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| Cecilia Cheung Pushes Back in Court, Says She Won’t Be “Queen of Bad Films” (Photo: Yahoo HK) |
Hong Kong star Cecilia Cheung Pak-chi returned to the High Court this week, continuing her testimony in a long-running contract dispute with former manager Yu Yuk-hing and AEG Entertainment Group Limited. The plaintiffs allege she breached her management and film contracts after receiving more than HK$41 million in advance fees for several projects that supposedly never materialised. Cheung, however, isn’t having any of it.
Arriving just after 9am in head-to-toe black, sunglasses on, mask up, and assistant in tow, the 45-year-old actress looked noticeably more composed compared to the previous day, when the pressure of repeated questioning had left her visibly shaken.
She told the court she’d barely slept for two nights due to stress, insisting that the allegations were untrue. The judge gently reminded her that repeated questions are standard courtroom practice, not an attempt to provoke her.
A fresh batch of emails was presented during the hearing, allegedly exchanged between Cecilia Cheung’s assistant Emily Chow and Yu Yuk-hing’s team. One message suggested that Cheung preferred extending her contract if suitable films weren’t available — because she didn’t want to become the so-called “queen of bad movies.”
Cecilia Cheung immediately distanced herself from that line, saying she’d never seen those email details and that the court should direct questions to Emily instead. She reaffirmed that she relies heavily on her assistant’s judgement but isn’t looped into every email chain.
She also explained her selection process for accepting roles — director, script, cast, and the overall story are her key factors. Two of the films mentioned in court, she pointed out, never even went ahead, so she couldn’t have refused them.
When the plaintiff’s lawyer pressed her about whether she’d ever made a film that flopped, Cecilia Cheung fired back with classic C-movie-queen attitude:
“What is considered a box office failure? If the media says it’s bad, does that mean I must think it’s bad? My mum thinks it’s great! Are the media your relatives?”
She also told the judge some questions felt “provocative” and difficult to answer.
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Early in her testimony, Cecilia Cheung disagreed with the suggestion that the plaintiffs couldn’t force her to take roles. Later, she conceded the point but clarified that the nature of their long-term partnership was to find suitable scripts, not to lock her into anything blindly.
On claims that Yu couldn’t get hold of her, Cecilia Cheung countered that it was him who had gone off the grid — not her.
After roughly two and a half days on the stand, she was finally excused late in the morning. When reporters asked if she felt relieved to be done, she nodded while heading straight into a waiting seven-seater vehicle.
Once Cecilia Cheung stepped out, assistant Emily Chow took over the witness hot seat.
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Prosecutors produced multiple contracts and emails, aiming to prove that she had reviewed them before presenting anything to her for signature.
Emily confirmed that she would only bring documents to Cecilia Cheung after reviewing them with Yu’s company and ensuring everything seemed fine. She also admitted there were two versions of a particular contract, though she had only seen one.
The court also touched on the past liquidation of Yu’s company. Emily recalled asking him about rumours at the time, to which he allegedly replied that only around HK$200,000 needed settling and that everything would be resolved.
She also revealed that she handled some of Cecilia Cheung’s personal tax matters — a detail that paints a clearer picture of how involved she was in the actress’s day-to-day business.
The hearing adjourned at around 4:25pm and will continue tomorrow, with Emily expected to resume her testimony.