Fei Xiang wouldn't go back to his younger days even if he could, here's why

If you don't know him, chances are your mother or grandmother probably do.

Chinese-American singer-actor Fei Xiang was known to be a heartthrob in the '80s because of his striking good looks, but the 62-year-old recently revealed why he's leaving those days in the past.

Recalling what he felt when he was a big star in his 20s, Fei Xiang said he was "at a loss" when faced with both positive and negative remarks from the public.

He added in the video interview series Junpin Tan: "Even if I could return to my younger days where I was youthful and good-looking, to a time when my body was functioning great, I would not go back."

"I cherish all the life experiences I have accumulated now. These experiences are gained in exchange with time," he said, explaining further that returning to his youth would mean going back to square one when it comes to life experiences. 

The present is still the best time of your life, he added. 

Fei Xiang also called ageing an "unavoidable process" in life.

"At every stage, you and your audience are growing old… It's impossible to hold on to a point in time," he said, adding that artistes must understand themselves and "be cruel looking at yourself in the mirror".

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Fei Xiang, also known as Kris Phillips, started his showbiz career as an idol singer in the 1980s. Later in his career, he appeared in films and dramas, his notable works including The Monkey King 2 (2016) and Creation of the Gods I: Kingdom of Storm (2023), the first movie of the Creations of the Gods trilogy.

In an interview with AsiaOne in October, he shared how the three movies were filmed back-to-back over one-and-a-half years: "I have to be honest, I'm 62 years old now. When you're in your 20s and 30s, you can easily say yes to a product of a year, three years, five years, but at this age, you don't have too many five years to give away."

If a production is going to get him "off his sofa and working again", he told us, it has to be worth it.

"But I'm still willing if it's something good," he concluded.

The following two movies in the trilogy are scheduled to be released next year and in 2025.

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syarifahsn@asiaone.com