Hong Kong actress Yuen Lai-lam, who played the female lead (the Jo Yi-seo role) in "Fired Up!," a Taiwanese drama series based on the webtoon "Itaewon Class." [Yuen Lai-lam's Instagram]
Hong Kong actress Yuen Lai-lam, who played the female lead (the Jo Yi-seo role) in "Fired Up!," a Taiwanese drama series based on the webtoon "Itaewon Class." [Yuen Lai-lam's Instagram]

A well-known Hong Kong actress who starred in "Fired Up!," a Taiwanese drama series based on the webtoon "Itaewon Class," has sparked widespread outrage after revealing she endured 12 years of sexual harassment and assault by directors, fellow actors and journalists.

Yuen Lai-lam, 32, posted on social media Tuesday that she had been subjected to repeated sexual harassment and assault by journalists, directors and male co-stars throughout the 12 years since her debut.

She made the disclosure after being nominated for best actress at the Golden Horse Awards — the most prestigious film festival in the Chinese-speaking world — for her role in the film "Act 4."

She said she had been victimized by directors and actors on set.

"On one set, a male sunbae actor joked that he wanted to kiss me and then kissed my cheek without it being in the script," Yuen said. She added that another male actor had instructed the cinematographer to position the camera high up to film the actresses' chests.

She also said a male co-star who spoke Japanese made serious sexual remarks to her in Japanese at a work dinner while drunk, assuming she would not understand the language.

Earlier this year, she said, a male journalist who served as editor-in-chief of a magazine made sexually harassing remarks to her during an interview held to promote a film.

"The journalist, while seated, told the actresses present at the interview, including me, that we looked like we were sitting in a hostess bar," she said. "I felt deeply humiliated and demanded an apology, but he never gave one."

She went on to say that speaking out about the abuse had only brought stigma upon herself.

"After months of demanding an apology from the male actor who harassed me in Japanese while drunk, I finally received one — but instead I was branded by people in the industry as someone difficult and inflexible, someone who can't take a joke," Yuen said.

She added that when victims speak out publicly, "society either questions their motives or attacks them by asking why they didn't resist at the time," and called for an overhaul of the social climate that stigmatizes and silences victims.

After her disclosure sent shockwaves through the entertainment industry, the journalist she identified as a harasser issued an apology.

In a statement released Tuesday, the journalist said he had failed to formally apologize to those who participated in the interview at the time, and said her post had made him realize the seriousness of his remarks.

Prominent stars and internet users from across the Chinese-speaking world liked and commented on Yuen's post in a show of support.

Yuen made her debut in 2013. She received nominations for best actress at the 2022 Golden Horse Awards and the 2023 Hong Kong Film Awards for her role in the film "Narrow Road." She also played the female lead — the Jo Yi-seo role from the original webtoon — in "Fired Up!," a Taiwanese drama series based on "Itaewon Class."


yeonjoo7@heraldcorp.com