Chinese Director Zhang Jizhong, 70, Complains About “Little Fresh Meat”; Netizens Remind Him He “Abandoned” His Wife For A Woman 31 Years His Junior
His current wife is reportedly four years younger than his eldest daughter from his first marriage.
They say it takes a village to raise a child.
Turns out, it takes one to manage a celebrity too, judging from the entourages that have been seen following them around — much to the chagrin of Nicholas Tse, who once complained about stars who want to come onto his cooking show with a small army of assistants.
Nic’s certainly not alone in his annoyance with unnecessarily large posses.
Renowned Chinese director Zhang Jizhong, 70, recently sat down for an interview, where he aired his grievances about actors who “put on airs” even when they’re at work.
Zhang Jizhong is known for wuxia classics like 2003’s The Legend of the Condor Heroes
According to Jizhong, he had his fair share of experiences with such ‘divas’ during his time as a producer, and would sometimes receive requests like: “I want to bring my mother, my children, my dog, and my assistants, so I will need six rooms and a few cars.”
He said he would immediately reject such demands, and accused such characters of “forgetting their own surnames” (basically, they’re so arrogant and full of themselves that they’ve forgotten who they are).
Jizhong also got candid about the oversaturation of “little fresh meat” (a term used to describe handsome young men) in showbiz, who have supposedly ‘stolen’ all the jobs from older veteran actors and “destroyed the ecology of the entire industry”.
He sure doesn’t mince his words
Not everyone agreed with his latter point, saying that older artistes should also be supportive of younger ones.
Others criticised Jizhong for having the cheek to say so much about young people when he himself has been embroiled in numerous scandals of his own.
One pointed out that someone like him who “abandoned his wife and kids” and “likes much younger women” would be blacklisted today, and yet he was recently able to participate in a live stream auction with current wife Du Xinglin, who is 31 years his junior.
Jizhong with his third wife and their two kids
Despite being a well-respected figure in the film industry, Jizhong has also raised eyebrows with his personal life.
In December 2016, he divorced his second wife and married Xinglin just a few months later. The couple has a two-year-old son and one-year-old daughter, and Jizhong has two older children from his previous relationships.
His eldest daughter from his first marriage has been identified as Zhang Yuxin, who is the CEO of a media company and is reportedly four years older than her stepmother Xinglin.
Du Xinglin doesn’t seem to care about the age gap with her husband, though
Photos: Zhang Jizhong/Weibo and Douyin, 网易娱乐频道/Weibo
Related Stories
Shopping
