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Nicholas Tse to drop Canadian citizenship as Chinese netizens question his nationality

SHANGHAI, CHINA - JUNE 11: Actor Nicholas Tse Ting-fung attends opening ceremony of the 24th Shanghai International Film Festival at Shanghai Grand Theatre on June 11, 2021 in Shanghai, China. (Photo by VCG/VCG via Getty Images)
Actor Nicholas Tse Ting-fung at the 24th Shanghai International Film Festival at Shanghai Grand Theatre on June 11, 2021. (Photo by VCG/VCG via Getty Images)

Hong Kong actor Nicholas Tse said that he has applied to revoke his Canadian citizenship in an interview with Chinese TV host Lan Yu.

Tse was born in Hong Kong, and moved to Vancouver, Canada at a young age. Having grown up in Canada, Tse held dual Canadian and Hong Kong citizenship.

As he recently starred in the action film Raging Fire with Donnie Yen, Tse was frustrated when he saw online comments about the movie questioning his nationality. He clarified, “I was born in Hong Kong, so I am a Chinese national to begin with.”

Here's a clip of Tse's interview (Editor's note: Netizens' social media posts contain their views and not Yahoo's.):

Tse, who debuted as a singer and is recently more active as a chef, added, “Be it in terms of food, music or action movies, I feel that I have the responsibility to share Chinese culture with the whole world.”

He explained that just like when he wrote the Chinese-style song Yellow Race in 2004, he hopes to promote the Chinese spirit. Yellow Race was a motivational song inspired by the fighting spirit of Olympic athletes.

His decision and views have won the hearts of many Chinese netizens, especially with the political conflict between Hong Kong and China. One of his supporters wrote, “He was brought to live in Canada by his parents. Even if he has grown up with the Canadian citizenship, he has not forgotten he is a Chinese. On the contrary, he has been promoting his Chinese identity and national pride. This is what you call a quality idol.”

An unverified list of Chinese celebrities had been circulating online, allegedly a list by China's National Radio and Television Administration, that includes stars who will be blacklisted by authorities for holding foreign non-Chinese citizenship. Nicholas Tse had been among the names listed, but the list is likely fake because Singaporean singer Stefanie Sun has already denied being blacklisted.

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