Advertisement

No explanation as China’s billionaire actress Zhao Wei blacklisted from Chinese internet

  • Besides acting, Zhao Wei was a successful businesswoman, transforming her into a billionaire
  • The lack of explanation for Zhao’s censorship has fuelled rumours about the motivation

Reading Time:3 minutes
Why you can trust SCMP
34
Zhao Wei was thoroughly censored on the Chinese internet on Thursday evening. Photo: Reuters
Mandy Zuoin Shanghai

China’s billionaire actress Zhao Wei appears to have been blacklisted by the government, and her entire internet presence was scrubbed for unknown reasons on Thursday evening.

Advertisement
Zhao’s name was removed from all television series, films, short videos and promotional materials from platforms such as Tencent Video, iQiyi and Youku.

The shows are still available with her scenes remaining intact, but any descriptions of her involvement were removed. Zhao shot to fame for her role in My Fair Princess , one of the most successful Chinese television shows of all time that ran from 1998 to 1999.

Zhao Wei leveraged her acting career to become one of China’s most successful businesswomen. Photo: Wanlimu
Zhao Wei leveraged her acting career to become one of China’s most successful businesswomen. Photo: Wanlimu

A hashtag that allowed fans of Zhao to share information about her on Weibo, called a Chaohua, was also censored.

Advertisement

So far, there has been no official explanation as to why she has become a target of such thorough censorship. The lack of information has sparked online speculation about possible motivations.

Advertisement