Sheren Tang Still Bitter Over Gigi Lai’s TV Queen Win
Sheren Tang (鄧萃雯) was blacklisted by TVB when she criticized Hong Kong’s top television station in public. Affected by the poor reception received by her last drama Beauty at War <金枝慾孽貳>, Sheren publicly chided TVB’s management and expressed her displeasure at Beauty at War’s poor filming conditions and problematic script. Her criticism led to a fiery exchange between her and Beauty at War’s scriptwriter Chow Yuk Ming (周旭明).
However, it turns out that not only was Sheren upset during the filming of Beauty at War, she also apparently still held a grudge against Gigi Lai’s (黎姿) Best Actress win in 2004.
Last month, Sheren attended a Christian sermon in Vancouver, Canada, as a guest speaker. In her presentation, she spoke about all her insecurities and troubles as a television actress in Hong Kong. She mentioned Beauty at War’s flawed script, TVB’s bigoted casting practices, and her belated Best Actress wins at the TVB Anniversary Awards.
Sheren expressed, “Holding a flawed script in hand, I didn’t know what dialogue I should speak. I just blindly memorized my lines every day. Isn’t that insane? It was to the point where I couldn’t even act to my full potential!”
In 2003, Sheren was cast in the idol drama Aqua Heroes <戀愛自由式>, starring as BoBo Chan (陳文媛) and Leila Tong’s (唐寧) mother. Sheren implied that the role was a miscast.
“Being an actress is quite pitiful. [I was] in my thirties and still considered a pretty girl, but yet they tell you to play a mom, and it has to be the mom of Bobo Chan and Leila Tong. How could I give birth to them?”
Sheren added, “I really lost some hope at the time. Since debut, I’ve always played lead characters…. Once, a group of teenagers came up to me and called me ‘auntie’. That was the lowest point of my acting career, but I still went with the flow. If I didn’t do it, I would have no jobs.”
On speaking about winning Best Actress at the TVB Anniversary Awards, Sheren hinted at her bitterness towards Gigi Lai’s 2004 Best Actress win. Both Sheren and Gigi, stars of the super-hit War and Beauty, were popular contenders for Best Actress, but Sheren was ultimately defeated.
Sheren said, “I always felt like I was a capable actress. I had the skills and enough experience. I wasn’t willing to concede. Why did all the juniors win the award before I did?”
Sheren, who debuted in 1985, won her first Best Actress award in 2009 for Rosy Business <巾幗梟雄>; she subsequently won her second best actress award in 2010, for No Regrets <巾幗梟雄之義海豪情>. Gigi, who debuted a year after Sheren, won her first (and only) Best Actress award in 2004, five years before Sheren.
Another junior, Charmaine Sheh (佘詩曼), won the Best Actress award in 2006, three years before Sheren.
Source: Apple Daily
This article is written by Addy for JayneStars.com.
It is easy to understand; just because she was not TVB’s biological daughter.
Isnt she from tvb’s acting class?
As per Wikipedia ……….. “In 1985, Sheren Tang joined TVB’s training classes. Months later, after her graduation, Tang was cast in her first role with Alex Man as his leading lady.”
To clarify, Sheren technically wasn’t part of TVB’s official acting classes (at least not the type everyone may be used to seeing). TVB’s acting classes in the full year format actually ended in 1983 after a 12 year run (that was the year that Kiki Sheung, Michael Tao, Lawrence Ng, Carina Lau, etc. all graduated).
Starting in 1984, TVB changed the format of the acting classes completely – instead of doing a 1 year course, they changed to a 3 month ‘crash course’. Also, the classes were no longer known as ‘Acting Classes’ but rather ‘Artist Recruitments’ that was divided into 3 main categories – actors, dancers, and hosts. So pretty much, instead of doing full-fledged classes and training people to become actors, they switched to ‘recruiting’ artists for each of the specific categories, then having them take the 3 month crash course to learn what they needed to know.
To be more exact, Sheren was part of 1985’s “Artists’ Recruitment” course for actors…after she finished the course, she was cast in her first series as the female lead (the one opposite Alex Man, which is also around the time their romantic relationship started)…
Those who are interested can read more about TVB Acting Class history here: http://llsmusings.blogspot.com/2010/10/tvb-acting-classes-intro-and-brief.html
llwy12
Thanks for your information. How did you learn about it? You must have done some research work.
@sandcherry: You’re welcome. It was pretty much a result of years of research via information gathering from a variety of sources (books, magazines, newspaper articles, interviews, specialty programs, etc. etc.).
One thing I’ve learned from more than 2 decades of following the HK entertainment industry is that it’s actually not ‘impossible’ to report on / uncover factual information about the industry or particular artists / situations – it’s really a matter of whether people are willing to invest the time and effort to do the proper research and ‘vetting’ of the information (and of course applying logic and critical thinking) rather than just simply accepting what the tabloids dish out as ‘the truth’. I guess I fall into that rare 1% of audiences who (as much as possible) refuses to be misled by the Media and will actually take the time to research stuff when I feel there’s a need to do so…..
She sounds so entitled
She should be, she’s an effing good actress who was not recognized for her work. If that were to happen to you at your work place, wouldn’t you be ticked off too?
I tolly agree. SHE IS A BETTER ACTRESS than Gigi Lai at the time and also acted better in that series. Most people if not everyone was rooting for her. I totally understand why she said what she said.
Either this article is blowing the whole thing out of proportions, or she’s just really bitter. She does sound entitled, and NO, she shouldn’t be. She’s lucky she got an award at all. How many very talented actors and actresses go unnoticed at TVB?? Many. And many of whom are more talented and have been at TVB longer than Sheren. I understand her complaints about the poor quality of scripts, ALL actors deserve to get well written scripts and ample preparation time, but she really needs to stop crying about unsuitable roles and supposed juniors getting awards before her. If you don’t want the role, turn it down. If you take the role, then shut up and don’t complain. I mean, she considers herself a professional and talented, actress, right?!? Then shouldn’t she be more versatile as an actress? Shouldn’t she be able to take on different roles, no matter how difficult of unsuitable? Shouldn’t she take more pride in her acting and look beyond the superficiality of meaningless awards? Perhaps it’s not her talent that’s the problem, but her personality. Rather than crying about how unfair everything is and acting like a victim, maybe she needs to reconsider her career choice and decide whether she is really suitable for the HK entertainment industry.
