In love with Jay? Chi-ling won't go there

THIS might be sad news for Jay Chou fans: The Taiwanese pop star/actor prefers not to have overly intimate scenes in his movies.

The reason?

He wants to come across as a decent guy.

“It’s a matter of image, it’s very important. I cannot be kissing so freely,” said the 30-year-old star candidly in Mandarin, at a press conference held at Raffles City Convention Centre yesterday.

He was in town to promote his latest film, The Treasure Hunter, also starring Lin Chi-ling.

He added: “You don’t necessarily need to kiss to portray deep emotions.”

Chou was in town with Lin, 35, and Taiwanese director Kevin Chu to promote the action movie, which opens next Thursday.

The film, touted to be National Treasure meets The Mummy, sees Chou playing a roguish treasure hunter, Ciao Fei, who is forced to hand over a valuable map of a lost city in exchange for the life of his mentor’s daughter, Lan Ting (played by Lin).

Teaming up with a famous archaeologist, they set off to recover the map and protect the ancient treasure buried beneath the city.

Lin said the role – her second acting gig so far – is her most challenging one yet.

The leggy beauty had to film in a desert in Hengdian – a small town in Dongyang of central Zhejiang province of China – for three months, even suffering a cut to her face that became infected.

The two leads share a couple of romantic sequences in the US$15 million (S$21 million) film, but do not have any kissing scenes.

Nor can you expect any scenes where they tumble into bed together.

Rumour has it that Lin convinced the director to remove the only kissing scene with Chou.

When asked about it, Lin said Chu hadn’t had plans for any intimate scenes between the two at all.

“From the film, you can tell that the relationship between Ciao Fei and Lan Ting is a very pure and ambiguous one, with the characters not saying what they mean. He intentionally left a space for the audience to guess and imagine what their relationship is,” she explained.

Lin, who was first seen in John Woo’s 2008 historical epic, Red Cliff, added that her chemistry with Chou was “very good”.

“Filming with him was very comfortable as we knew each other before taking on this project,” she said.

“We can communicate well and give each other suggestions on how to act better... Jay is a very creative person, so his ideas inspire me to improve on my character,” she added.

When asked – given their chemistry – whether there were moments where she felt as though there might be a stronger connection, she smiled knowingly.

“I wouldn’t dare, he has too many fans,” she said with a laugh.

CHOU’S GIRLS

Just as well that Lin wouldn’t make a move on her co-star. Chou – who first broke out in movies in Hong Kong flick Initial D (2005), for which he won a Golden Horse Award – revealed that because of his star status, starlets are afraid to be seen with him.

“If we get shot by the paparazzi, people will immediately assume (that whoever I’m with) is my girlfriend. It is unfair for the girls,” he said.

“I don’t have any way of clearing my name, or theirs. The more I try to speak, the more mistakes I make,” he added.

Chou has been linked to pop star Jolin Tsai, as well as TV host Patty Hou and singer Jessie Chiang. Chou has been upfront with the media only about his relationship with Hou, whom he dated in 2005.

But he reassured the press that the next time he is with someone for real, he’ll confirm the relationship just so they won’t have to speculate, he said
wryly.

Chou’s star is on the rise, especially with his first foray into Hollywood.

He recently nabbed a role in the movie remake of The Green Hornet, alongside Seth Rogen and Cameron Diaz, and will be playing the superhero’s sidekick, Kato.

Filming is still ongoing in Hollywood, and the film is scheduled to be released in December next year.

Even though he has been in the entertainment industry for 10 years now, Chou said acting in Hollywood was still an entirely different ball game for him.

“Over there, I feel like I’m a newbie. I have to wait very long before getting started on filming my scenes) and I cannot speak too loudly. I have to be well-behaved. It was fun; a good experience,” he said with a smile.

credit :- Asia One