Award Banner
Award Banner

Actress Gong Li reportedly giving up Singapore citizenship

Actress Gong Li reportedly giving up Singapore citizenship
Gong Li, who married Singaporean tycoon Ooi Hoe Seong in 1996, was granted Singapore citizenship in 2008.
PHOTO: Reuters file

SINGAPORE - Actress Gong Li is said to be giving up Singapore citizenship, after reportedly being blacklisted by the Chinese government for holding a foreign passport.

The 55-year-old is allegedly renouncing her citizenship due to sweeping crackdowns on the Chinese entertainment industry and reapplying to be a Chinese citizen, according to rumours which began circulating on the Internet last week.

These rumours come in the wake of Hong Kong actor Nicholas Tse renouncing his Canadian citizenship last month. Famed Chinese director Chen Kaige's son, actor Arthur Chen Feiyu, who was born in the United States, also renounced his US citizenship in August.

Tse and Gong were both on a rumoured blacklist of artistes who hold foreign citizenship.

Top Chinese actress Vicki Zhao, who was abruptly erased from the Internet in China in August, was also said to be on this list as she is a Singapore permanent resident.

Gong, who married Singaporean tycoon Ooi Hoe Seong in 1996, was granted Singapore citizenship in 2008.

The internationally renowned star of movies such as Raise The Red Lantern (1991) and Memoirs Of A Geisha (2005) retained citizenship even after the couple's divorce in 2009.

She subsequently remarried French electronic musician Jean-Michel Jarre that same year and now lives in France.

The latest rumour was greeted with cheers by Chinese netizens, who welcomed her back after years of jeers at her for turning her back on her country.

However, on local forums, there were snide remarks from Singaporeans about her using Singapore as a stepping stone while not contributing to the country, as well as jokes that she can now withdraw her CPF in full.

Others wondered if martial arts star Jet Li, who also holds Singapore citizenship, will be next to give it up.

READ ALSO: Gong Li secretly marries 70-year-old French composer

This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required before reproduction.

homepage

trending

trending
    'PSP for Pole-Struck Politicians': Netizens get creative after party founder Tan Cheng Bock almost gets hit by carpark barrier
    GE2025: 5 highlights from Nomination Day
    GE2025 Nomination Day: All the successfully nominated candidates for all 33 constituencies
    'This election is going to be a tough contest': PM Wong as Nomination Day wraps up
    GE2025: Candidates post heartfelt tributes to family on Nomination Day
    COE prices end mixed in second bidding for April 2025, with Cat A and E seeing a slight increase
    10 things to know about Heng Swee Keat
    GE2025: PAP wins Marine Parade-Braddell Heights GRC in walkover
    Pritam Singh to lead Aljunied GRC, Faisal Manap moves to Tampines
    GE2025: West Coast-Jurong West GRC sees rematch between PAP and PSP
    Taiwanese actor Jeremy Huang, known for appearance on Mr Con & Ms Csi, dies at 31
    Local brands like Ann Chin Popiah and Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice to open at 5-star hotel in Macau

Singapore

Singapore
    • GE2025: WP to defend Sengkang GRC against PAP
    • '2 potential office holders': Shanmugam to lead PAP team for Nee Soon GRC with 4 new faces
    • 'He was a champion of unity and hope': Singapore Archdiocese pays moving tribute to Pope Francis on his passing
    • 'I decided to devote more time to my family': East Coast GRC MP Cheryl Chan retires after serving a decade in politics
    • GE2025: Where the rallies are on April 24
    • GE2025: 'No credible opposition' party in Radin Mas, says independent candidate Darryl Lo
    • GE2025: WP, NSP and PPP challenge PAP in Tampines GRC's four-corner fight
    • GE2025: Edwin Tong to lead PAP team against WP in East Coast GRC
    • GE2025: Gan Kim Yong to helm PAP team in new Punggol GRC, Harpreet to lead WP
    • GE2025: Five things to look out for on Nomination Day

Entertainment

Entertainment
    • 'You see how deep the water is': Darren Lim carries son on his shoulders through Bukit Timah flash floods on April 20
    • Desmond Tan recounts challenges of playing twins with polar personalities in new drama
    • Gossip mill: Elvin Ng and other celebs to play charity football match, Sora Ma becomes Singapore citizen, Elva Hsiao 80% recovered after hip fracture
    • Japanese star Mizuki Itagaki found dead at 24, months after going missing
    • Tom Hanks has started working on Toy Story 5
    • Hailey Bieber reveals she has 2 ovarian cysts
    • Spike Lee cast A$AP Rocky in his new movie after seeing meme comparing him to Denzel Washington
    • Kristen Stewart and Dylan Meyer tie the knot
    • Sean 'Diddy' Combs loses bid to delay sex-trafficking trial
    • 'Allow yourself to feel grief: Ed Sheeran says there's no magic cure for depression

