Chinese actor Wang Xing's kidnapping in Thailand affects tourism, more stories emerge

2025 began with a terrifying celebrity story. After Wang Xing was reported missing in Thailand on January 5, a highly publicized manhunt led to the Chinese actor being located on January 8. Here's an overview of what happened and how this has already impacted Thailand and Myanmar's reputation for tourists.

All images in the gallery are from Weibo unless otherwise stated.

Chinese actor Wang Xing was born on November 3, 1993, and started his career as an actor in 2015.

According to Baidu, Wang Xing had quite the strong starting point as an actor, as he was cast in one of Chinese entertainment's most iconic movies, 'Ip Man 3', in 2025.

The report from Baidu continues that despite playing a minor role in 'Ip Man 3', acting in the film managed to pave many doors for the actor, who soon landed role after role and was climbing the ranks as an actor.

Some of Wang Xing's notable works include the TV series 'The Unparalleled National Society' where he played a lead role and 'Fox Spirit Matchmaker: Red-Moon Pact' where he starred alongside big names like Yang Mi and Gong Jun!

Image: iQiyi

In his personal life, Wang Xin was reported by Sohu to have been dating a non-celebrity named Jia Jia. The pair have been dating for about three years, and it was thanks to Jia Jia that the case of Wang Xing's disappearance in Thailand was brought to national attention.

According to Yahoo, Jia Jia brought Wang Xing's disappearance to public attention by creating a Weibo account on January 5 and asking netizens for help in finding her partner, as well as seeking assistance from Chinese officials. Her post gained national attention and intensified the issue, as worldwide news outlets caught on to the case as well.

According to Sohu, Jia Jia had posted a detailed account of Wang Xing's trip to Thailand, where the actor flew in to Bangkok on January 3 to respond to a casting call for a potential acting gig. The actor had last posted on his socials on the same day. His location sharing showed that he was last located by the Thai-Myanmar border. Then, it was suddenly cut off.

After losing contact with Wang Xing, Jia Jia and Wang Xing's brother contacted Chinese authorities for help, Sohu reports. However, Chinese authorities advised the two to report the case directly to the Mae Sot police in Thailand.

Global Times reports that at the time of his disappearance, Wang Xing was last seen in the Burmese region of Myawaddy along the Thai-Burmese border. Another Global Times report states that, due to where he was last seen, Thai police determined that Wang Xing may have been a victim of human trafficking.

The fact that Myawaddy was Wang Xing's last known location was concerning, as the Bangkok Post reports that the region is "an area known for large-scale criminal enterprises and human trafficking by organized gangs."

In the end, the actor was found safe, despite the harrowing circumstances of his captivity and the fact that Wang was forced to shave his head.

A report from Reuters states that while in captivity, Wang Xing was being trained to scam fellow Chinese citizens. According to several news outlets, the area has a reputation for trafficking people to work in fraudulous operations.

According to the Bangkok Post, the people behind Wang Xing's predicament were Chinese nationals. 8days added more information, stating that the mastermind of the kidnapping was based in China's Guangdong province.

8days continues the report by stating that the mastermind had orchestrated the trafficking with other Chinese nationals through a legitimate company in Thailand called 'Apollo Glory'. The company "was suspected to be involved in the illegal procurement of labor."

Despite the fact that the perpetrators were Chinese nationals, the events in Thailand may affect its reputation as a safe tourist country, the Bangkok Post reports. Wang Xing has insisted that Thailand is still a safe country to visit despite his ordeal, but the incident could impact Thailand's tourism industry.

Lifestyle Asia reported that Thailand had suffered a dip in tourism levels from Chinese nationals after the release of the Chinese film 'No More Bets' in 2023. In the film, the topic of trafficking and scam centers was described, raising awareness of such crimes in Thailand, Myanmar, and Cambodia.

Image: Dirty Monkeys

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Despite the public announcement that Thailand remains a safe country to visit from the victim, Wang Xing, himself, Thai PBS World reports that the incident had some repercussions for Thailand's tourism in the immediate aftermath, including a cancelled performance.

The same report from Thai PBS World reports that Hong Kong singer and actor, Eason Chan, decided to cancel his upcoming February in Thailand following the incident due to "safety concerns".

The cancellation of Eason Chan's concert is significant because it was sold out prior to its cancellation, and the singer's team has also issued a travel advisory warning to fans who may still be travelling to Thailand following the incident to be "cautious", "careful and discerning" while in the country, according to The Straits Times.

Following the incident, more light has been shed on the gravity and scale of these kidnapping cases, as the BBC reports that many others in the Chinese film industry have come out with their own accounts of having been "duped by scammers offering them jobs in Thailand".

According to the BBC, authorities are looking into the whereabouts of another missing Chinese model. Sohu also reports that netizens have theorised that actor He Junmin and model Yang Zeqi, who both earlier travelled to Thailand with the promise of work, were most likely kidnapped and forced to work for such scam centres.