One of China’s most popular actors Zhao Wei saw her name removed from many of the works she starred in including many films, talk shows and TV series, Global Times reported. The fan clubs of the actor were also made inactive on social media Weibo as of Friday. As per reports, these developments took place after the actor visited Japan’s Yasukuni Shrine.

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According to Chinese local media, many video platforms confirmed the removal of Zhao’s works, saying they received the request at a short notice and without a clear reason. 

This is not the first time Wei, 45, has faced a ban. She and her husband were banned by the Shanghai Stock Exchange from acting as senior executives for any listed companies for five years due to irregularities.

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Who is Zhao Wei?

Also known as Vicky Zhao or Vicki Zhao, Zhao Wei is an actor businesswoman, film director, producer and pop singer. She is one of the most popular film personalities in China and Chinese-speaking regions. 

In her acting career that spans over 20 years, Zhao starred in several hits like ‘Shaolin Soccer’ (2001), ‘Red Cliff’ (2008–2009), ‘Painted Skin’ (2008), ‘Painted Skin: The Resurrection’ (2012), ‘Dearest’ (2014) and ‘Lost in Hong Kong’ (2015). She has also received numerous awards from the Shanghai International Film Festival, Huabiao Awards, Changchun Film Festival, Hundred Flowers Awards and Shanghai Film Critics Awards. 

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Zhao had taken a two-year break in 2012 and returned to mainstream cinema with  Peter Chan’s film ‘Dearest’. She won the Hong Kong Film Critics Society Award and Hong Kong Film Award for Best Actress for the film. 

She was ranked 28th on Forbes China Celebrity 100 list in 2017. The same year she also became the she was named as a member of the main competition jury for the 30th Tokyo International Film Festival. The master’s degree of Film Directing from Beijing Film Academy (2012) student made her directorial debut with ‘So Young’ in 2013. The film  broke the box office record for films directed by female Chinese directors in a week. 

Zhao, who was made the Italian luxury fashion brand Fendi’s China brand spokesperson in 2020, is one of China’s most popular actors. However, ‘The Fair Princess’ actor had been linked in various scandals over the years.