistress of a TV host.
Fan Bingbing is very dedicated. She has to make four or five films a year, and her doll-like appearance is the key to her growing popularity. However, she has also been plagued by one problem for many years: media speculation that she has undergone plastic surgery.
She tackled the issue head-on, having a hospital in Beijing issue an official test showing she hadn't had plastic surgery, and suing another institution for damages.The battle seemed to inspire Fan, who parted ways with Huayi Brothers in 2007 to set up her own studio and quickly began raising her international profile.
At the Cannes Film Festival in 2010, Fan Bingbing attracted attention in a bright yellow dress embroidered with two prancing dragons, the color reserved for ancient Chinese emperors.
Fan Bingbing has landed a host of endorsements from Western companies looking to raise their profile in China, becoming L'Oreal's first global ambassador in Asia, and has endorsed other luxury brands.
Aynne Kokas, an expert on Chinese films at the University of Virginia, said: She is the first batch of Chinese post-80s who wear gowns made by top designers and declare their status as international superstars on the red carpet of the international stage.One of the actresses.She is arguably the most successful Chinese actress in establishing her popularity overseas.
In 2014, after hiring an American English tutor, she won the role of a mutant in X-Men: Days of Future Past.
However, Fan Bingbing also continued to focus on domestic audiences, starring in a TV series about Wu Zetian, the only female emperor in Chinese history.With a budget of nearly $50 million, The Empress of China became the most expensive series ever produced in China at the time.
Viewers saw similarities between Wu Zetian and Fan Bingbing: Both were strong female characters in a male-dominated environment.Wu Zetian was demonized by Chinese historians as a cruel, lascivious empress—a tradition that vilifies powerful women that continues to this day.
Some critics argued that Fan Bingbing's gender made her more vulnerable to criticism.Kong Anyi said: In the past, women have also been targeted for other things that did not pose a problem for men.
Finally, it was also a powerful man who accused Fan Bingbing of tax evasion on social media in May: Cui Yongyuan, a former host of China’s state broadcaster CCTV, was rumored to be a real-life prototype for the male lead in the film Mobile,He said the rumor hurt him.
The Shanghai Film Festival was subsequently ordered to remove all references to Fan Bingbing from its promotional materials.Chinese media, which had been following Fan Bingbing's every move, were also barred from reporting on her whereabouts, according to two reporters.
Chinese authorities have issued an ultimatum to the film industry to declare unpaid taxes by the end of the year.Peter Bien, a film producer, said in Beijing that everyone was talking about a winter for the industry, and even a nuclear winter.
Ultimately, Fan Bingbing's legacy may be one that has earned Chinese actors more space abroad.This summer, Fan Bingbing's rival Li Bingbing starred in the Hollywood flick The Meg, which grossed more than $300 million worldwide.
If Fan Bingbing and the companies she partially owns pay off the 850 million yuan in taxes and fines, she will not be held criminally liable so she can try to revive her career.But a statement last week suggested her trademark powerful aura had been muted.
She wrote on social media: Every achievement I have achieved is inseparable from the support of the country and the people.Without the good policies of the party and the country, and without the love and care of the people, there would be no Fan Bingbing... I failed the country's training for me.
Translator/He Li