@Mt, you said it very well.
Sharon is right, TVB is flawed. She is certainly a better actress than Gigi Lai, but Gigi won because she is younger and prettier at that time.
As simple as that, so TVB did not look at it in terms of talent alone but commercial value too, which should not be.
As for the miscast in ‘Aqua Heroes’, Sharon wasn’t famous anymore in 2003, before ‘War & Beauty’ relaunched both hers and Gigi’s career. In fact, it was a cold period for her then, she was not doing much, so it is understandable that she was cast as a mother. Many other lesser actress in TVB are now playing roles of parents too. No choice.
Unlike the men, who still are leads in their fifties. Life is unfair. Gender is unfair.
yep yep better said.
Gigi Lai was given TV Queen award because she agreed to sign a management contract with TVB around that time or after.
So now Sheren has come out to blast TVB for the last minute scripts in which she must memorize line for line and just recite them without any thought behind the words. I wonder if Netizens will attack her as much as they attacked Fala when Fala stated the same thing about the last minute scripts.
If I had to hazard a guess though, I’d say probably not…
Well….. Shereen can act.
So shouldnt netizens be more lenient with Fala about her criticisms on late scripts? Like you said, sheren can act and someone who can act couldnt even give her best so why is someone who is mediocre at acting being blazed at?
P.S. I am referring to people who blazed at her aka those annoying netizens.
That’s exactly it. Sheren can act… and here she is saying the late scripts were impacting her ability to act… so what does that say for Fala? Netizens should indeed be more lenient – OR – they should be laying into Sheren with the similar visceral comments.
We know that won’t happen though, because most likely those same people like Sheren, but don’t like Fala. The comment about scripts by Fala was just an excuse to take a few digs at her is all this proves 😛
Agree!
Well Sheren had much more difficult lines to memorise than Fala.
Hers was an ancient period drama. Cannot compare.
If you read other news about Sheren’s critiques on the way TVB handles their production, it wasn’t just period dramas that late scripts were being thrown at her. It was practically every drama there were late scripts.
I understand Fala’s personality isn’t the most welcoming or heartwarming or even likable but the poor girl just doesn’t deserve to be kicked to the curb to this extent sometimes.. or most of the time.
True that! She is one of my mosy respected actress. But I thought she mentioned some time ago that she doesn’t care about tv ratings and awards?
Sheren and Fala is two different levels. How can you compare? Fala’s ability is nowhere near Sheren. Fala cannot even perform well in a modern drama how can she go for ancient drama? Fala is a complete letdown that destroyed Triumphs in the Skies 2, no doubts. But I have to say she was quite OK in the last episode. Well I did like her in some dramas but definitely not this. Let’s not go further about Fala.
I don’t agree that Fala Chen did badly in “TITS 2”. I think her acting was okay, but she should have added more details to enhance her inner emotions. Besides her cry scenes without tears in the early episodes, Fala was quite okay in her acting her character, Holiday. She gave us joy and cheerfulness when we watched her scenes.
In terms of acting, Sheren Tang is way above Fala Chen. There is no question about it. Sheren’s acting beats a lot of veteran actresses, not to mention those new top fadans. None of the new top fadans has good acting skills to me.
Yvettes,
I’m not sure if you understood what many people are trying to say concerning Sheren and Fala. We’re not comparing Fala or Sheren’s acting capabilities, we’re talking about how people are blasting Fala for blaming the scripts when Sheren, who is an extremely capable and excellent actress, did the exact same thing.
In other words someone who excels at her craft felt her performance was hindered to the point where she thought she was lacking. So how can someone who is a couple of tiers down in acting put on an even acceptable portrayal? That was the initial message. Not who was better or who is worse cause that was quite obvious even without a discussion being made.
And lastly whether us netizens like her portrayal in TITS2 or not, it does not change Fala’s popularity is soaring as of right now. Why is that so? Because producers and directors have a different interpretation of artists. They perceive them differently and thus Fala has endless jobs and opportunities being thrown at her thanks to being casted into TITS2.
Sandcherry,
I agree with you that Fala wasn’t exactly horrible, acting wise. I said this before and I am going to say it again. Fala was mediocre. She gave her regular performance. Nothing new, nothing too dirt poor, just mediocre.
Lastly, I thought she did pretty well for the final episode. At least her emotional scenes were 2x better than the ones earlier in the series.
Crystal:
You are right ….”producers and directors have a different interpretation of artists”. It is more so between independent producers and TVB producers.
As an audience, we just watch a drama series as a whole most of the times. We usually criticize certain artistes for their looks and acting, but many of us would overlook the developments of the script (whether it is good and reasonable). A good producer can easily tell if an artiste can act based on his/her acting. Moreover, many of us have preferences on certain artistes and tend to reject others.
Audience’s good feedback is, of course, important. Fala may not be favoured by TVB audience, but it does not mean that she will not be supported by people going for movies. Fala can easily choose her own characters and scripts in film industries, but she may not be able to do it in TVB.
I know Fala’s acting is not amazing, but none of the top 5 fadans’ is amazing either. Holiday is a complex character which requires actress with very good acting skills to excel.
Exactly so. Netizens are a tool but most of us aren’t exactly aware of this. We critique them, the artist gets the buzz. We favor them, they become even more popular. That’s how the e-industry is.
People go through peaks and troughs through life. She should focus more on the positives. Jealousy and bitterness will only eat you on the inside.
