The Knockout, which became a huge hit during the Chinese New Year holidays,tells the story of China's successful crackdown on criminal gangs and the great acting on display have become a hot topic on social media.Photo:The Paper

The team of the popular crime series The Knockout said it has zero tolerance for drug-related behavior and is deleting the episode part of Han Pujun, who was found by netizens to have a drug-taking history, arousing public discussion about whether a tainted celebrity should be forever banned from screens. 

The hit crime series unfolds the Chinese police force's 20-year tough struggle with criminal gangs. But some netizens have found that the actor portraying a drug dealer in the TV drama was the former singer Han Xiao, who became popular in the 1990s and was detained by the police for 12 days due to taking drugs in 2009. Han Xiao then changed his name to Han Pujun and had roles in multiple TV series afterward, netizens found.

The actor, as reported by netizens, submitted his resume in the name of Han Pujun and the team allowed him to be a guest actor for one day given his rich acting experiences in more than 10 TV series in the past decade, said the team of The Knockout in a statement on Saturday evening on China's Twitter-like social media platform Sina Weibo in response to the issue.
 
"We are deleting Han Pujun's part from the episode as we have always had zero tolerance for drug-related behavior, and we reserve the right to hold Han and the actor hiring process responsible," said the team. 

The actor made an apology on Weibo on Sunday morning, saying he has lived cautiously in regret for his mistake in the past 10 years and is deeply sorry to the series' team, to the fans of the series, and to the anti-drug police fighting on the front line.

Related hashtags about tainted celebrities once again appearing on the screen quickly became trending topics on Weibo, raising widespread discussion as to whether celebrities who once took drugs but then turned over a new leaf can still appear in front of the public.

Most netizens found it difficult to accept Han on the TV screen. "Those anti-drug police who sacrificed their lives could have died in vain if celebrities like Han are allowed to come back for money and reputation," said one netizen.

China's entertainment industry regulations forbid misbehaving stars from appearing on TV and movie screens. 

In 2014, China's National Radio and Television Administration said celebrities who have used drugs, visited prostitutes or been involved in other law-breaking behaviors should not be invited to appear in programs, movies and TV dramas with lots of their participation should be suspended. 

In 2021, the Publicity Department of the Communist Party of China emphasized the punishment for actors who have engaged in illegal or unethical behaviors, banning them from reemerging in public view

At the same time, China's Anti-Drug Law requires no discrimination for persons subjected to drug rehabilitation when they go to school, get employed or receive social welfare.

Experts said the entertainment industry's ban on tainted celebrities doesn't contradict the law's provision of no employment discrimination for these people.

The industry regulations block the access of celebrities with drug-taking histories from appearing at the front stage in show business, but they can still find jobs in other industries as they can return to society as ordinary people after detoxification, Wang Sixin, a law professor from the Communication University of China, told the Global Times on Sunday.

Wang said that show business should have strict requirements as it is a very special cultural industry, which can easily affect the social climate and trigger the public's imitation, especially that of teenagers.

"How about those narcotic police who risk their lives fighting against the drug-related crimes and their families? If you let those celebrities once addicted to drugs or engaging in drug trafficking stage a comeback, what kind of signals will be sent to the whole society?" Wang said.