Donnie Yen Responds to Controversial Oscars Appearance

Prior to attending the 95th Academy Awards as a presenter, Donnie Yen (甄子丹) was faced with a strong petition of over 100,000 signatures protesting his appearance due to his support for the Chinese Communist government. During his attendance for the Hong Kong Derby recently, Donnie addressed the controversy.

“Everyone is entitled to their own opinion. I hope the world would be more tolerant and loving. I don’t want to talk too much, as today is a very happy day.” Seemingly not too bothered about the boycott, Donnie continues to focus on  achieving his goals.

When asked about his thoughts of Michelle Yeoh (楊紫瓊) winning Best Actress at the Oscars, Donnie is thrilled for the actress. “When Michelle got the award, we all jumped in excitement! She really deserved it after so many years of persistence and hard work. Ke Huy Quan’s speech after winning Best Supporting Actor was also very touching. I was happy to see so many Asians finally get recognized with awards. I’m planning to celebrate with Michelle through a meal, but everyone is probably in a queue waiting to do the same.”

Donnie further praised Michelle for winning glory for Asians and women. He recalled that he collaborated with the actress in martial art films Butterfly and Sword (1993), Wing Chun (1994), and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: Sword of Destiny (2016), and they became great friends while filming and playing mahjong during their free time. As for any chances to work again in the future, Donnie laughed that it would probably take another 30 years to reunite onscreen again.

Source: [1]