Remember the days when Amos Yee was cancelled for his notorious YouTube video? Or when the internet had a field day (multiple, actually) with Leonard Teo and his Nasi Lemak?
Keyboard warriors will be elated to hear this: the threshold to cancel someone just got a whole lot lower.
All it takes now to come under fire, is just to take a puff.
The Duality of Man, or in this case Angelababy
33-year-old Hong Kong model and actress Angela Yeung Wing, known more commonly by her stage name Angelababy, is facing criticism for smoking at a private gathering.
Fashion blogger Bingo Hu posted a short video on Weibo showing Angelababy smoking while having a conversation with her friends. The video charted over 100 million views in less than a day, and attracted an army of pseudo-parents disapproving of the actress’ actions.
Apparently, the actress’ fans find it upsetting that she would be ruining her “pure and sweet” image by smoking. Perhaps she’s allowed to have multiple sides to her in films and dramas, but simply not in real life.
Fans also criticised Angelababy as the viral video might set a bad example, given that objectively, she is a high-profile celebrity with over a hundred million followers on Weibo.
At one point in her career, the actress was even dubbed the “Weibo Goddess” and “Weibo Queen”.
This “pure and sweet” image was heralded by Angelababy ever since she rose to fame in her teens as a model. Her career was later on developed mostly in China as an actress, starring in a variety of films and television series.
The Prequel
Yet, even prior to this incident, Angelababy was already seen smoking several times.
Wait, several might be an understatement.
When the actress was still a 19-year-old small time model back in 2008, she had already picked up her first stick.
Along the years, although the actress was quoted multiple times to want to quit smoking, she was oftentimes still seen smoking, even after becoming a mother.
Maybe it’s the stress of parenthood—milk powder is so overpriced (at least according to Singaporeans).
The actress gave birth to her currently 5-year-old son when she was married to Huang Xiaoming. Her former marriage with Huang, a Chinese actor 12 years older than her, was China’s version of David and Victoria Beckham—everyone had to know about them.
It was one of the highest profile celebrity relationships in China, with their wedding banquet purportedly being one of the most luxurious in Chinese history. Maybe they finally served something other than shark’s fin soup or abalone with sea cucumber.
Naturally, the couple’s split in January this year became one of the biggest stories in China, throwing Angelababy back into the spotlight once more.
Undoubtedly, being a celebrity in the limelight comes with its benefits and drawbacks.
Nonetheless, if you’re a cigarette enthusiast considering a career in showbiz, perhaps the wiser choice is to stick to filming TikToks in your room.
Featured Image: Weibo