Well said, I vaguely remember that series. It definitely had a cute cast but it was kind of boring. I have to be honest, compare to her juniors or same age grou females, sometimes she does look older. She was not even famous anymore back then and IMO she ages faster than some, so of course TVB will cast her in anything? That’s TVB, unjust and do give chances to newbie w/o connections i feel. If you didn’t want the role, you shouldn’t have accepted it and now you have recognition and you rehashed the past? AWWWW, never a good thing.
Sheren IS older than Gigi so of course she would look older.
It’s more healthy to take responsibility for what you feel. When something you deserved, and that practically everyone think you deserved, was taken away from you for beauty and/or age, you have every right to feel resentful. By sharing it in public, Sheren is proven to be a true and honest human being.
True. She is not fake. It seems like she is not nice but I like that about her. True to self and others.
True, but I can understand Sheren’s frustrations. However, that is life itself. Some can work sooo hard but yet end up with nothing or much, while others do not do much or just sit back and yet get everything without much effort. I hope that Sharen realizes that those awards, especially from TVB do not always dictate that one can act well. TVB often just gives it to whoever they want to even if they do not deserve it.
Windy, ARE YOU KIDDING ME? Sheren looks ridiculously good for her age. She does not she quicker, she ages much slower than a lot of people!!
Just because someone’s a junior, doesn’t mean they don’t deserve the win. Gigi’s performance in War and Beauty was phenomenal and so yes, I think she deserved the award. And yeah, TVB’s probably flawed, but jeez, Sheren makes it seem like she’s the only artiste who suffers. All I’ve been hearing is her complaining. Also, she’s not the only one who has acting abilities. Michelle Yim (who’s a way better actress than Sheren) also won after Charmaine. Did she complain??? No.
So, what makes you so special then?? And besides, she’s kind of old now. Accept being called an auntie…what else are people supposed to call you?
Gigi’s performance in WAB was probably the best performance of her life… but that’s not saying much when she was always only a pretty face with mediocre acting skills. Not only was Sheren better than Gigi in WAB, so was Charmaine and Maggie.
Even if this story is true, then Sheren did not run to the media and whined. She spoke about it in a speech. She’s welcome to say whatever she wants.
Good point. If Sheren complained about it right after the airing, she was at fault, but not now in her speech at a Christian event.
Charmaine’s character was a lot more appealing to the audience. It was easy to relate to her, feel sorry for her, comprehend her. Gigi’s character was annoying, cunning, sometimes a little too dumb and more annoying. Maggie’s character was outright boring.
Acting wise, I don’t think any of the three out did one another. But I prefer Maggie’s portrayal over Charmaine and Gigi. Gigi stil cannot cry. Charmaine can cry but she was lacking something back in WAB. Maybe she wasn’t all carved out as a sparkling gem yet or maybe Gigi outdid her in beauty. Maggie, Sheren and Rebecca’s acting was better than Charmaine. So maybe that is why, to me, Charmaine was lacking. Maybe someone can put it in better words than this mumbo jumbo.
Gigi Lai was never a strong actress, but more of a pretty face. I remember her debut series The Drifters with Frankie Lam in 1991 and also in The Link. Gigi’s acting has not improved much since then. She is best suited at playing a spoilt brat with her shrill voice, constant big eyed glare, and pouty face. Her weird speaking patterns (like she is short of breath and constantly gasping for air) and very poor crying scenes was very distracting in WAB. I certainly agree that Sheren was more deserving of the best actress award over Gigi. But we all know TVB awards are a farce. These awards are not based on merit but on whom TVB favors atm. Gigi Lai’s glamorous image was more in-line with what TVB higher ups wanted to promote – pretty young starlets who can invoke an idol-like fan following, never mind their lack of acting skills. Sheren was too mature and not popular enough at the time (before Rosy Business) to convince TVB that she was worth promoting, so they didn’t want to ‘waste’ the award on her. It stinks but that’s TVB internal politics for you.
Gigi’s best performance to date is Chiu Ming in HSDS ’00.
Gigi’s portrayal of Yuk Ying was lacking in comparison to Sheren’s Yu Fei, but I get why she won. As many of you pointed out, Sheren’s was struggling when she came back to TVB. I remembered she did a cameo in HH2 and slowly got better roles again. Indeed, WAB gained her popularity, but it wasn’t enough at the time. Between the two, Gigi is more favored. Gigi occasionally filmed for TVB prior to 2004, but she still get leading roles.
Also, a part of it has to do with the character, Yuk Ying. The series revolved around her. Like how Yu Fei wanted to her to be on the same team; the fall out with Charmaine’s character; and the friendship with On Sin. Yuk Ying is a key character. That’s why it was offered to Ada first.
And on Gigi’s acting – she’s not a bad actress. I think she can do more than just being a pretty face, but she tends to get typecast. With the amount of backlash she received in 2004, many tend to overlook her performances after.
@ Crystal
Gigi’s character turned out to be just as sympathetic as Charmaine’s. But I agree with Hannah that her character was the driving force in the show. Her character made things happen. Beyond that, Gigi was younger and (arguably) more attractive than Sheren and most importantly, willing to sign a long-term contract.
@ Hannah
I enjoyed both Gigi’s performance in HSDS and WAB but I would not say she’s a strong actress at all. I agree with the weaknesses, Felicity very eloquently pointed out. However, her WAB’s character had great writing and was written to her strength. Furthermore, her HSDS character is actually quite similar to her WAB character – but the problem with her HSDS character is that they didn’t follow through. Unlike in WAB where the character continues to scheme to the very end, her Chiu Ming is almost unrecognisable in the second half. So I would still say her WAB performance is better. Simply for better writing, I guess.
However, I will say that I found her acting probably most interesting in “The Ultimate Crime Fighter”. It was such a clusterf-ck of a show, but both KC and GL actually stood out for me. Probably because I usually find them both very mediocre, but that was the show where they both tried to act outside their comfort zone. Comparatively, I found her most boring performance ever to be in GOL.
