The actor Xiang Zuo, known as the “Prince of Hong Kong Cinema Circle,” is the son of Hong Kong film and television tycoon Xiang Huaqiang. Establishing himself in the mainland Chinese market in recent years, he has starred in three major films invested by his parents’ company, “China Star Films Limited”: “Legend of the Gods,” “My Boxing Champion Boyfriend,” and “Treasure Land Ahead.” After a total loss of 800 million yuan, he has started transitioning to producing web movies, attracting attention and sparking discussions among the audience.
At 40 years old, Xiang Zuo has always been involved in action blockbusters since his debut, often supported by A-list directors, with production costs reaching hundreds of millions. For instance, in 2016, the film “Legend of the Gods,” with an investment of 500 million yuan from “China Star” owner, featured A-listers like Jet Li and Huang Xiaoming, with Xiang Zuo officially playing the role of male lead but having the most screen time. To highlight Xiang Zuo’s portrayal of “Lei Zhenzi,” the scriptwriters forcefully altered the Chinese mythological story into a Western fantasy setting. The movie featured Roman-style castles, Japanese ninja-like warriors, immortal war gods, spaceship battles reminiscent of “Star Wars,” blending various visual effects elements from Western films into a chaotic mix that left audiences stunned, leading fans to question, “Is this still the mythological story set in the Shang Dynasty of China?”
According to reports from mainland Chinese media, the film was dubbed as an “epic bad movie” by Chinese moviegoers, eventually grossing only 283 million yuan at the box office, resulting in a loss of 400 million for Xiang Zuo’s family.
In 2019, Xiang Zuo invited renowned Hong Kong director Johnnie To to direct “My Boxing Champion Boyfriend.” The movie received a rating of 4.6 on Douban, breaking Johnnie To’s streak of no flop films. Marketed as a 200 million yuan production, the film ended up grossing less than 25 million yuan, essentially sinking the 200 million investments.
Perhaps believing that “Third time’s the charm,” in 2024, Xiang Zuo brought his purported 200 million yuan investment to produce “Treasure Land Ahead.” Public data revealed that the film, led by Xiang Zuo and his wife, actress Guo Biti, tells a tale of a martial arts center director in Tianjin who passes away in 1920, leaving behind various incidents within the center. Despite being directed by the renowned screenwriter Xu Haofeng, hailed as the “light of modern martial arts novels,” and featuring martial arts choreography from Bruce Lee’s martial brother Leung Siu-hung, Xiang Zuo’s efforts to bring in international talents like Asian-American actor An Zhijie as a supporting role and gather well-wishes from industry heavyweights like Zhang Yimou, Andy Lau, Wu Jing, Shen Teng, and Hu Ge before its release did not save the film. It premiered on the first weekend after the Mid-Autumn Festival last year, earning only 680,000 yuan on its first day and concluding with a total box office of 2.5 million yuan. Xiang Zuo’s action sequences went unnoticed, and his meticulously designed stunts were mocked by netizens.
An article from “NetEase Entertainment” on January 8th remarked, “If the costs of these three major films were indeed accurate, then Xiang Zuo has lost 800 million over the years in the film industry.” The article further pondered, “No wonder (Xiang Zuo) and his entire family have turned to live-streaming sales.” The report also hinted at Xiang Zuo’s latest venture, starring in the web movie “Protector 3: Final Battle,” set to debut on January 10th. Excluding his cameo in the 2018 web movie “Laughing in the World 2,” this marks Xiang Zuo’s true debut as the leading man in a web movie. In light of these developments, netizens have speculated whether Xiang Zuo is contemplating retirement and “lying flat.”