The director of the movie "Time Machine" was exposed to "Taiwan independence" remarks that caused controversy, and Taiwanese artist Chen Linong announced that he had terminated his cooperative relationship with the filmmakers

Source: Global Times

【Global Times Comprehensive Report】 The director of the Taiwanese movie "Time Machine", starring Taiwanese artist Chen Linong, broke out the "Taiwan independence" controversy. On the 25th, Chen Linong announced the termination of cooperation with the film.

Taiwanese entertainer Chen Linong. Pictured from Weibo

Taiwan's United News Network said that the love fantasy movie "Time Machine" starring Chen Linong released a concept poster, and the official announcement was launched on the 25th. It is adapted from the best-selling novel "Time Machine" by mainland writer DTT, which tells the story of Ye Youning, a high-cold scholar in 2008, and Xia Wenxi, a sunflower girl in 2006, who are accidentally connected through a mobile phone in disrepair in parallel time and space. The film will be released simultaneously in mainland China, Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan in 2022 and in Southeast Asia. However, some mainland netizens pulled out that the film received a NT$10 million subsidy from Taiwan's cultural department, and the film's director, Cai Yifen, repeatedly posted on social media suspected of supporting "Taiwan independence" and "Hong Kong independence" and smearing the mainland. Therefore, the day "Time Machine" announced that it was questioned and boycotted by a large number of mainland netizens and Chen Linong's fans.

On the evening of the 25th, Chen Linong Studio issued a statement announcing that it had terminated its cooperative relationship with the filming party of "Time Machine" and would no longer participate in any form. The statement said that Chen Linong himself has always adhered to the one-China principle without wavering, and the motherland's territory is sacred and inseparable, and this position cannot be questioned; "Our side resolutely opposes and severely condemns any organization or individual's behavior of smearing our position, deliberately creating contradictions in many incidents, and intensifying contradictions between compatriots on both sides of the strait!" The statement also said that the studio will be more rigorous and professional in the future job selection, "for which I apologize to Mr. Chen Linong and all the friends who care about Mr. Chen Linong."

Chen Linong was born in Kaohsiung in October 2000, and in December 2017, he participated in the mainland idol boy band competition and cultivation reality show "Idol Trainee", and became a member of the NINE PERCENT boy band with the second place in the total number of votes, officially debuting. After the dissolution of the group, he developed a singing career, releasing his first solo album "Out of Place" in 2020, and in December of the same year, he starred in the movie "Red Fox Shusheng". Zhongshi Electronic News said on the 25th that although "Red Fox Student" did not perform well at the box office, Chen's popularity was not affected. The Taiwan film company was optimistic about his popularity in the mainland, temporarily changed his role, and invited him to be the male protagonist of "Time Machine". The report also mentioned that Chen Linong was also attacked by netizens on the Taiwan Network, mainly because he had previously forwarded patriotic posts on the mainland Weibo many times, terminated the contract with Adidas and expressed support for Xinjiang cotton. (Cheng Dong)