Advo,
I never really thought of Gigi’s character as a whole was sympathetic. Maybe the only part was where she died in flames, but even then she died in the arms of her love one.
@ Crystal
I guess that’s subjective and depends on how you define ‘sympathy’. I thought her character was supposed to be pitied due to her tragic background. In that sense, she was no different than the other prominent concubines with sad backstories. But were you supposed to root for Yuk Ying? Definitely not, because she never learned her lesson and stayed selfish to the end.
@Advo:
I disagree. Chiu Ming is a well-written character in spite of the modifications to the 2000 version. My problem with Yuk Ying is she lacks the scheming. Out of the 4, she is the weakest one. Yu Fei can survive in the palace that long and even saved herself out of seclusion at the end. Charmaine’s character exposed Yuk Ying and brought down Yu Fei. On Sin helped Yuk Ying to gain favor again. Yeah, Yuk Ying is evil, but she wasn’t as scheming and witty as the others so I didn’t sympathize with her. That’s why I enjoyed Gigi as Chiu Ming more. She’s very capable person and is the smartest person in the series, lol
Oh man. I remembered I couldn’t finish TGOL bc it was draggy and boring. LOL Gigi’s role was the typical goody-two-shoes, which got overshadowed. Gigi did pretty well in that desert series and The Charm Beneath. She was decent in her early days, The Link and Heartstrings.
@ Hannah
Chiu Ming was a great character in the beginning. But I found her “change of heart” difficult to swallow. In particular, how her motivation became an excuse for her previous behavour. The woman was going to ruin Chi Yeuk’s face because of petty jealousy and went around chopping people’s fingers off, among many other things. But after finding “tru luv” with Mo Kei she becomes a completely different person. I didn’t buy her transformation at all. I don’t blame GL who I thought did well, but the script writers. Even though Yuk Ying wasn’t as good at scheming as she probably thought herself, the point is that the character stayed consistent. Even though, she did love Bowie’s character, it didn’t suddenly change her own personality or traits. That’s why I find the writing for HSDS inferior.
Gigi’s acting was, like advo said, her best performance but it was an undeserving win because Sheren, Charmaine and Maggie were better than her. Sheren being bitter about Gigi’s win in 2004 is understandable.
Though I like Gigi, Sheren acted better in War and Beauty.
Gigi was hyperventilating all the time, sounding breathless on every sentence.
Maggie and Charmaine also acted better than Gigi.
Agree. Gigi Lai was the worst one among the 4 female lead actresses in “War & Beauty”.
Totally agree. Every time she cries she seemed to be lacking of oxygen and gasping all the way. So annoying, not sure how is that considered as good….
To the many uninformed or naive viewers/readers, many organizations such TVB, politics play a heavy role in shaping many employees in their successes or failures. Unfortunately, Sheren Tang and Steven Ma were at the wrong place at the wrong time even though they were accomplished artists. If upper manangement did not “believe” that they were “worthy” of winning their highest award, then they did not. That is why the award is so superficial but unfortunately, superficial or not, artists sorely want to be recognized. So they, themselves, are superficial as well.
exactly, all superficial. like you are really getting those awards from your awesome acting? haha lol…
This is the entertainment circle here, who is not superficial to some extent?? Even those average Joes and Janes can be superficial so why can’t artists be that way??? Who does not want to be recognized for their hard work and get at least some recognition for it??
ALL celebrities are superficial. They ALL want money, fame and recognition. If they did not, they wouldn’t be in this industry. Love acting? Then do theatre. But TV and movie work is for people who want more. Of course, they also do love acting but it’s not JUST about acting.
Of course it is not just about acting since that is their job and they need money and all to support themselves. But there is no doubt that many of them do have the passion and love for acting since acting is a hard job. If you do not at least have some interest in it, then you cannot last as an actor/actress.
Don’t think you got my point. I was saying that there are ways to act without all the constant spotlight on you. Such as acting in theatre. Theatre is probably the most prestigious kind of serious “acting” and it comes without the price of tabloid gossip, constant spotlight and invasion of privacy. But why do so many choose TV and movie acting? Because they WANT the attention. They want the money, fame, recognition, being idolised. Of course, there are people who does it solely for acting, but it’s very few. 99% of celebrities are in it for more than the joy of acting, so you can say certainly say they are all superficial to a degree.
Sheren could have said no. But she agreed and pocketed the money and now she is whining about it?
As for Gigi Lai winning, well I don’t believe the bitterness. But anyway why the juniors win? Well she’s ain’t the first senior to be overlooked. There were far better seniors than Sheren and they don’t even get their name mentioned. If you want the award, you must play by TVB’s rules.
Why so much whining Sheren? You’re a class act, you are above all these TVB bashing. I know it is like pouring of emotions times, now that TVB can be punched and all that but coming from her just sounds like whining. Ask the younger ones like Fred Cheng, etc who can’t even afford to eat and just getting recognition just now. Don’t pity Sheren. She has had it made, Pity the young ones who we know will be sidestepped for the less talented ones. Maybe Sheren should concentrate on advising these group rather than remembering the so called bitterness?
Exactly, I remember seeing all the cameos or ‘kalefe’s in series and we NEVER even know what their names are but you see their faces all the time where they probably have one or 2 sentences in the entire series. What is fair and what not? Thus, stop whining and just keep on working, what else can you do? If they didn’t like it, they can either do something like some ppl go towards finding a real job, or opening a small business if they have some saved up or be a writer i/o of accepting roles that can only pay rent. Why whine about the past now? The truth of the matter is, she is kind of in demand now after all these years so she thinks she still looks hot and rehashing on their harsh treatment but she does not understand that even @30’s any teen or younger will still refer to them as “AUNTIES”. Don’t be bitter, live with it. Haha LOL…
how did gallen lo win
How is this considered whining? She spoke about it in a speech. We do not know the context or message of the speech. Sheren is a direct person so she speaks her mind. I’m tired of how celebrities need to be so damn PC. I prefer celebrities to be genuine.
