[Celebrity Weddings] Eric Li to Wed Girlfriend of Five Years
As a veteran supporting actor, Eric Li (李天翔) is most known for his antagonistic portrayals, often as a rapist. A netizen amusingly touted him as the actor who has “raped all the television actresses.” Despite his acting abilities in several notable roles, Eric has not had any breakthrough in his career. Feeling pigeonholed, Eric boldly decided not to renew his contract with TVB. Hoping to find new opportunities for himself, he instead signed a per-series contract.
Things are still not quite looking up for the 40-year-old actor on the career front, but his love life has taken a positive turn into the next phase. Although Eric previously stated in an interview that he dared not get married until he is successful in his career, he and his girlfriend, whom have been dating for more than five years, recently registered for marriage.
Eric shared, “I’ve been thinking about it for a while. We don’t have a specific date set on when to get married. Right now, my career has still not picked up. A man will ultimately hope that he has a successful career and can take care of his other half. During this time, if my career never picks up, then does that mean I don’t have to keep my promise to my other half? After I discussed it with her, we had an understanding. I have to give her this status.”
When asked whether they will hold a large wedding banquet to celebrate with friends and family, Eric said, “We won’t [have a big celebration]. Both my other half and I are very low-profile. Getting married is about two people. As long as two people decide it is okay, then it is fine.”
Eric’s girlfriend is not from the entertainment industry. However, she is reportedly a successful investor. On whether he is afraid of people calling him a “soft rice king”, he said, “There’s no point in being worried. Every person has a mouth. I cannot control what other people think. It doesn’t make sense to not get married because of this. My other half and I are financially independent, nor will we care about whether the other person is rich or poor.”
Although his career continues to be at a standstill, Eric feels grateful for his girlfriend’s continued support. “Being with a person is not a light matter. The careers of both the man and woman are very important. During these uncertain times, she still is willing to marry me. Actually, this is already the biggest support!”
Source: HK01.com
This article is written by Huynh for JayneStars.com.
Congrats to Eric Li, although it is sad to hear that he has left TVB.
Lmao can’t help but to laugh at the opening sentence
As a veteran supporting actor, Eric Li (李天翔) is most known for his antagonistic portrayals, often as a rapist. A netizen amusingly touted him as the actor who has “raped all the television actresses.”
I have to admit, though, he is probably one of the best actor out there to be a villain character, particularly because of his eyes. No offense, he has that “imma come and rape you” face. His acting is pretty good as well. It’s a pity he never got any bigger role than minor supporting role in his career.
@xystus I know he was typecast as a villain, but rapist? I don’t recall.
Congrats, Eric! TVB’s loss!
@tiffany Hmm not sure what other series, but his character attempted to rape Linda Chung and Queenie Chu’s characters in A Journey Called Life.
@xystus Yes, that comment made me laugh haha.
It is a shame. I no longer watch TVB dramas, but I definitely remember Eric in a BUNCH of series. He is a good actor, especially when it comes to villainous roles, because he has the intensity in his eyes, like @xystus mentioned. I also think he’s handsome, so it sucks that he never got the opportunity (we all know how TVB is…).
But congrats to him on getting married. That’s always happy news. I hope he will get recognized someday. I stopped watching TVB mostly because I didn’t want to see poor acting from the newer generation. Pity.
@lyu310 agree! Even though he only took minor roles but he always gave his best, honestly he played a villainous role better than Raymond Wong. Im happy bcoz there is someone who has the same thoughts. I stopped watching new tvb series, young generation with poor acting kill audiences. I’d rather spend time in watching 90’s series, those good old times
Congratulations! Sad that he left TVB as he is a good actor. Hope he will find success somewhere else in the future.
And here’s another good actor who never gets recognised for his talent. Yes, he’s got the villainous look but given his acting ability I actually think he’d excel in almost any role. He’s played good guys before and I’ve always enjoyed his performances. Plus he’s actually good looking and pleasant to look at. It’s sad that he’s left but I hope we’ll get to see him from time to time.
Eric Li is a good actor. Such a pity that TVB never promoted him and gave him opportunities, instead they promote emotionless actors like Tony Hung and Benjamin Yuen.
Imho, Eric did have breakthrough performances. It’s just that TVB failed to pick up the momentum when he started gaining audience notice and his fans increased. I’ve like him since ‘Dicey Business’ and it was also during that time that he has the highest profile because many of his series was aired at the same time. But, TVB never took the opportunity to promote him.
The producer who made the most use of him is Lee Tim Shing. He always have meaty roles in Lee’s series. I think Lee is not with TVB anymore.
Signing per series contact is good. He has more freedom to do other things. He can branch out to theater and movies, and look for jobs in China to expand his career opportunities.
No! Another good actor leaves tvb? Sigh.. hopefully he’ll find success somewhere maybe mainland China like every else. I’ll be missed him for sure.
I agree with everyone thus far. Eric showed so much potential. I find h better looking than Him Law, Tony Hung, and Benjamin Yuen. It’s pity that he never got a chance to shine. Maybe he ‘ll be the next gen Wayne Lai, where he left, came back, had one golden opportunity, then bam, TV king x3,4,5, lol.
@alicesky Raymond Wong can’t play a villian if his career depends on it. I like him as an actor and he does emotional scenes very well. He didn’t sell at all in Overachievers. His saving grace in Bottled Passion was his character is a hopeless romantic and not all-out-villain. His being bad scenes were womanizing and played puppy, which he has it down packed, lol.
@jjwong Yea, definitely a pity — Eric is a way better actor than many of the “newer generation” currently leading TVB’s series, but of course, TVB management once again fell asleep at the wheel and let another potential opportunity slip by. I can’t say I’m surprised that Eric left given how TVB operates, but I still feel bad for how much time he wasted with a company that didn’t value him and essentially having to “start over” again elsewhere. Luckily though, there are alot more opportunities out there nowadays than there were several years ago and with Eric’s talent, I’m not worried that he won’t be able to find work. If he doesn’t want to go to Mainland, he could follow in the footsteps of his former colleagues such as Deon Cheung, Alan Luk, Leung Kin Ping, etc. (all actors with acting talent who were with TVB for decades but always played minor roles ) and work for one (or all) of the other TV stations and/or carve out a career in movies. IMO, he’s better off not being tied down to TVB.
@llwy12 True, since TVB is all crap now. I hope he makes it in mainland. It’ll be hard, especially for him. He has no fan base like others who went and made it. At least, hopefully he’ll make much more than TVB cheapazz.
Great actor! Congratz Eric!