THE recent spate of criticisms aimed at Zhang Ziyi's role in upcoming Hollywood thriller, The Horsemen, might lead to the film being banned in China.
The Chinese actress came under fire recently from Chinese netizens who spoke out about her portrayal of an alleged serial killer who, according to Oriental Daily, was reportedly "ravaged" by a Caucasian male in one scene and kneels before American actor Dennis Quaid in another.
After watching these scenes, netizens claim that the roles were demeaning and called for the movie to be banned in China.
Conversely, fans of Ziyi defended her and said that she was doing the country proud by accepting roles in Hollywood. They also said that she was merely playing the part as an actor.
This is not the first time the 30-year-old actress has been labelled as a "traitor".
She was first criticised four years ago for her role in another Hollywood movie, Memoirs of a Geisha.
But it did not stop there. Early this year, Chinese netizens were again outraged by semi-nude pictures of Ziyi sunbathing at a private beach with fiance Vivi Nevo.
She was called a "shameless woman" and berated for "behaving badly".
Strong reactions from Chinese netizens and fans could affect the decisions of China's film censorship board as to whether the movie would be released at all.
This was exactly what happened to Memoirs of a Geisha - it was banned in China for fear of anti-Japanese reaction as netizens called her "the prostitute of the Japanese".
Such controversy from the Chinese Internet community could see The Horsemen following the same fate as Memoirs of a Geisha.
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Ziyi's rude antics exposed
Japanese entertainment magazine Jyosei Jishin carried an exposè of Zhang Ziyi's allegedly boorish behaviour in the air.
As reported in Shin Min Daily, a Japanese air stewardess spilled the beans on her encounters with the international star after being subject to her rudeness and difficult demands more than once.
The stewardess said that she was very excited when she first met the star on one of her flights, but soon grew disenchanted with her imperious behaviour.
On one particularly memorable ten-hour flight to London, the 30-year-old actress requested for instant noodles three times, on top of the meals provided by the airline.
Each time, she simply tasted two or three mouthfuls before putting down her chopsticks. She then lifted her chin to indicate that she wanted the noodles to be cleared away.
The stewardess also said that the actress sat with one foot on the seat when eating her noodles, with total disregard for decorum.
She says that the Chinese beauty also expects the flight crew to bring her bags down from the luggage rack when she alights, and her diva-esque attitude is the subject of many complaints by the flight crew.
When contacted, her manager replied in an sms that "Ziyi does not eat instant noodles".
Zhang Ziyi is no stranger to controversy and has repeatedly raised the ire of the Chinese public. The most recent being her role in Hollywood thriller "The Horseman" which was criticised by her countrymen as "degrading" for Asians.
Earlier this year, Chinese netizens were also outraged by nude photos of her at the beach with her Israeli fiance Vivi Nevo.
She was recently named one of the 100 most influential people in the world by Time magazine.
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WATCH ZHANG'S COMPLETE BEACH SCANDAL WITH NEVO - CLICK HERE
