HE made his name from the Taiwanese idol drama serial Meteor Garden in 2001, and got fans in the region hooked on the ‘F4 phenomenon’. Seven years on, Vic Chou wants to dump his teenybopper idol image. The youngest F4 member told The New Paper on Friday: ‘It was okay if I was young and raw seven years ago. But at every stage of your life, you must know what you should do.
‘My work is maturing as I am. At the very least, I know I’m not repeating the same things that I have done when I was 19.’
For one, Vic is ditching idol drama serials for movies. Idol drama serials are known for their young, good-looking cast, formulaic romantic plot, and are targeted at a female fan base. Vic, popularly known as Zai Zai, is making his big screen debut in the Johnnie To film Linger, which opens in cinemas here on Thursday .
He said: ‘My aim has been to establish my acting foundations in television first before I head towards movies.
‘Coincidentally, two years ago, just as I felt I was ready (for movies), director To approached me about working together.’
Vic, who will turn 27 in June, plays a university student who dies in a road accident after a tiff with his girlfriend, played by China actress Li Bingbing. His spirit lingers as he is unable to let go of his past.
For his debut film, Vic had to lie in a coffin, make out with Bingbing in bed, and also show off a topless, badly scarred body.
‘There was no pressure because I enjoy challenging things,’ he said. ‘If something doesn’t bring me excitement, I will be bored.’
And bored he is with idol drama serials, though he acknowledged they launched his showbusiness career. Besides the spectacularly successful Meteor Garden, he has appeared in serials such as Poor Prince, Love Storm and Mars. Recent shows include Hana Kimi, It Started With A Kiss, Why Why Love and Romantic Princess, which have all made stars of relative newcomers like Wu Chun, Mike He, Joseph Cheng and Danson Tang.
It’s all over the top, according to Vic, who lamented: ‘If production teams can’t think of anything, they’ll resort to churning out idol drama serials, and making a killing out of them.
‘They are thinking short term. But if we keep repeating the same formula, audience taste and production quality will never improve.
‘Artistes can get famous but they can’t stay famous for long.’
TV STILL ON
Still, Vic is not going to turn his back on TV.
‘Several years ago, people told me to stop making TV drama serials and to head to the big screen. But I feel that is belittling the importance of TV,’ he said.
When he returns to Taiwan, he will wrap up filming the new serial Wish To See You Again which was commissioned by Taiwan’s Tourism Bureau. He plays a cab driver in the drama.
His recent drama serial, Sweet Relationship, in which he plays an aloof chef, is showing on E City (StarHub Channel 56, Saturdays, 7pm).
Next, he is looking forward to working with Tsai Yueh Hsun, director of Mars, on Gangster Hero, a drama serial about cops.
The two also intend to make a serial based on the classic novel Romance Of The Three Kingdoms. This has nothing to do with the upcoming Hong Kong movies Red Cliff, and Three Kingdoms: Resurrection Of The Dragon, both based on stories of the Three Kingdoms.
Vic said: ‘Director Tsai had thought of the concept before news of the two movies broke.
‘For my first period drama, I definitely want to star in one based on the Three Kingdoms.’
While the actor sees himself playing the role of Zhao Yun, the courageous military general serving warlord Liu Bei, his director thinks he is more suited to play the strategist Zhuge Liang.
‘Most people would be excited to be asked to play Zhuge Liang but I was shocked and disappointed,’ joked Vic.
‘I’ve always used Zhao Yun’s character to play war strategy electronic games, I’ve never used Zhuge Liang!
‘Now I can’t fulfil my dream of leading an army to war. So I asked the director if Zhuge Liang could ride a horse, but he said no.’
SOLO OR GROUP’
On the music front, Vic recently released a solo album titled I’m Not F4.
But just as he seemed to be trying to shake off his F4 past, he and his group have also just launched a new album, Waiting For You.
Ironic to be taking a jab at his F4 past and then milking it for all it’s worth’
Not at all, said Vic.
He explained that Jay Chou wrote the title track to show his other sides.
‘F4 seems like a distant entity to fans. I prefer to have a closer relationship with my fans,’ he added.
He also recalled his F4 buddies appearing at his autograph session that had a big banner hanging from the stage with his album title flashed across.
‘They turned around and looking at the banner, jibed ‘Hey, this fellow says he’s not F4′.
‘Why do I dare to play with this’ It’s black humour,’ he said with a chuckle.
But when it comes to talk about Barbie Hsu, his actress-compere girlfriend of three years, Vic’s all serious.
There were recent reports that a Taiwanese fortune-teller had predicted that the couple will tie the knot within two years.
News from Hong Kong also quoted him as saying that there will be a ‘breakthrough’ in his relationship with Barbie next year.
Is He Proposing’
Fiddling and twisting the huge silver ring, engraved with the letter ‘S’ (Barbie, 32, is popularly known as ‘Big S’), sitting on his left ring finger, he put a dampener to the news.
He said: ‘No one can make accurate predictions about relationships. I won’t deny what predictions others want to make for me. But I have no such plans for now.’[by evodrift]
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