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| Zhang Ziyi Talks About Her Daughter’s Interest in Acting. (Credits: Weibo) |
Chinese film star Zhang Ziyi made a rare public appearance in Hong Kong this week, taking home the Best Film Character of the Year award at an event hosted by the Hong Kong Screenwriters’ Guild on 10 March. The recognition came for her role as Zhan Zhoushi in the film Jiang Yuan Nong, marking another high-profile honour in the actress’s long international career.
The appearance quickly became one of the most talked-about moments of the night. Zhang Ziyi, who has not attended many public events in Hong Kong in recent years, drew a crowd of local media as she stepped into the interview area. Relaxed and in good spirits, the award-winning actress answered questions openly, touching not only on her latest project but also on her family life — including a rare update about her 10-year-old daughter Wang Xingxing, affectionately known as Xingxing.
During the conversation, Zhang revealed that her daughter appears to have inherited a hint of her mother’s performing instincts.
She said the child shows “a bit of acting talent”, though she emphasised that any future in entertainment would depend entirely on the girl’s own decision.
“I asked her once if she was interested in becoming an actress, and she seemed to like the idea,” Zhang Ziyi said in the interview. “But I think everything should happen naturally.”
The actress made it clear she has no intention of pushing Xingxing into the spotlight as a child star. According to Zhang, the family prefers to let the youngster grow up without pressure while discovering her own interests.
Beyond acting, Zhang shared that Xingxing enjoys sports and activities such as parkour. But the child also has a very different passion — idol fandom.
According to the actress, her daughter is a devoted fan of Song Yuqi, the Chinese member of K-pop girl group I-DLE.
Zhang Ziyi joked that Xingxing tends to follow whatever Yuqi likes. If the idol owns a particular doll or bag, the youngster immediately wants the same item.
“Whatever Yuqi likes, she likes too,” Zhang said with a laugh, adding that sometimes her daughter seems more focused on her favourite idol than on her own mother.
The actress previously shared that Xingxing once stayed up late editing fan videos of Yuqi — something Zhang teased her about afterwards.
“I told her, ‘There are so many videos of your mum and you’ve never edited one for me,’” she recalled.
Zhang Ziyi also confirmed that she took her daughter to Japan in October last year to watch I-DLE perform live. The concert turned into a memorable experience for Xingxing, who even had the chance to meet Song Yuqi backstage.
When reporters asked whether she had bought the tickets specifically for her daughter, Zhang responded playfully that getting access was not a problem.
Many fans praised the actress for maintaining a balanced approach to parenting, saying they admired her decision to let her daughter choose her own future rather than pushing her into show business.
Some netizens also found humour in Zhang’s candid remarks about idol fandom, joking that even the child of a global film star can still be more interested in pop idols than their famous parent.
Others noted that if Xingxing eventually enters acting, expectations will inevitably be high given Zhang’s reputation as one of China’s most acclaimed film actresses.
For now, however, Zhang appears content letting her daughter explore childhood interests — whether that means sports, editing fan videos, or cheering for her favourite idol.
What do you think — would you like to see Zhang Ziyi’s daughter eventually step into the film industry, or should she keep life away from the spotlight for as long as possible?