Star sparks lively war of words

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story features Jiang Wen and another big-name Chinese actor, Donnie Yen, in its international cast. [Photo provided to China Daily]

The Star Wars epic, arguably the most popular sci-fi movie franchise in the world, has never been in sync with the Chinese mentality.

"I didn't mean to be disrespectful, but when I was little, we in China had no access to this series," says Jiang, 54, now more hailed as a director than an actor.

The first three films, dating back to 1977 through 1983, were never released in China.

The prequel trilogy, from 1999 to 2005, gained little footing in the Middle Kingdom. Rogue One is a standalone prequel, and it features two big-name Chinese actors in its very international cast. Besides Jiang, martial artist Donnie Yen plays a blind warrior who believes in the Force.

After the movie opened in China, the talk that the Chinese duo might be cameos died away. They are part of a team who supports the female lead. "You can call it a cameo if you want," Jiang jokes, obviously confident of the substance of his role in the movie.

"I can tell the difference between a cameo and a supporting role," I respond. "I'm a film critic."

The reason for public sensitivity towards this issue stems from previous Hollywood experiments that used Chinese superstars in token roles as a goodwill gesture to break into the Chinese market. After the initial "pleasant surprise", public attitudes in China quickly changed, with many feeling slighted by Hollywood's condescension.

When asked about the Chinese actresses widely considered shortchanged for their Hollywood appearances, Jiang says that it would be wrong to blame the actresses. Perhaps the script was not good, or the director or the producer did not do a good job, or their scenes were cut in editing. "At least they were beautiful," he adds.

It is, therefore, natural that Jiang was grilled about his take on his Hollywood experience. (Rogue One was shot in a studio in London, though.)

But he refused to toe the line of movie-star propriety expected from the press.

"I don't see much difference between a big movie there and a big one here," he says.

"The kind of movies I make in China are pretty big, too. With the money they spent, I can shoot a bigger movie here in China. In my movies, the director, the cinematographer and the actors have a lot of say, just like in Rogue One. It's not just a business deal."