NBA star Yao Ming topped Forbes
magazine's annual mainland Chinese celebrity rankings
for the second consecutive year, but "Memoirs of a
Geisha" star Zhang Ziyi dropped a spot to No. 3.
She was replaced by actress Zhou
Xun, the star of the musical movie "Perhaps Love."
Director Zhang Yimou and pop diva
Faye Wong dropped out of the top 10 after relatively
low-profile years in 2005.
Li Yuchun, winner of China's successful "Super Girls"
singing contest in 2005 the Chinese equivalent of
"American Idol" cracked the top 10, landing at No. 6.
Famed art-house director Chen Kaige was a big mover,
rocketing from outside the top 100 to No. 8, thanks to
the buildup for his new epic mythology flick "The
Promise."
The Forbes annual ranking, posted
on its Web site Friday, is based on income and media
exposure within China.
|
Zhou Xun
Perhaps
Love |
|
|
Fan Bingbing
A
Chinese Tall Story |
|
|
 Zhang Ziyi
Memoirs of a Geisha |
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Rounding out the top 10 are
singer-actress Zhao Wei, at No. 4, Olympic gold medalist
hurdler Liu Xiang at No. 5 and actress Fan Bingbing at
No. 7. In ninth and tenth place were singer Sun Nan and
actress Li Bingbing respectively.
Actress Zhang's co-star in "Memoirs of a Geisha," Gong
Li, was No. 13. English Premier League soccer player Sun
Jihai was ranked No. 23.
According to Forbes, Yao raked in
170 million Chinese yuan (US$21.1 million; euro17.7
million) in 2005. He was showed on Chinese TV 228 times,
mentioned in newspapers 8,050 times and made four
magazine covers. Yao was searched on the Internet nearly
4 million times.
Yao's consolidation of his No. 1 spot was helped by his
new deal with the Houston Rockets. The center signed a
five-year contract worth more than US$75 million (euro63
million) in September.
Yao is a huge source of national pride after breaking
into the upper echelons of a sport mainly dominated by
foreigners.
Actress Zhang, who made her name with the Ang
Lee-directed kung fu movie "Crouching Tiger, Hidden
Dragon," out-earned counterpart Zhou and was reported on
in newspapers and searched over the Internet more
frequently, but Zhou scored 69 more TV appearances than
Zhang's 101.
Zhou was boosted by the popularity of her new movie
"Perhaps Love," in which she delivered a subtle
portrayal of a movie actress caught between her past and
present loves. The film was also a unique pop culture
product, blending a Chinese setting, a Western-style
musical and Bollywood dance choreography.
Pop star Wong's decline can be explained by her decision
to stay largely out of the public eye last year.
Director Zhang's ranking, which fell to No. 26, was
likely hurt by the lack of a movie that generated major
buzz. After the kung fu epics "Hero" and "House of
Flying Daggers," Zhang followed up with the low-key
"Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles," a heartwarming
story about a Japanese father who travels to China to
fulfill his ailing son's wishes.
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Integrated ranking |
Name |
Industry |
|
1 |
Yao Ming |
Athletes |
|
2 |
Zhou Xun |
Actor |
|
3 |
Zhang Ziyi |
Actor |
|
4 |
Vicki Zhao |
Actor |
|
5 |
Liu Xiang |
Athletes |
|
6 |
Li Yuchun |
Singer |
|
7 |
Fan Bingbing |
Actor |
|
8 |
Chen Kaige |
Director |
|
9 |
Sunnan |
Singer |
|
10 |
Li Bingbing |
Actor |
|
|
|
Forbes 2006 China's Top 10 Celebrity Rankings List
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