I have no idea where the notion that people should be “above” complaining about bad management. Then when will things ever improve?
@advo: exactly, agree with everything u said about Sheren. hk media just twisted Sheren’s words around and some people are so quick to jump right in and judge her. i guess since sheren isn’t their idol, so they choose to believe in this article easily. and no, sheren isn’t my idol either, but i’ve read enough information about this lady to judge for myself that she’s definitely not the kind of bitter whining person.
@ Advo I couldn’t agree any less. I listened to her speech and it’s actually funny how the content of her speech could be distorted so much that they could use it for an article on her ‘bitterness’ towards the 2004 loss. Sheren has said it so many times to the media it’s not funny: “I don’t really care about TV awards”.
Opps! I meant ‘any more’!
Pardon me!!!!
Have people maybe thought that this was taken way out of context? Sheren never had a good rep with the hk media especially after beauty at war. I mean this was a Christian sermon, though I’m not a Christian I can imagine that she would be talking about the tough life experiences that she faced and in her case, she probably felt aggrieved at how tvb treated her. From her POV, she was facing the first time she had to be a mom to someone barely 10 years younger, that was probably a hurdle she had to overcome. In fact, that’s probably a hurdle every actress in her 30s has to overcome (Maggie Shiu was the mom of Charmaine Sheh in PITNOL). Sure others didn’t say anything about it, but did they feel uneasy? Probably. They are actors but they are human after all, its impossible to totally detach themselves from their characters.
Is this whining? That’s subjective isn’t it? If she went out there and sang tvb’s praises, people would be calling her fake wouldn’t they? So is she to keep her mouth shut and not say anything? The way I see it shes just bluntly sharing what she felt and went through in the past such that people misunderstand her to be whining. She isn’t actually bashing tvb or anything u know but stating the obvious that all of us audiences know, I mean we all agree that tvb is unfair and often neglects seniors over newbies who can’t act at all. Perhaps Sheren isn’t the best or most qualified senior but she definitely is in a position to say something.
This.
It’s a Christian sermon so she must likely talked about the hardships she has suffered and how you need to keep having faith. Don’t see how that’s considered whining or even complaining. It’s a sermon ffs! You get the message across better when you give examples from your own experience and not just give rosy words of encouragement.
@chps: Bravo to your whole comment. You said everything I wanted to say, concisely. This article on Sheren just brings up all my old anger with how poorly TVB treats its more senior artistes and tosses them aside when they are no longer favored. I thought I had buried these bitter feelings when I had stopped being a loyal TVB viewer years ago, but I am still quite pissed off at TVB, honestly. So I can definitely understand Sheren Tang’s feelings and I appreciate her candidness and bluntness, just as I admire Felix Wong’s non PC honest criticism of TVB.
The article title is misleading, as if Sheren holds a grudge towards Gigi Lai for stealing her award in 1994. But if we read carefully, Sheren’s lament is about TVB’s practice is giving preferential treatment to its current young promoted artistes and not enough recognition to its senior artistes who have contributed a lot to make TVB what it is. She is right that she should have won a best actress award years before the likes of Charmaine and Gigi. So also should many great actresses and actors from the 80s and 90s. But TVB awards are a fairly recent creation to create more buzz for its own stable of stars. If I’m not mistsken, Ether Kwan won the first TVB best actress award in 1997 for Lady Flower Fist. If there were TVB awards earlier, from the 80s onwards, then Chow Yun Fat, Tony Leung, Stephen Chow, Alex Man, Patrick Tse, Felix Wong, Deric Wan, Carina Lau, Maggie Siu, Lau Ching Wan, Amy Chan, Dodo Cheng et al. would all have deserved to win too, some multiple times. The fadans in Esther’s generation ie. those that joined TVB in the 90’s (Jessica, Flora, Maggie Cheung Hor Yee, Ada Choi, Gigi Lai) were luckier as they each won a best actress award eventually after Esther (think of it as distributing the pork) before they left TVB in the 2000’s. They are well treated by TVB and never got asked to play mother roles to teenagers yet, although their ages are not that far from Sheren. In fact, Esther is 2 years older than Sheren, and TVB still gives Esther a lot of face by inviting her to star in Always and Ever, writing the script with Esther in mind, even though she has been in semi-retirement for a few years.
Glad that you brought up Maggie Siu too. Maggie Siu, like Sheren Teng was a TVB fadan from the 80s, and starred in dome of the most memorable classic TVB dramas, yet TVB gives Maggie no respect at all nowadays. Not only did Maggie have to play Charmaine’s mother (she also played Ron’s mother), but Maggie is given the most thankless and annoying weak characters. It’s such a shame to see Maggie’s decline at TVB when she was such an outstanding actress back in the early 90s. She doesn’t have that spark anymore, and is phoning in her performances for the paycheck, no thanks to TVB treating Maggie like dirt. Younger tvb viewers now have no idea of how great Maggie’s acting was back then and they only think of her as some older supporting actress at TVB. It is depressing to watch Maggie Siu act in tvb dramas nowadays having to play second fiddle to all the new fadans, I wish she had quit TVB in the 90s and never looked back. Compared to Maggie Siu, Sheren is in a much more enviable position and she has at least got the chance to lead a good series with a strong role like in Rosy Business. Maybe its due to Sheren’s healthy self-esteem and innate trust in her abilities, she will not take bullshit from TVB and is not afraid to speak up for injustices. Maggie Siu is too timid, and maybe not as ambitious as Sheren Tang (she was ambitious once but that fire in her died long ago) and allows TVB to bully her and has lost whatever reputation she had built up in the 80s-90s. I will never forgive TVB for how they broke Maggie Siu’s spirit.
In fact, that’s probably a hurdle every actress in her 30s has to overcome (Maggie Shiu was the mom of Charmaine Sheh in PITNOL.
