Actress Cecilia Cheung bounces back after 2008 photo scandal with Edison Chen

Cecilia Cheung Pak-Chi (also known as Zhang Bo Zhi) is a Hong Kong actress and singer.

Cecilia Cheung was born in Hong Kong on 24 May 1980 to a Chinese-British mother and a Chinese father. Did you know that she once lived in Melbourne?

Initially a model, Cecilia Cheung was scouted by Hong Kong veteran actor-director and A-lister Stephen Chow after he saw her in a commercial. Cecilia Cheung then worked with Chow in his film, ‘King of Comedy’ in 1999, acting as a nightclub hostess.

Soon after ‘King of Comedy’, Cecilia Cheung starred in ‘Fly Me to Polaris’. It was then that the Hong Kong entertainment world learned about Cecilia Cheung’s ability as a singer. She impressively sang the theme song for the film.

Cecilia Cheung is known as one of Hong Kong’s most famous and successful (A-list) actresses. At some point she ranked among the ten highest paid Hong Kong celebrities.

In September 2006, Cecilia Cheung married fellow A-list actor Nicholas Tse. They had two sons, Lucas and Quintus, but they divorced in 2011. Cecilia Cheung has also borne another son, Marcus, in 2018. She has yet to reveal who the baby’s father is.

What caused the divorce between Cecilia Cheung and Nicolas Tse? The HuffPost reports that there were probably a variety of reasons, but many have emphasized the theory that Cheung's photo scandal in 2008 had something to do with it. The fallout from the scandal, involving Edison Chen, may have put pressure on Cheung's marriage.

(Image: Golden Harvest)

The Edison Chen photo scandal began in 2008, when countless intimate photos of the actor leaked onto the internet. On the images were also a number of famous women. Among them was Cecilia Cheung, who at the time was supposedly happily married to Nicolas Tse.

Read more about Edison Chen's scandal

HuffPost has also reported on other rumours behind the divorce, namely those surrounding the disputed paternity of Cecilia Cheung and Nicolas Tse’s eldest child, Lucas. Some sources have said that Patrick Tse, Nicolas Tse’s father, is the actual parent of the child. Others claim that Edison Chen, protagonist of Cheung's photo scandal of 2008, is Lucas's real father.

(Image: edcee300, Shanghai Film Group)

With the loss of reputation in the industry from the 2008 scandal and the divorce, the films with Cecilia Cheung bombed in the box office. Yahoo reported that Cheung was also called the “Worst Actress” on the variety show ‘Happy Couples’ after her movies flopped.

Just like any other celebrity, Cecilia Cheung has her own fair share of haters. However, she is not one to let hateful comments get her down, Channel News Asia reports. The actress always remains strong in face of criticism and credits her strong sense of confidence in pushing her to continue her work as an actress.

But it seems like Cecilia Cheung is back in the game! The actress joined in the filming of the reality TV show ‘Sisters Who Make Waves 2’, alongside a star-studded line-up of Chinese and Hong Kong female celebrities. The Star reports that, with the goal of debuting them in an all-star girl group, the show is lauded for its representation of females over 30 in the industry.

(Image: Hunan TV)

Other than her sudden comeback in ‘Sisters Who Make Waves 2’, Cecilia Cheung surprised netizens with her random and sudden name change on Weibo. 'Today' reported that the change happened on April 20 this year. The actress announced the change on the platform and further changed her Weibo handle from ‘Zhang Bo Zhi’, to ‘Zhang Bai Zhi’.

(Image: Golden Scene)

The move also puzzled close friend and fellow actress Zhang Xinyu, who also questioned Cecilia Cheung on Weibo on the name change, 'Today' reports.

(Image: Hunan TV)

Cecilia Cheung’s new name, ‘Zhang Bai Zhi’ is noted to loosely translate to mean ‘know-it-all’.

(Image: Hunan TV)

The stunt in switching to a punny name worked in Cecilia Cheung’s favour, as it was revealed the next day that she is now the new ambassador for Chinese online shopping platform 'Tmall,.' She released a promotional video showing her knowledge of the various products available in 'Tmall' on her Weibo page.

(Image: Milkyway Image (HK) Ltd.)

In light of how many in Taiwan have been flippantly changing their names to ‘Salmon Dream’ after a viral publicity stunt for free-flow sashimi, netizens were concerned about Cecilia Cheung’s name change. Several followers expressed worry about Cecilia Cheung not being able to change back to her old name if she were to regret the decision.

(Image: Golden Harvest)

Thankfully, the name change wasn’t an official and permanent move. The actress has since changed her Weibo handle back to her old name, ‘Zhang Bo Zhi’ - easing any worries netizens and fans might have had about the then irrational change.

Causing a minor stir online with her apparent name change proves that Cecilia Cheung is still a star that many C-entertainment fans remember to this day. Her star power is not to be underestimated: according to Today Online, the actress' resurgence in showbizz with 'Sisters Who Make Waves' earned her enough money to easily afford a 70 million yuan bungalow!

(Image: cecilia_pakchi_cheung / Instagram)

Although the star has been able to rehabilitate her image in the media and with audiences, it will be difficult to wash away the stench of the 2008 photo scandal. According to 8days, Edison Chen was recently seen with another ex-beau of hers, Jordan Chan. This reignited public discussion of the scandal, as the two had previously clashed over Cecilia Cheung.

(Image: Weibo)