Legendary 'Monkey King' actor prepares 3 films
- By Zhang Rui
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E-mail China.org.cn, June 3, 2016
The famous "Monkey King" actor Zhang Jinlai said he has been preparing for three "Journey to the West" movies while he is hoping to find and train the younger generation's "Monkey King" successors.
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"Monkey King" actor Zhang Jinlai poses for his book launch of "Ascetic" at Madame Tussauds in Beijing on June 1, 2016. [Photo / China.org.cn] |
Zhang, now 57 and better known by his stage name "Liu Xiao Ling Tong," is famous for his vivid, nuanced portrayal of a monkey character in the 30-year-old TV series "Journey to the West," which has been aired and rebroadcast more than 3,000 times on China Central Television (CCTV) and other local TV networks, and is a cornerstone of the nation's pop culture that lives in the collective memory of generations.
He was at an event to promote his new autobiography "Ascetic" at Madame Tussauds in Beijing on Wednesday. The book contains life stories about his family, late brother and his wife, and dozens of unreleased photos. Zhang said this book is more about his story than other books he had written.
The actor was thinking about how to pass on his family's classic monkey acting skills to the next generation and is auditioning future monkey kings worldwide. "I believe someone will take my torch and pass it on generation to generation. This year I have chosen 6 kids to train, and I would love to take in more talent by your recommendation."
The "Monkey King" actor said he has been preparing for three films adapted from the classic fantasy novel "Journey to the West" with American collaborators, but the scripts haven't been perfected enough to make the films so he decided to dedicate more time to polish them. He will be the leading actor and arts consultant for the films.
There are so many "Journey to the West" adaptation projects that have been made or will be coming up in theaters in recent years. But Chinese audiences always have a sense of nostalgia for Zhang's version of the Monkey King. Zhang said he doesn't mind that others are also recreating "Journey to the West" films as long as the stories will not be made into strange parodies, which will hurt the classic original story's cultural appeal, he said.
"Please also wait patiently for my films," he added.
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