Beijing Pops: Kris Wu Formally Arrested, Director Denis Villeneuve Joins Douban

Feeling left out when your Chinese colleagues are gossiping about a trending star? Puzzled by those glamorous Chinese faces in subway ads, but can't even tell who they are? Beijing Pops will help you get through it all with the latest pop culture and celebrity news.

Kris Wu was formally arrested

After spending two weeks in detention following his arrest on suspicion of rape charges and having sexual relations with minors, Chinese-Canadian pop star Kris Wu was formally arrested on Monday. At 8.30pm, Chaoyang Procuratorate posted a terse, one-sentence statement reading, “On August 16, 2021, the People’s Procuratorate of Chaoyang District, Beijing approved the arrest of the criminal suspect Wu Mou Fan on suspicion of rape.” Of course, as soon as the news was released it shot to the top of Weibo's trending charts, with some netizens commenting that it's “a great victory of the #metoo movement in China.”

Director of Blade Runner 2049 greets Chinese audiences on China's movie rating website

Last Friday, Canadian director Denis Villeneuve opened an account on China’s movie-rating and social media platform Douban, surprising film fans across the country. Apparently, the move was part of a marketing campaign for his latest movie, Dune, an adaption of the iconic sci-fi novel by US author Frank Herbert. “My latest movie, Dune, is coming to China soon, and I am very excited to see my childhood dream come true on the big screen,” wrote Villeneuve in his first post. Known to Chinese audiences for his previous movies Arrival and Blade Runner 2049, the post quickly garnered a flood of likes and comments.

Dune was originally scheduled to hit US theatres in December 2020, however, it was delayed until Oct 22 due to COVID-19. It’s one of several Warner Bros films that will see a simultaneous release on the streaming platform, HBO Max. Unfortunately, a Chinese release date is yet to be announced.

Weibo removes its Celebrity Power List... for now

Kris Wu may have been formally charged, but it seems the fallout from the scandal is far from over. On Aug 6, hours after the state-run media company People’s Daily issued an editorial criticizing any platform that prioritizes traffic and creates celebrities out of “unworthy” individuals, China’s twitter-like platform Weibo announced it would drop its celebrity ranking list, in a bid to mitigate the “irrational support” some fans have shown for celebrities.

Weibo initially launched its Celebrity Power List in 2014, which ranked celebrities based on the popularity of their posts, number of followers, number of searches and mentions on the site, their social influence, and “positive energy.” To boost the numbers for their favorite idol, however, fans would register numerous Weibo accounts, post a seemingly endless stream of idol-related content, and buy VIP services in order to send more digital flowers to their idol. All of which is to say, a lot of money and effort was spent on the rankings, which sometimes escalated into fierce verbal battles between different fan groups aiming for fandom supremacy.

According to a statement released by Weibo, “The list does not fully and objectively reflect the social influence of celebrities, and it has also deviated from healthy interactions between stars and fans.” Going one step further, the company said it will update the list's standards and introduce new criteria to the rankings, which may include an evaluation of celebrities’ works.

Tuzki creator launches scholarship program for overseas students

Many of us are familiar with Tuzki, one of the most popular characters in the world of memes, however, fewer are aware of its creator, Wang Momo. Nevertheless, eager to share her success with young, aspiring artists, on Aug 5, Wang announced on social media that last year, she had launched a scholarship fund at her alma mater, California Institute of the Arts (CalArts), which aimed to help students return to campus during the pandemic. In the post, Wang explained, “I just received a report from school, informing me that my scholarship has helped four Chinese students already...Although I’ve been through a tough year too, knowing that I can help others in need really lights up the fire inside of me.”

The 36-year-old artist is known as the "mother of Tuzki," one of the hottest characters to grace just about every social media platform dating back to the early-00s. Wang created the lovable bunny while pursuing an animation degree at the Beijing Broadcasting Institute (now known as the Communication University of China). After graduating, she ventured stateside and attended CalArts, where she obtained her master's degree. As Tuzki was gradually buried beneath the sands of art history, so too did Wang fade from public view. She never stopped animating, however, and even took up a couple of new skills as a chef, tattoo artist, and in light of her recent announcement, philanthropist.

READ: Kris Wu's Sexual Scandal Became A Civil Case

Images: Weibo, Douban, Zhihu