Buzz
Vuong Ve Quoc - a renowned star who once graced the screens in the Journey to the West series, found himself in a hilariously awkward predicament.
When discussing Journey to the West, many viewers from the 80s and 90s generation undoubtedly remember the character of Ngoc Hoang, bearing the 'power of life and death' but always being called upon by Sun Wukong for arbitration.
Despite being a seemingly minor role, this character garnered much affection from the audience, especially young fans. In fact, actor Vuong Ve Quoc's portrayal of Ngoc Hoang Dai De in Journey to the West 2 earned him the accolade of 'the most handsome Ngoc Hoang on screen'.
Such was the triumph of this role that numerous businesses decided to immortalize the image of Ngoc Hoang on... hell banknotes. During a visit to his ancestral village, the 'Ngoc Hoang' stumbled upon this comically absurd situation.
However, being immortalized on fake currency, regardless, wasn't exactly a stroke of luck. Consequently, the actor contemplated legal action against those responsible for creating these notes to reclaim his dignity and image. Nevertheless, given the widespread circulation of the notes, finding the culprits was akin to 'searching for a needle in a haystack', so he ultimately abandoned the pursuit.
Currently, artist Vuong Ve Quoc is 66 years old. He remains robust and mentally sharp, although he no longer engages in the entertainment or artistic scene.
Here are some comments from netizens on this matter:
- Indeed, his image is printed on hell banknotes. When I was young, I found a note like that, treasured it like gold, used it as a bookmark in my literature book, then my parents found out, scolded me severely, and made me throw it away. I was so reluctant at that time.
- In the past, there were many paintings, statues, ... all modeled after the appearances of actors in the movie, because they looked so alike!
- Actress Ta Dai Phan, who played the role of Guan Yin Bodhisattva in Journey to the West, was also bewildered when her picture from the movie was brought up to be worshiped at the Guan Yin temple. This clearly demonstrates the extent of influence and classic status.
- Basically, from facial features to demeanor, there's a sense of majesty, seriousness, and dignity that a Jade Emperor should possess.
- Like Bodhisattvas and ancestral gods, people also use exact images or statues for worship.
- Shouldn't they be printing images of the King of Hell instead? Why use celestial court money in the underworld?
- It should have been the Yama King's image printed! Why use heavenly currency in the underworld?
Source: Vietnamese Weibo