========================
Yup and Moses Chan was Charmaine’s father. In fact, they were parents of Sonija Kwok too!!!
Agree with chps. It’s probably not a sermon but a faith sharing talk which requires her to share what adversities she went through and how her faith in God helped her overcome those adversities. I think this is highly sensationalised and reported out of context.
hope she get out of tvb she is much better
i understand that tvb doesn’t always treat people equally or fairly, but i feel like sheren here is just complaining…like complaining that she has to play a mother or that people are calling her auntie? it’s rare that people ever play their age on tv/movies. heck i’m only 21 and kids call me an auntie, i look to it as a form of respect!
i’ve always liked her and respected her, but i can’t understand her complaints really…she won tv queen twice! what more do you want?! being in the entertainment industry sometimes really is about timing. if it’s not for you yet, then it’s not for you. even if tvb sometimes screws up the results.
I haven’t listened to Sheren’s speech, and I refuse to believe every word reported in the above article. This translator seemed to like making misleading headlines and exaggerated comments.
Does anyone have the link so that I can listen to Sheren’s speech?
Yeah, would be good to listen to it. But I think Sheren is sharing how she overcome adversities and difficult situations through her faith in God, or Christianity, and she is not whinging.
Agree that this article is highly sensationalised and misleading.
Wow, everything sounds worse in publication.
Seeing that her “complaints” were during a some sort of christian sermon/sharing sess, she’s just sharing about the struggles she felt as an actress, and probably how that shaped her into the person she is today. The media is mostly one sided; I’m sure there were positives that she spoke about, but you know, those don’t make it on paper.
And she’s human after all.
Even with all the success and fame, we crave for more; we feel like we’re entitle to more. It’s normal to complain about injustice and unfairness. If I were playing mom at 30 to girls 10 years younger, I would be complaining too. Yeah, it’s acting, but it kinda hurts! And lets be real, no one likes flawed scripts or “flying papers” or even seeing a “junior” or anyone you think (as bad as it sounds)at your level/as great as you being awarded something that you deserve more than them.
I don’t consider myself a fan of Sheren’s, but I admire her real-ness and how she isn’t afraid to speak her mind. Yeah, she’s strongly criticized about her complaints regarding the whole Beauty at War “flying papers”, but hey, her complaints pushed TVB to make improvements and set new guidelines.
Humans are greedy what is new?? However, with Sheren, I do not feel she is asking for too much. She is a good actress and works really hard but yet does not get the recognition that she deserves.But that is life and life in the circle is even more unfair. How many times have we seen someone that does not deserve an award get one?? Many times…. People who are overrated and underrated are plenty and she is just one of them.
“her complaints pushed TVB to make improvements and set new guidelines.”
EXACTLY. If everyone settle for status quo, when will progress be made?
Sheren, would you like some cheese with your whine?
I understand Sheren’s case. She’s a phenomenal actress and I wholeheartedly respect that she’s confident in her capabilities but also very direct about her feelings, struggles and insecurities during her career. Just because other good veteran actresses don’t complain, doesn’t necessarily mean they don’t feel the same way, it’s just everyone has different approaches to similar things. As for Awards, well life is really unfair. There’s an insanely amount of talented actors in the Chinese industry but not everyone gets the recognition that they deserve. Personally with War and Beauty, I thought Sheren, Rebecca, Maggie and Charmaine all did a splendid job but Gigi, not so much. She’s been acting for years but yet she’s still unnatural with her facial expressions and fails to convince me with her crying scenes. If I were Sheren, I’d be hella upset too lol.
Yeah Gigi has a beautiful face but her acting is only okay. Sheren is not pretty but she an AWESOME ACTRESS!!!!!
I would not say that Sheren is not pretty but she not only has looks but talent as well.
I don’t think Sheren is not pretty. She still looks great at her current age of 48.
ok ok she is pretty too :).
Oh talking about aging well, Angie Chiu is my all time favorite. She was so beautiful then and still pretty now. Tavia looked very good in ancient series, the one with moses chan and steven ma. She had that elegance look that Angie had. I liked Barbara Yung a lot too. So sad :(.
Also Jamie Chik. Too bad she doesnt age too well.
My 70s favorite Angie Chiu
80s Id Chan, Barbara Yung, Jamie Chik,
90s Kenix Kwok, Melissa Ng, Maggie Cheung Man Yuk movies (In the mood of love maybe in the 2000s but I have liked her since the 90s ), and Gong Li.
2000s I forgot her name but she was in justice Pao Taiwanese series, and was in a few cases, played girl was married and treated badly by the in-law with Roy
Liu in it too, another favorite from Taiwan is Ruby Lin.
Sheren Tang, the one played Charmain’s sister in the same series Beauty and War, Tavia Yeung, korean actress Lee Young Ae ( I like her a lot).
Actors: Roy Liu, Michael Miu, Kong Wah
how about you guys HeTieShou and sandcherry?
Oh and miss hongkong or whatever miss: Michele Reis and Sonija Kwok were the most beautiful.
Oh last one miss hk 1998 Anne Heung too :). She is very elegant.
@Sophia: I also loved Lee Young Ae! Ever since I saw her act in Dae Jang Geum, she is one of my favourite actresses. Speaking of Korean actors, I also like Lee Min Ho and Kim Bum.
And yeah, I love Michael Miu and Bobby’s acting the most. There’s something about Kenneth Ma’s acting that isn’t really natural.
sophia:
I don’t have many favourites as I am never an idol fan in my life.
Sheren Tang is one of my favourite actresses. I started noticing her in Yu Fei’s character in “War & Beauty”. I was impressed by her acting and the way she delivered her lines (those difficult classical Chinese scripts). She was the only lead actress who was able to do it in a conversational manner. Charmaine Sheh and Gigi Lai were both memorizing their lines, and Gigi Lai was even worse. She took too many big and noisy breaths in between her lines. Maggie Cheung was not bad, but she her lines were a lot simpler and not as classy since she was only a maid in most of the series.
