Zhao Wei and Shu Qi ordered to return show fee
6 Oct – Amid the controversy surrounding Fan Bingbing and her tax scandal, it was reported that the Chinese authorities are now focusing on limiting the salary of its artistes to curb overpay.
As reported on Epoch Times, the National Radio and Television Administration (NRTA), formerly known as SARFT recently issued a restriction order for variety shows, in which a celebrity's fee should not exceed RMB 800,000 per episode, with official show cast to be paid not more than RMB 10 million per season.
Reportedly, actresses Zhao Wei and Shu Qi, who joined the second season of the reality show, "Chinese Restaurant", were already paid RMB 50 million per person for the show prior to the issuance of the memo. Despite that, the two reportedly have been ordered to return RMB 40 million to the station to abide by the new restriction.
It was also rumoured that while Zhao Wei had no issue returning the fee, Shu, who rarely appeared on variety shows, needed more convincing to do the same from her fellow cast member.
Both Shu Qi and Zhao Wei have yet to respond to the rumours.
On the other hand, another celebrity who is being paid hefty amount of money for her reality show appearance is Faye Wong. However, there is no news as to whether she was ordered to refund the station.
Meanwhile, following the investigation into Fan Bingbing's finances, many artistes including Huang Xiaoming, Zhang Ziyi, Chen Jianbin, and Cecilia Liu reportedly have withdrawn from their company to avoid similar issues.
