The Media Chooses TVB’s Next-Gen Fadans: Rebecca Zhu and Kelly Fu
With the exodus of popular leading TVB artists, a new generation of TVB fadans also arrives. Which TVB actresses will lead the next generation of Hong Kong dramas? The media makes their choice picks!
Rebecca Zhu is Learning On the Way
A Suzhou native born in 1987, Rebecca Zhu (朱晨麗) joined TVB after she was crowned as 2011’s Miss Hong Kong. At the time, the media referred to her as “pirated Fala Chen (陳法拉)” due to their similar physical appearances. Rebecca became associated with Fala again when she replaced Fala in the 2012 anniversary drama Silver Spoon, Sterling Shackles <名媛望族>.
Although Rebecca had to audition for Silver Spoon, Sterling Shackles – her debut drama – she was not sure if she was up for the job when she got the casting notice. “I went through this period of struggle. When you’re acting, you have to let go of your Miss Hong Kong baggage. At the time, I wasn’t sure if I should maintain my sophisticated image or just risk it all. For example, a Miss Hong Kong would never portray a clown!”
Rebecca’s fame went up another notch after starring in Silver Spoon, Sterling Shackles, and her rumors with TVB’s number-one bachelor, Kenneth Ma (馬國明) also contributed to her rising popularity. “I’m just an ordinary person. I admit I wasn’t very happy with these reports at first. We are artists, but we are also human. We too want to have our own families in the future. When it comes to relationships, that boils down to fate. I am very happy right now. I will not be bothered by these false reports.”
Also involved in grand productions Triumph in the Skies 2 <衝上雲霄II> and Always and Ever <情逆三世緣>, Rebecca is being heavily promoted by TVB. She said, “When I was filming Triumph in the Skies 2, I received advice from a senior, who told me to relax my acting. When you are acting, you are performing as someone else, so you must learn to let go of yourself in order to fully immerse in your role. As for Always and Ever, Bobby Au Yeung (歐陽震華) is a very funny senior! Before I met him, I was worried that he would be very strict and yell at us, but he’s not. He loves to joke around and he makes everyone laugh.”
Rebecca looks up to seniors Carina Lau (劉嘉玲) and Monica Chan (陳法蓉), both whom share the same Suzhou roots as Rebecca. As for her chances of rising to leading fadan status, she said, “Some say it depends on faith and some say it depends on luck, but I say the most important thing to do is to set up a good foundation. Do your best.”
Kelly Fu’s Breakthrough
Who is Kelly Fu (傅嘉莉)? Months ago she was not widely known, but now, we can all recognize her as Ron Ng’s (吳卓羲) rumored girlfriend.
The 28-year-old really minded the fact that she had to rely on Ron’s name to be famous, but after much thought, she came to embrace it. “No one really knew who I was when I was still a model. There wasn’t really a way to tell everyone who I am, but now, after [the rumors], people can at least recognize me!”
The Ron and Kelly dating rumors, however, angered Ron, who exclaimed in an earlier interview, “Whether it was in the past, now, or in the future, dating will never happen between Kelly and I!”
Was Kelly unhappy with Ron’s statement? “Not unhappy, but I am curious to why he’s so angry! Haha! Maybe the misunderstanding really affected him. There’s pressure on him when he films dramas, and also pressure when the drama is airing. He doesn’t want anything else. I have no regrets, because I never told the media I was [dating] him.”
Kelly debuted ten years ago as a commercial model, and has appeared in films such as Infernal Affairs 2 <無間道2> and Fairy Tale Killer <追凶>. Despite her attempts to make a name in film, it was the TV drama Triumph in the Skies 2 that brought her fame.
Currently shooting TVB romantic drama Love Me, Please Leave a Message <愛我請留言>, Kelly expressed that she has just been through a breakthrough in her career. “At this moment, my career comes first. I don’t want others to believe that I only care about dating or having fun. I want to have my own representative work.
Kelly cites Shu Qi (舒淇) as her role model. “Men and women equally love her performances. She is cute, yet also sophisticated. She’s been through so much in the past, yet she still succeeded. Whether it’s her performance or character, she receives the respect of many. Compared to what she’s been through in the past, my [rumors] don’t even deserve to be mentioned.”
Other Potential Leading Fadans
Eliza Sam (岑麗香) – 28 years old. Winning the 2010 Miss Chinese International crown, Eliza gained fame after portraying the adorable Hannah Heung in 2012’s Divas in Distress <巴不得媽媽…>. Associated with TVB’s other line of goddesses, Eliza’s performance in Triumph in the Skies 2 is also well-received. She has just completed filming for TVB drama Mr. & Mrs. Bean <貓屎媽媽>, starring opposite Bosco Wong (黃宗澤). She is currently shooting Eric Tsang’s (曾志偉) drama for TVB, M Club.
Christine Kuo (苟芸慧) – 30 years old. Crowned the 2009 Miss Chinese International, Christine earned the name “pirated Kelly Lin (林熙蕾)” when she first debuted. As of August 2013, Christine has filmed 13 dramas for TVB, most recently Beauty at War <金枝慾孽貳>. She is also best known for her rumors with Aaron Kwok (郭富城).