I only like artistes if they act well. Of course, they cannot look too ugly to me!! I also like watching Maggie Cheung Ho-Yee, Louise Lee Sze-Kee (not when she was young), Charmaine Sheh, etc. I like artistes who can act with their eyes. It makes their acting more appealing and impressive.
As for actors, I can’t think of one that I really like. Isn’t it terrible? The good looking ones, but not in terms of acting, are Michael Miu, Kenneth Ma, etc.
sophia:
I forgot to mention that I like Kong Wah. He is good looking and he acts well (especially in wuxia drama series), such as “Crimson Sabre” 碧血劍, “The Conqueror’s Story” 楚漢驕雄, “Seven Sisters” 七姊妹,”I have a date with spring” 我和春天有個約會, etc.
Bubblez,
I have started to like Lee Young Ae from Brother Doctors series. Then Dae Jang Geum just made me like her more:).
sandcherry,
I like a lot of older generation actresses/actors :).
I never saw her Brother Doctors series. But when people were talking about Dae Jang Geum and how good it was, I didn’t watch it at that point and when I watched the first few episodes, I got hooked, all thanks to this auntie who talked about it during this sleepover!
sophia:
You seem to enjoy good acting! The veterans usually act better with their many years of experience.
Kwong wah and melissa ng great pair. Also good wit Anne Heung and Maggie Cheung. I love them in The King of yesterday and tomorrow. I laughed so hard even after 2,3 times of watching it.
These actors aren’t newcomers, they should know very well how TVB works and who can get awards.
Some of them act so clueless and hurt when they don’t win. They have been around long enough to know who’s butt to kiss in order to win.
Nah media prolly twisted her words Sheren Tang can never b dat bitter mann!
Probably the reason why Sheren said that she dislikes Hong Kong media so much
funny how people believe in this article so easily.
Totally agree!
Misleading headlines always create discussion.
Good job writer!
Yes! It’s all about earning money
No one can blame her for complaining…. She’s a very capable actress no matter where she goes she’ll still be just as great
Unfortunately this is TVB for you. Look at ppl like Jessica who also has very short shelf lives. But I personally feel Sheren is better than Gigi and Gigi is better than Charmaine who is only a good flower vase teh pao! Of course she also knows how to kiss ASS hence her shelf lives get extended compared to others
Sheren is forthright and honest in what she says and now that she is able to and no longer with TVB she can at last air all her past grievances. Well, some good has come out of it re the giving out of scripts on time. All TVB actors should thank her for that.
In case anyone is interested in the reporting of Sheren Tang’s speech and can read Chinese, here is the link:
http://www.ihktv.com/sudden-945-sheren-tang.html
There is a video clip attached and you can listen to some parts of her speech at the sermon.
Sheren was not complaining about anything; in fact, she was complaining about her own self ……………. being too critical and too bossy during filming. She wanted to share the reasons of her depression, her struggles, her “stupid” perfection over the years with people at the sermon. I guess the tabloids have twisted the meanings and contents of her speech.
Sheren’s speech is very interesting. It is worth listening. She was laughing about her own self for being so stupid to be a perfectionist. The article written by Addy only talked about the bad part (her complaints) of Sheren’s speech but not the good and interesting parts. It is like 斷章取義!
Very typical of the HK media to take all the negatives out of context and report that as “news”. And very typical of netizens to jump on the bandwagon as long as it’s not bad news about their own idols.
Sounds pretty interesting (:
and i wish i knew about it earlier since it was held in vancouver :$
@sandcherry: Thanks for helping to clear Sheren’s name (though obviously, based on some of the comments in this thread alone, the damage is already done and the HK Media already succeeded with what they set out to do…). Honestly, how much lower can the HK Media go with their unscupulous reporting methods? Sheren was merely sharing her testimony at a Christian evangelical event — which, as a fellow Christian myself, I absolutely applaud her for, especially considering how difficult it is for artists in the entertainment circle to continue practicing their faith given all the extra “baggage” (i.e. the unscrupulous HK Media) that they have to carry. It’s definitely a shame that Sheren’s good work is being used against her and causing her even more pain than what she has already endured.
The Media actually did the same thing to Ada Choi back when she shared her testimony about her prior miscarriage (she also shared it at a Christian evangelical session outside of HK) — the HK media pretty much treated her testimony as “juicy tabloid fodder” rather than the emotional, uplifting, inspring message that it was….
llwy12
Sheren Tang is my favourite actress since “War & Beauty”, and I don’t believe that she is that kind of a person. Many of my friends/netizens know that I am Sheren’s fan, they would post me articles about Sheren from time to time. After reading the above article written by Addy, I was very anxious to find out the truth. I was lucky to get the links on time. There is another link on Sheren’s interview in Vancouver on Fairchild Radio.
Thanks sandcherry. You’re right about ts translator’s track record! Taken completely out of context and only highlighted the so all bad parts which are part of a speech to share her life experiences in the context of her relationship with God, not complaints the way I read this.
Thank you for the link.
“A lie gets halfway around the world before the truth has a chance to get its pants on.” – Winston Churchill
Even though I hate the rumour-mongering and tabloid journalism, I still get sucked in all the same. Controversy sells. Unfortunately.
As an actress (or any profession for that matter), one measures one’s success based on one’s critics, not the number of awards one receives. Award is a form of encouragement to do better, not just accomplishments. Perhaps, she should look at things in another angle…perhaps they think she is so good at her work that she does not need any encouragement.
The articles made her sound really bitter, especially the part where she said she had to act as a mom when she was in her thirties. Acting is her job, was she not capable of putting on a convincing act of a mother? Why does age have to do with one’s acting? Perhaps the makeup artists should be concerned about how to make her look older than her age, but a good actress should not have to be concerned about acting as twenty year-olds’ mother.
Perhaps, something got lost in the translation and the article misinterpreted everything she said.
