Nobody has seen 36-year-old Chinese movie star/fashion icon Fan Bingbing in more than two months, following a tax evasion scandal in her home country in which she was accused of having “yin-yang contracts” (more on THAT in a moment).
The actress – who starred as Blink in The X-Men movies – has wiped her social media clean (or has HAD her social media WIPED FOR HER), and that has fans speculating that she’s been taken into the custody of the Chinese government, or that she’s fled to LA seeking asylum.
via The Cut:
[The Chinese] government has repeatedly cracked down on top actors, aiming to temper high salaries and lavish lifestyles that supposedly corrupt the country’s youth. One of the ways in which film regulators do this is by imposing heavy taxes on high earners.
In July, a TV host leaked documents revealing that a major celebrity had allegedly dodged taxes, and the internet instantly gathered evidence to suggest it was Fan — China’s highest-paid actress. The report detailed a scheme involving “yin-yang contracting,” a commonplace but very illegal practice in which production companies give actors two pay contracts: In addition to their true (hefty) paycheck, they’re given a smaller one to submit to tax authorities. According to the leaked docs, Fan tried to claim $1.56 million, or 10 million in Chinese yuan, for four days of work on an upcoming Chinese film, when she was actually paid an additional $7.8 million — RMB 50 million.
So what happened to her?
Recently, a state-run Chinese publication called Securities Daily reported that Fan has been placed “under control” by the government, and that she would “accept the legal decision.” The story quickly went viral, before it was removed hours later with no explanation.
Another, less reputable publication, Apple Daily, reported that the actress was in a Los Angeles immigration office, writing that she had taken the advice of Jackie Chan to seek asylum in the U.S. Fan’s reps say those reports are “nonsense.”
Whatever the case, her name has reportedly been wiped from promos for her upcoming war film, Unbreakable Spirit, with Bruce Willis and Adrien Brody. And her participation in the upcoming film with Jessica Chastain and Lupita Nyong’o – the thriller 355 –is also now in jeopardy.
(Photos: Avalon Red)