Lifestyle

Lifestyle
    • 'It hurts, losing everything': Mentai-Ya boss closes all remaining stalls after $550k losses in 2 years
    • Kenny Rogers Roasters now has an all-you-can-eat buffet for $28.90++, here's a sneak peek at the menu
    • This new American malt shop along Joo Chiat Road looks like it came straight out of a Wes Anderson film
    • Cinema-themed Korean restaurant opens at Changi Airport with banchan and ice-cream buffet
    • Electrifying business: Mercedes-Benz launches 3 new electric vans in Singapore
    • Books Kinokuniya to open new outlet at Raffles City this August
    • Fashion meets sustainability: A sneak peek at 2nd Street outlet in Orchard, opening on April 29
    • The Coconut Club has a new restaurant inspired by an 'overlooked' fruit, here's what to expect
    • Four Star celebrates 57th anniversary with premium mattresses from $570 and bedframes at just $57
    • On this day in 1981, the Vanda Miss Joaquim was declared Singapore's national flower

Digicult

Digicult
    • A $500 wake-up call: How the Samsung Galaxy Ring made me realise my stress
    • Monster Hunter Wilds producer explains how game has remained unique and fresh over 20 years
    • Google Pixel 9a: The best AI-centric phone under $800 in 2025?
    • Western intelligence agencies warn spyware threat targeting Taiwan, Tibetan rights advocates
    • Taiwan says China using generative AI to ramp up disinformation and 'divide' the island
    • Russian court fines Telegram app for refusal to remove anti-government content, TASS reports
    • One Beijing man's quest to keep cooking — and connecting with Americans — on camera
    • Nintendo Switch 2 to launch in June with US$449.99 price tag
    • Games in April: RPGs, racing and Ronaldo in a fighting game
    • Is it time to get a MacBook at a good price? The M4 MacBook Air says yes

Money

Money
    • Giant deal: Malaysian company to acquire Cold Storage and Giant supermarket chains in Singapore
    • China warns countries against striking trade deals with US at its expense
    • Why we bought a $960k 2-bedder condo at Penrose during Covid-19: A buyer's case study
    • Why are recently MOP-ed 3-room HDB flats in Yishun fetching top prices?
    • Should you buy a freehold or leasehold condo in 2025? Here's the surprising better performer
    • Chinatown merchants in the US are feeling the bite of tariffs
    • From Xiaxue's executive flat to Bishan's million-dollar flat: What's behind the price surge of 4-room HDB flats?
    • DPM Gan unveils task force to tackle impact of US tariffs on Singapore, warns of a 'more unstable and fragmented world'
    • South Korea, Vietnam pledge co-operation as US tariffs loom
    • Macau's leader warns world's biggest gambling hub could face a budget deficit

Latest

Latest
  • India calls all-party meet, summons top Pakistani diplomat after Kashmir attack on tourists
  • South Korea expressed concern over Chinese structure in disputed area of sea
  • New Jersey wildfire could become state's largest in nearly 20 years
  • South Korea prosecutors indict ex-president Moon Jae-in for bribery
  • Aid funding disrupts child vaccinations almost as much as pandemic, says UN
  • Powerful earthquake shakes Istanbul, dozens hurt jumping from buildings
  • Earthquake of magnitude 6.02 strikes Turkey, GFZ says
  • Militants in Indian Kashmir segregate men from women and children before opening fire
  • Trump and Zelenskiy clash again and US warns it could abandon Ukraine talks

In Case You Missed It

In Case You Missed It
  • Pope Francis died after suffering stroke and cardiac arrest: Vatican
  • GE2025: Why this 32-year-old is setting up a political party to contest East Coast GRC
  • Two men fight each other at Johor checkpoint over allegation of cutting queue, probe on
  • Pair narrowly escape death after driving off incomplete highway in Indonesia while following Google Maps
  • Ex-MP Lee Bee Wah introduces former MDDI director Goh Hanyan as potential candidate to Nee Soon residents
  • Robert Ng, son of late billionaire Ng Teng Fong, and 3 children to be designated as 'politically significant persons'
  • 'She should be with her family': Employer gives maid plane ticket, $800 to return to Myanmar and search for missing mum
  • 'He needed something to help him fight,' says man who bought Hokkien mee for dying patient
  • Thai woman struggles to evacuate during earthquake while her dog sleeps unfazed
This website is best viewed using the latest versions of web browsers.