I listened to Sheren’s speech (as per link posted above). She was, in fact, laughing at her own self for her concerns about not getting those awards when she was younger. She was not really complaining about not getting them.
However, she did say that she was upset that she had to act a motherly character for Tong Ling and Chan Man Woon who were all in their earlier 20s. Sheren was only 37 at that time. She said she felt so bad that after acting all her characters as 1st lead actress for many years, she had to act a minor and elder character when she re-joined TVB in 2003.
Sheren felt that it was the bottom of her acting career at that time (2003). Then suddenly she became a 鹹魚反生 (a reborn salty fish) because of her popularity as Yu Fei in “War & Beauty” in 2004. Her popularity soared.
Sheren just shared her life experiences, struggles, depressions with the people at the sermon. She was not complaining about TVB or other artistes.
yeah i would be upset too. If people think I am a mom of someone only 12 years younger. Oh so I googled and the TV series On The First Beat, same thing happened Kara Hui, 53 years old (kinda big role in Chinese series with Ruby Lin, she played the Queen or mother of the king later, BIG ROLE) but she played a small role and MOTHER of Sonija Kwok 39 years old. Yeah only 14 years apart. Seriously? And Kara Hui has awesome skin only made her looked even youger for her age. She only looked 7-8 years older than Sonija Kwok in that series.
Here is another link to listen to Sheren Tang’s interview at Fairchild Radio. She was interviewed by Anita Lee Yuen-Wah in Vancouver:
http://www.am1470.com/home_c.php
1) 李婉華 (Anita Lee) vs. 鄧萃雯 (Sheren Tang
2) 盧業瑂 vs 鄧萃雯/林以諾
Sorry, this is a better link for the above.
http://www.am1470.com/program_archive.php
sheren has every reason to be bitter about that! gigi only received it because she signed a new contract with tvb so tvb righed it! sheren was the deserving winner for yu fei that time! there was a huge outcry after gigi won!
This is in no way whining. I’m assuming this speech was sort of like a sermon on her life experiences and how she had to trust God in those hard times she was talking about. After all, a sermon wouldn’t be inspiring if it wasn’t truthful.
I like Sheren she dares to criticise and speak her mind. unlike other artist so fake when they speak
She said this at a Christian function to share her ups and downs. That’s very typical of Christian gatherings to share their experiences. She didnt hold a press conference to blast TVB. Shes just sharing her hardships and talking about how GOD and religion has helped her become a less negative person….shes not doing this for publicity. She was in Vancouver
Exactly!
I fully understand what Sheren went through. It’s sad but true that a lot of times life is not fair. A lot of times someone can be less hardworking then you but they still get the promotion.
Sheren Tang was not complaining about her struggles in her speech at the sermon. She just wanted to share her life experiences with her fellow Christians. What is wrong with that? Why did the reporters just cut the contents into bits and pieces, and reported the bad ones.
Sandberry I’m definitely on your side! Isn’t it funny how the entertainment media always tend to distort the truth? Think it as this way: We would rather see an eye-catching article about ‘Sheren being bitter’ or would you want to see an article about her’ Christian values’? They want to ‘spice things up’ to grab people’s attention. Even though this means that it is unfair to artists such as Sheren Tang, at least some of the audience know that what is being reported is not always the truth!
You are right. Otherwise, there would not that many posts submitted on this topic. He he …………..
@Anthony: So true! That’s why I admire Sheren and artists like her who are able to still hold true to their faith and are not afraid to share their innermost thoughts with complete strangers in the hopes that their testimonies will touch people’s lives and hopefully strengthen people’s faith in God (for those who are already Christians) or encourage them to accept Christ (for those who aren’t Christians). For an ordinary person, doing such evangelical work is hard enough — for someone in the entertainment industry, it’s probably 100x harder because the artists have to deal with the stupid Media (who will surely pounce on every single word the artist says, even if it’s during a personal gathering or faith sharing event outside of HK) and worry whether their testimonies will cause more problem than it’s worth….
Personally, I would rather read an article about Sheren’s Christian values than about her being bitter — but of course, that’s just me (I obviously don’t care for ‘spiced up’, sensationalized reports..).
llwy12,
Same here I rather read the more truthful pieces of writing than all these hyped-up-never-a-good-thing being said about another human being garbage.
HK media should have hate Sheren a lot lol
I think Sheren is the type that blossom late in her career. Rosy and No regrets are fantastic. War and Beauty has too many female lead and TVB would of course favor younger actress. Funny how Gigi would never come back to acting but audiences can still benefit from Sheren great acting still.
I miss those great TVB series in the past “Cold blood, Warm heart” “Secret of the heart” Now their big budget has very bad script “Born Rich” is right next the junk and i feel bad for Gallen Lor to have to take on such a stupid character.
Both could act, Gigi spent too many of her years in movies and singing, if she stayed in tvb, her acting would have been better only 1990-1995 in tvb but she was also a singer from 1992-1996 then returned to movies in 1995 after the success of “young & dangerous”, she only returned to tvb in 2003 b/c of the lack of jobs during the SARS incident, her movie failed in the box office b/c no one was willing to go out during the SARS incident
more ranting from an entitled old hag, she is one those idiots who has the word “justice” on her forehead and believes all should bend to her will.
What’s got your knickers in a twist?
You don’t have the right to call her an idiot! 😛
Only idiots like you will believe in this article 😛
I’m sure she’s bitter, who wouldn’t be? But I don’t think she kept voicing it out publicly – somehow I feel this is again the media ‘trying’ to creating something out of nothing.
I pity Sheren, this issue is being played over & over again! Don’t they ever get tired?
Sheren Tang is a bitter, jealous narcissist who believe she is the only actress at TVB capable of winning awards.
This woman needs an attitude adjustment.
Did you listen to Sheren’s speech (link posted above) before you submitted your post?
Or at least you read about the other posts submitted on this article before you wrote your statement.