Recently, mainland Chinese actress Jia Ling, who lost 50 kilograms for the movie “Hot and Spicy”, took legal action against a company that used photos of her before and after weight loss without authorization to sell weight loss products. On the 14th, she won the lawsuit and the company was ordered to compensate her with 100,000 RMB for the losses incurred.
Jia Ling, who directed and starred in “Hot and Spicy”, which was released in February this year, not only raked in 3.4 billion RMB at the box office, making it the champion of the 2024 Chinese New Year film season, but also temporarily topped the list as the highest-grossing Chinese film of 2024. During the film promotion, Jia Ling revealed that to play the character Du Leying, who transforms from a “stay-at-home woman” to a “boxer” in the movie, she intentionally gained about 20 kilograms first and then lost 50 kilograms during the filming. The audience cheered as Jia Ling, transformed into an elegant lady, was moved to tears.
During the Chinese New Year period, “Hot and Spicy” became a hot topic among Chinese netizens, not for the storyline, but for Jia Ling’s dramatic weight loss of 50 kilograms. Discussions and searches about Jia Ling and her weight loss journey became trending topics.
The incredible transformation of Jia Ling sparked various debates online: “How did she manage to lose so much weight? Was it through willpower or scientific methods?” However, the inspirational weight loss story in the film motivated many beauty enthusiasts. Subsequently, a group of businesses promoting under the banner of “Jia Ling Style” began using her photos for advertisements.
On April 3rd, Jia Ling’s company “Big Bowl Entertainment” released a statement stating that unauthorized businesses had used her image without her permission, falsely claiming that she endorsed their brands and products or cooperated with them. The company has now hired lawyers to protect her rights according to the law.
According to reports from mainland Chinese media, a health industry development company in Anhui printed Jia Ling’s image on the packaging of their product called “Ms. Jia’s Black Coffee” without her consent. Jia Ling insisted on suing and demanded that the company cease their infringement.
On August 14th, the court delivered its final verdict: the company was prohibited from producing products that infringe on Jia Ling’s image rights, required to publicly apologize, and had to compensate her with 100,000 RMB for economic losses and reasonable legal costs.