Eleanor Lee’s Ex Assistant Admits To Faking Audio Clip Of Actress Insulting Mainland Chinese

After all the controversy and drama caused by an alleged leaked voice clip of Singaporean actress Eleanor Lee bad-mouthing Mainland Chinese, a person who claims to be the star’s former assistant has said the recording was fabricated. 

The assistant, who revealed their identity as Xiao Pang, posted on Weibo today (May 21): “After receiving criticism and education from the public security authorities, I have come to deeply realise that maliciously editing, combining, and fabricating an audio recording in which Ms Eleanor Lee allegedly ‘insulted Chinese people,’ and spreading such false information, is suspected of breaking the law and has caused severe damage to Ms Eleanor Lee’s reputation.”

Xiao Pang also apologised to Eleanor, 25, and urged the public to stop spreading the false rumours.

In a detailed statement, the former assistant explained that they worked with Eleanor from 2017 to 2019, mainly handling her film and TV projects.

“Due to many unresolved disputes when ending my employment with the previous company, I felt I had been treated unfairly and, before leaving, secretly recorded conversations involving Eleanor,” they said.

The assistant admitted that they intended to use the edited and falsified recordings as leverage in negotiations.

The statement went on to explain that from 2019 to 2024, the assistant failed to reach any settlement with the company and was even blocked by company contacts. In 2024, after seeing news about Eleanor online, they became emotionally unstable again.

“I felt my grievances had not been addressed and was criticised by some fans during online conversations. So in July 2024, I shared the edited and falsified recording in a company-fan chat group and, in a moment of impulse, fabricated additional content.”

The assistant admitted their actions were partly driven by personal resentment and they had also hoped to restart communication with the company.

“I thought that being vague would exempt me from any real consequences. I never expected my reckless behavior to escalate into such a serious incident and cause such harm to Ms Eleanor Lee’s reputation,” they said.

The assistant acknowledged that Eleanor is talented and hardworking and “never had any negative sentiment toward China or the Chinese people”.

“She definitely did not say the things I spliced into that recording,” the assistant stressed.

Following Xiao Pang’s admission, Eleanor has released a video on her socials, saying she has filed a police report and is fully cooperating with the investigation.

She wrote: “According to the authorities’ investigation, the so-called ‘Eleanor Lee insults Chinese people’ audio was illegally recorded by my former assistant during a labour dispute with my previous agency. The audio was then maliciously edited and fabricated using clips from everyday conversations.”

She reiterated her position: “I was born in Taiwan, China, and returned to the Mainland at the age of 16 to study and live. It has been 10 years now. My feelings and stance toward China have never wavered. I have always supported the One China principle, and I would never say anything that insults China or the Chinese people.”