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The first time we saw Fan Bingbing in person was in 2009. She was in Singapore to promote the political thriller Bodyguards and Assassins. We don’t exactly remember who else from the illustrious cast was here on that press junket — we think Nicholas Tse and Tony Leung Ka-Fai? Maybe Leon Lai too?
But we certainly remember Fan Bingbing. So statuesque, she towered over her male co-stars on stage. So fair, her alabaster skin literally glowing under the spotlight and relentless camera flashes.
She’s why the term ‘screen goddess’ exists, we remember thinking.
14 years later, 8days.sg is sitting opposite Fan Bingbing in the presidential suite on the 53rd floor of the Marina Bay Sands Hotel.
We’re relaying to her that anecdote and how, even after more than a decade, she still has that effect on people. She laughs, caught unaware by the compliment. “No, no, don’t say that… but thank you,” says the now 42-year-old.
Siting on an armchair next to us, she’s facing the view of the Singapore skyline the suite has to offer. The view is possibly the only thing that comes close to rivalling Fan Bingbing’s larger-than-life beauty.
Something’s different though. While there was a frosty, even aloof elegance to her in 2009, she seems a lot softer, warmer now. Is it a result of the four-year hiatus she took from showbiz following her career-derailing tax evasion scandal in 2018. Who knows?
Bingbing is in town to receive the Cinema Icon Award at the Singapore International Film Festival (SGIFF), which lasts till Dec 10. Three of her movies were shown during the festival: gritty thriller Green Night (2023), steamy mystery-drama Double Xposure (2012) and coming-of-age movie Buddha Mountain (2010).
She spent the night before feted by the local film industry and her many fans who had showed up at amidst the pouring rain at the Shaw House to catch her walk the red carpet in a stunning Stephane Rolland gown on the festival’s opening night.
Her manager had shared a clip on Instagram of a fan going ape shit over Bingbing at the event. The fan is jostling for a photo and she screams at the security and anyone who stops her from getting close to the star. She catches the attention of Bingbing, who gently tells her to calm down before stopping to pose for a photo with the fan standing an arm’s length away.
Who knew the actress could still command such fandom? Actually, we, of all people, should know.