On December 27, 2024, mainland Chinese actress Xu Jiao, who debuted as a child star and gained fame for her role in Stephen Chow’s “CJ7,” sparked a heated discussion online after sharing a video on Weibo where she had a conflict with a stranger. Known for her outspoken nature, Xu Jiao claimed that she tried to stop a man from smoking in a restaurant, only to have him grab her phone and throw a cigarette into her food bowl. This incident quickly went viral and became the top trending topic on the internet.
In the video posted on December 26, Xu Jiao recounted her experience at a restaurant in Changsha where she encountered a man smoking. Despite her efforts to intervene by asking the staff to stop him, the man disregarded her and even boldly claimed that he would finish smoking there. When Xu Jiao personally tried to persuade him to stop, the man became confrontational, stating that there were no non-smoking signs posted in the restaurant, leading to a clash between them.
During the altercation, Xu Jiao recorded the incident with her phone as evidence, but the man snatched it away from her. He demanded that she delete the video and went as far as throwing the cigarette butt into her bowl of food. Frustrated by the lack of support, Xu Jiao decided to call the police. However, authorities informed her that indoor smoking was not illegal in Changsha, and as a result, no fines could be imposed on the man, leaving Xu Jiao feeling helpless and angry, propelling the incident to the top trending topic.
Xu Jiao has since deleted the Weibo video and has not issued any further statements in response to the situation.
At 27 years old, Xu Jiao rose to fame at the age of 9 when she cross-dressed to portray a boy alongside Stephen Chow in “CJ7” as a father-son duo. Overnight, she won the “Best New Actor Award” at the 28th Hong Kong Film Awards and signed an 8-year contract with Stephen Chow’s “Starlight” company.
Despite the monumental success of “CJ7,” which generated an impressive box office revenue of 203 million RMB in China in 2009, Xu Jiao’s performance as the determined, mischievous, and grubby schoolboy “Dicky” left a lasting impression. It wasn’t until the cast list was revealed that audiences discovered the role was played by Xu Jiao, a young girl born in Zhejiang, China in 1997, who cross-dressed for the part.
There are rumors that when Stephen Chow was casting for the role, he auditioned numerous children across China but failed to find the perfect fit until Xu Jiao appeared. However, the decision to cast her in a cross-gender role required careful consideration, leading to multiple rounds of auditions by Stephen Chow to ensure Xu Jiao, at such a young age, could handle the role, eventually leading to her signing as a “Star Girl.”
In 2016, Xu Jiao went to the United States to attend high school and later pursued further studies at the ArtCenter College of Design in California. Last May, she shared her outstanding grades for the last semester on Weibo, with all 6 subjects receiving an A grade, earning praise from many netizens. In September of last year, Xu Jiao announced her return to Stephen Chow’s “Starlight” company.