Zhang Haowei was a part of Joy of Life 2, which is 2024’s biggest C-drama hit so far. While he may not be a household name to everyone, he’s certainly recognized as the Crown Prince from Joy of Life. However, the 33-year-old actor has found himself at the center of consecutive controversies this month. First, there was a recording where he made comments about another actor. Now, another recording has surfaced, putting him in even more trouble, in addition to paparazzo teasing their followers with scoop about an actor from a hit drama who’s facing tax problems.
On August 19, Zhang Haowei trended online over these new allegations. Gossip bloggers reported that Zhang Haowei is the actor rumored to be dealing with tax problems. Moreover, an alleged voice recording of the actor has emerged, where he appears to discuss going into the business of hiring “ladies,” interpreted to be prostitutes. The conversation even touches on whether they should hire a “madam” too or just train one and they’re hoping to gather “ladies” from everywhere. Tax issues and soliciting prostitutes are both career-ending scandals—what’s worse is the implication that he might be interested to run the show.
Given these grave accusations, Zhang Haowei took to social media to declare, “The innocent man is innocent.” His studio also issued a statement to deny the allegations. They said they have gone to the police and also shared a receipt showing their taxes have been paid. His studio wrote:
- We have always adhered to the principle of reasonable and legal tax payment. We have absolutely no tax evasion and have issued the tax payment certificate. Those who are innocent will be innocent. Please supervise us.
- Regarding the authenticity of the video recording and other revelations, We believe that the public security organs will give a fair result. This matter involves a criminal case, and we reported it to the police as early as a week ago. We are now waiting for the follow-up results. Because the case is being processed, some details are not convenient for us to disclose now. We believe that the public security department will give a notarized result.
As the investigation continues, Zhang Haowei’s future in the Chinese entertainment industry hangs in the balance.
Source: Zhang Hao Wei / Weibo
Xoxo
Guilty until proven innocent. smh.
avarachika
Holy crap…welp, we know how the c-industry is so bye bye.
du
and the age of AI has begun. Anyone can fake voice recording of anyone today. Not buying it at all.
Anon
Hahaha. I think the comments here are also jumping to conclusions. Allegations and rumors detected on social media. Statements issued, police reports made. All in a normal day’s work for the offices of celebrities.
The Chinese police and tax authorities are very efficient. If there is real evidence of an offence, the guy is done for, celebrity or not. If there is seemingly no action on the authorities’ side even after a few months, then there was no evidence at this time. Conversely, if someone has been creating and spreading fake news, they will get a visit from the police too.
The rest is up to how his studio handles the social media. We just wait and see how it develops.