Priscilla Wong (黃翠如) – 31 years old. Priscilla debuted in 2003 as a news anchor for Cable TV, but signed with TVB after her contract with Cable TV ended in early 2012. Rumored to be TVB executive Sandy Yu’s (余詠珊) favorite, Priscilla has filmed four TVB dramas in under two years. She is currently shooting Love Me, Please Leave a Message, starring opposite Raymond Wong (黃浩然).
Lin Xiawei (林夏薇) – 26 years old. Best known as Raymond Lam’s (林峯) cousin, Xiawei came from a professional acting background. She was in the 2009 graduating class of Beijing’s Central Academy of Drama and joined TVB in 2011, debuting in the sitcom, Til Love Do Us Lie <結·分@謊情式>. She replaced Aimee Chan(陳茵媺) as the female lead in the upcoming TVB wuxia drama, Cold Mountain, Hidden Dragon <寒山潛龍>.
Sire Ma (馬賽) – 26 years old. Though she was the second runner-up at the 2008 Miss Hong Kong pageant, Sire received generous promotional opportunities from TVB. She was awarded the Most Improved Actress at the 2011 TVB Anniversary Awards, and starred in Lee Tim Sing’s (李添勝) Bullet Brain <神探高倫布>, starring opposite Wayne Lai (黎耀祥).
Angel Chiang (蔣家旻) – 23 years old. Angel joined TVB after auditioning for 2007’s talent scout TVbeople. Though Angel spent a few years portraying minor characters in TVB dramas, she shot to fame after portraying the teenage version of Hazel in the 2012 drama When Heaven Burns <天與地>. She is currently part of the main cast in the highly popular sitcom, Come Home Love <愛·回家>, and is the female lead in Patrick Kong’s (葉念琛) new film, A Secret Between Us <第一次不是你>.
Natalie Tong (唐詩詠) – 32 years old. Natalie joined TVB in 2003, but she had already made a name for herself through 2000’s RTHK idol drama Y2K <青春@Y2K>. Her breakthrough performance in 2010’s A Fistful of Stances <鐵馬尋橋> earned her a Most Improved Actress win and a Best Supporting Actress nomination at the TVB Anniversary Awards.
Source: ihktv.com
This article is written by Addy for JayneStars.com.
My all time favorite is Nancy, give her a lead role already! I actually like Eliza as well, she is cute as heck. I’ve never liked Natalie Tong or Sire Ma, don’t know why. Sire’s acting is forced to me. Natalie is, well, bland. I don’t like Christine Kuo either, dubbed or not, but dubbed definitely is a lot less annoying. Don’t like Rebecca Zhu either.
Nancy deserves to be in 1st female lead. don’t know why TVB never gave her a chance.
Agree! D:
Oh yeah, and Priscilla, when she’s about to cry, her voice cracks so much that I can’t hear what she’s saying. She really should learn from Charmaine Sheh on how to cry and talk at the same time! The cracked voice thing gets old, fast.
I think Rebecca looks better than Falan. She looks fresh.
Rebecca does not look very much like Fala Chen. Fala is a lot prettier than Rebecca.
I’m not loving these potential fadans, I find most of the actresses listed above as quite annoying. Especially the current Kelly in Triumph 2. She comes off quite stiff, there’s just something off about her. I quite like Eliza Sam through her drama with Liza Wang (forgot what the drama’s called). Christine is pretty but has unbearable canto; Lin Xia Wei & Sire Ma just doesn’t have that actress presence; Priscilla’s role in Karma Rider was poor, I couldn’t even finish the drama because of it. I think Natalie’s acting is the most solid of the above listed actresses. Angel Chiang reminds somewhat of guo xiao ting (min min in bbjx).
Yes I agree that most of these new ‘fadans’ just don’t cut it. Eliza Sam do have the best potentials among the lot. Many of the newbies just don’t have a ‘presence’ or star quality. Christine is not too bad, perhaps have to work harder with her accent but it’s still acceptable. I haven’t watch any of Aimee’s works but she has the same problem too doesn’t she? And yes Natalie Tong has been around the longest among this lot and she should strive to get upfront.
WOW. now that it was brought up, Christine Kuo does look like Kelly Lin >_>
Looks like Fala Chen is no longer TVB Contracted since Fala is going to New York to focus on her acting career.
And now Rebecca is the new Fala lol
Rebecca doesn’t look like Fala to me. Even from the certain angle doesn’t look like her as well
It seems that Christine signed 6 year contract with TVB. Is this for real? o.o
Yes, and she moved from Toronto to Hong Kong to pursue her career. You can see that in Wikipedia.
Christine maybe pretty but her acting is bad. No wonder she got dubbed in Always and Ever and The life and times of a sentinel because her performance in Beauty at War got criticized.
Not just that Suzanna, Is just her cantonese is poor and that’s why they dubbed her in ancient drama.
Christine is now playing a cop instead of flight attendant in Tiger Cubs 2. Did she just have a job change?
Agree. Maybe the scriptwriters for TC2 change Christine’s role into something challenging maybe?
Wow to be honest, I don’t think Christine would play a cop but we’ll see.
I like Eliza Sam. Her character in Divas in Distress is really cute and funny, so pretty much that she would get most improved actress along with Mandy Wong and the other actresses.
Yeah Eliza will outshine the other actresses. Lin xia Wei and Natalie Tong are ok too. Don’t know why they put Natalie on the list.
To me, Natalie is pretty bad in A Fistful of Stances. TVB promoted her so i guess she improved alot in some series.