Chinese Movie Star Owner of $1.2 Million Pasadena House Says He Will Divorce, Announcement Garners 5 Billion Views

Chinese action movie and TV star Wang Baoqiang, who owns a $1.2 million house in East Pasadena, is seeking to divorce his actress wife Ma Rong over an alleged extramarital affair with his agent.

The 32-year-old star who’s known to fans as Baobao wrote a post on Weibo last week announcing that he was divorcing his wife and firing his agent, Song Zhe, after discovering an alleged sexual relationship between the two.

Wang’s message instantly went viral. According to Sina Weibo, posts with the hashtag #WangBaoQiangDivorce have been viewed over five billion times, about four times the number of China’s population.

In a later post, Ma said Wang had abandoned their family, and threatened to sue him for defamation; she filed a case against Wang on August 16

The couple’s house is reportedly located in the 1500 block of Riviera Drive in Hastings Ranch. Online real estate sites report the value of the home, which sits on 0.33 acres of land, as $1.22 million.

Wang is described as a versatile actor also known for an “earnest” image. Wang’s roles have spanned art house favorites like Berlin Silver Bear winner “Blind Shaft” and Jia Zhangke’s “A Touch of Sin.” His directorial debut, action comedy “Buddies in India,” is set for release in China in December.

Wang filed for divorce in Beijing court on Monday, reportedly seeking custody of the couple’s children and division of their assets.

On Tuesday, Ma responded by suing Wang for defamation of character and demanding that he delete the original Weibo post and formally apologize. She also fired back at Wang on WeChat, saying that he had abandoned his family.

The two were married in 2009 and have a young son and daughter. Wang asked that the public respect the privacy of their family as they proceed with the legal process.

Following Wang’s public statement, his now former agent, made an apology on Weibo, says a report on the New Straits Times.