China’s highest-paid actress has the lowest sense of social responsibility among her peers, according to a new ranking.
Fan Bingbing (范冰冰), 36, has been accused of dodging at least 500 million yuan (£56 million) in taxes and has mysteriously vanished from public sight since July.
Latest reports from China claimed the ‘Queen of the Silver Screen’ had been detained by Beijing over the tax evasion claims and is not likely to return to her acting career.
Fan Bingbing, the ‘Queen of the Silver Screen’ in China, has come last on a social responsbility ranking after being accused of dodging at least 500 million yuan (£56 million) of tax money
The superstar has been a household name in China for 20 years and tasted Hollywood success with a role in the 2014 blockbuster ‘X-Men: Days of Future Past’.
She is one of the highest-paid actresses in the world. Her earnings are on par with – if not more than – Hollywood celebrities, such as Emma Stone, Jennifer Aniston and Jennifer Lawrence.
Last year, she dominated Forbes magazine’s list of top-earning Chinese celebrities with income of 300 million yuan (£33 million), according to Forbes China.
However, the once hugely popular star was placed last in a new academic report which ranks A-list celebrities on their social responsibility.
The 36-year-old actress has not been seen in public since July, following claims of tax evasion
In the report published by Beijing Normal University earlier this month, 100 Chinese stars were ranked according to their professional work, charity work and personal integrity.
Other celebrities featured by the list included Kung Fu actor Jackie Chan who ranked 42nd and ‘Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon’ actress Zhang Ziyi who was placed 48th.
But with a pass requiring a score of more than 60 percent, only nine celebrities made the cut. Chinese actor Xu Zheng topped the list at 78 per cent.
Fan had a score of zero.
The report’s authors said they studied the celebrities’ behaviour to assess the extent of their social responsibility, but did not elaborate how they arrived at the results, saying that the findings were based on ‘research and web-scraping’.
The list also included Kung Fu star Jackie Chan (left) and famous actress Zhang Ziyi (right)
The ranking has split fans online, with many jumping to Fan’s defence.
‘What kind of a report is this? Fan has done so much good work in the past!’ One user wrote on the Twitter-like Weibo platform.
Fan has been unusually quiet in recent months – with no new posts to her normally active personal Weibo account since May – amid speculation about her whereabouts.
A report published by China’s Stocks Daily last Thursday claimed that Fan had been ‘under the control of the authority’ and would ‘face legal punishment’.
Another report, by Taiwan’s ETtoday, said last Friday that Fan had already been detained, quoting insiders close to the matters. The report also said that the power woman would face a bleak future.
The actress’s troubles began when Cui Yongyuan, a former presenter for state-run China Central Television (CCTV), posted purported contracts online in May that suggested she had received under-the-table payments.
A statement released by Fan’s studio said she was the victim of ‘slander’ but did not dispute the authenticity of the documents Cui released.
So-called ‘yin and yang’ dual contract arrangements – with one contract for income declared to tax authorities and another kept secret – are reportedly used to evade taxes.
Fan has been a household name in China for 20 years and tasted Hollywood success in 2014
After the documents posted by Cui went viral, the state tax administration was reportedly investigating alleged use of such dual contracts in the entertainment industry in eastern Jiangsu province.
Although Fan was not mentioned by name, she has businesses registered in Jiangsu.
State news agency Xinhua reported in late June that government agencies, including the tax authority and the film and broadcast regulator, would crack down on excessive pay and tax evasion in entertainment.
Last month, nearly a dozen major Chinese film producers and video sites announced they also would boycott ‘unreasonable’ pay for actors.
Fan is one of five leading international actresses cast in the upcoming Hollywood spy thriller ‘355’, alongside Jessica Chastain and Penelope Cruz.
But Singapore-based Chinese newspaper Zaobao reported that all of Fan’s upcoming roles including the one in ‘355’ were expected to be replaced amid the actress’s tax evasion scandal.
Neither the Chinese authorities nor Fan has released comments on the matters.
Who are the highest paid actors and actresses in China?
Chinese actress Fan Bingbing and singer and actor Lu Han are among the highest paid celebrities in China, according to Forbes
Here are the top five highest paid celebrities in China last year, according to Forbes China. The list also takes into account their popularity, commercial value and media exposure.
1. Fan Bingbing (范冰冰), actress, 300 million yuan (£33 million)
2. Lu Han (鹿晗), actor and singer, 210 million yuan (£23 million)
3. Yang Mi (杨幂), actress, 200 million yuan (£22 million)
4. Zhao Liying (赵丽颖), actress, 190 million yuan (£21 million)
5. Yang Yang (杨洋), actor, 240 million yuan (£27 million)