Did Yoyo Chen Leak Her Own Divorce News?
Has actress Yoyo Chen (陳自瑤) been reportedly ousted from her lead role in upcoming drama You Are Not Her <妳不是她> due to having leaked news of her divorce with Vincent Wong (王浩信)?
The Background
With on-off divorce talk swirling since 2018 which the duo denied, both have focused efforts on their respective careers in recent years, with Yoyo finally rising in status after two decades at the station. However, media reports that Yoyo unilaterally filed for divorce four years ago elicited suspicion among TVB’s management ranks that she leaked the news herself — which riled them and caused her to be dropped from a new production and replaced by actress Crystal Fung (馮盈盈)!
Tying the knot in 2011, the couple had been sweet in public up till 2018, when rumors spread they started living apart in the same apartment, though both parties had denied this. Since talk of their relationship discord first made its rounds, TVB’s management had forbade the two celebrities from publicly commenting on the matter, for fear of jeopardizing Vincent’s “warm guy” public image and his numerous endorsement deals, since his popularity was rising at that time. Thus, both artistes would typically avoid direct replies or deny things were amiss.
Crystal Comes Out of “Sitting On Cold Bench”?
However, it was said that Yoyo insisted on applying for divorce four years ago for a clean break. According to Hong Kong’s laws, either party of a married couple who have “lived apart” for a period of two continuous years could issue a petition for divorce. When suspicions of an intentional leak landed on Yoyo – who had already finished filming Happily Ever After <婚後事> and was originally slated to start work on You Are Not Her, she was dropped and her cushy lead role was passed to actress Crystal Fung, who has not filmed dramas for months after she angered TVB management.
Asked if Crystal was to replace Yoyo in the drama, and what gave him the confidence to cast the former, TVB’s drama production head Stephen Tsui denied knowledge of Crystal being “frozen” and replied, “No, we’ve always wanted to cast Crystal…initially, we wanted to cast Yoyo, but in another role, in the end we didn’t use her as she had to film “Happily Ever After”…I wanted to give (Crystal) a chance, she actually has lots of potential…I want to give her a role that’s different from the straight-speaking kind,“
Reportedly frozen after riling TVB’s feathers for a series of missteps, Crystal was also said to have offended the station a fourth time – after TVB successfully invited famed director Wong Jing’s (王晶) to produce the Hong Kong remake of successful Taiwanese drama Light the Night <華燈初上>, she instantly turned down his arrangement for her to film in China upon learning about it.
Questioned by the press about the news surrounding his co-star in You Are Not Her, actor Karl Ting (丁子朗), meanwhile, denied knowing much and told reporters they were even faster at getting wind of things than him.
Source: Yahoo HK
Haven’t been watching TVB dramas but I’d rather watch Yoyo on TV than Crystal.
Am surprised that Yoyo and Vincent are still married, why shouldn’t either party file for divorce if they are unable to work out their differences (or if it is true, Vincent does not behave like a married man).
Me too! Crystal can’t act and annoying voice..definitely yo-yo better..
If this is true, then that’s really unfair. Why does she have to lose a role due to getting a divorce? Their divorce is practically open secret.
If this is true then they really treat her unfairly why can’t she open up her divorce status what does this have to do with TVB image unbelievable!!!
Personally, I’m probably one of the few that don’t like Yoyo’s acting and much prefer Crystal over her to lead instead. Yoyo’s voice is so shrill at times and she is so controlled in reality that she fails to fully submerge and display her character in any roles that she plays. Crystal gives me a feeling of someone who is strong headed and is unafraid to say things as they are. I admire those qualities. Plus thru the dub of wars, you can tell she genuinely works hard. I find her attractive and entertaining and with much nore potential than Sabrina Mendes.
Sabrina to me just sees like a flower vase/beauty queen. Someone who is keen on looking beautiful and can’t put down her beauty queen title to become a true artist. Not her fault, just how she is. FYY is a lot more versatile but she would very likely continue to offend TVB management with her straightforward attitude and bluntness.
Anyway, in regards to Yoyo’s divorce announcement, if true, I find TVB’s interference in disallowing Yoyo to file divorce or announcing it to be very archaic. It’s not like we are in the 90s where artists have to hide who they are dating or married to, etc. The world and society has changed so much and with as much transparencies as there are these days, TVB is still unfortunately, living and practicing its own draconian rules. Quite sad actually and precisely why the station won’t last with this conservative backward practice.
@Gnomageddon I agree with you. Yoyo never felt like she was immersed entirely in her roles. There’s a stiffness there that isn’t as fluid as someone who has more talent in the acting field (IMO.) And she really needs to work on how she delivers her lines – she either sounds aggressive or whiney, and neither helps her case.
I like Crystal more as a personality. Acting-wise, she’s okay, but needs more development.
Is there any validity in this rumor? I don’t know what the show is about, but Karl Ting is like 25 years old. Yoyo is over 40. While she looks great for her age, I don’t see how that match up works unless it’s a noona romance. Crystal and Karl are closer in age and would look more like a conventional couple.
So they’ve denied divorce rumours all this time to protect Vincents image? Sounds a little farfetched that Yoyo would go along with it that long. Its just a job, it shouldn’t interfere in her personal life.