Multiple social media platforms have deleted accounts and content belonging to Chinese-Canadian pop idol Kris Wu after he was detained for suspected rape.
Wu’s accounts have been removed from social networking sites such as Twitter-like Weibo, online culture community Douban, and TikTok’s domestic version, Douyin. He previously had roughly 50 million followers on Weibo and 16 million fans on Douyin.
The label owned by Wu, 20XXCLUB, is still accessible on Weibo. However, some of the pop idol’s songs have been removed from music streaming sites.
His personal pages have also disappeared on video streaming platforms such as iQIYI and Tencent Video.
China’s Twitter-like platform Weibo has deleted Kris Wu’s account. Screengrab via Weibo
The hashtag for the news has quickly taken over the internet, with 840 million views on Weibo at the time of writing. Most netizens are celebrating social media’s cancellation of the disgraced performer.
“It feels damn good,” reads a meme that has garnered the most likes under the hashtag.
“Weibo did a great job,” reads another upvoted comment. “Society must raise the threshold for celebrities. Those found to have committed misconduct should be punished severely or even completely banned once accusations are confirmed.”
Weibo announced on Sunday night that it had closed 108 misleading communities, disbanded 789 groups, and banned or permanently deleted 990 accounts in response to Wu’s scandal.
According to the statement, Weibo accounts of Wu’s former supporters and fan communities have been either suspended or deleted, including the account of Chinese writer Liu Liu who apologized earlier that day for previously defending Wu against sexual assault allegations.
Let the witch hunt begin: Weibo accounts of Ma Wei Wei (producer, host) & Liu Liu (Singaporean screenwriter) are banned, as they are reported to have violated laws or regulations. The two had “problematic” remarks in 2016 supporting Kris Wu, which they apologized for yesterday. https://t.co/ecVHviMaxZ pic.twitter.com/0hNVhLyani
— Kris Wu v. DMZ (@KrisWu_DMZ) August 2, 2021
In response to the online chatter regarding Wu’s detainment, Madame Tussauds Shanghai wax museum removed a wax statue in his likeness, according to the State-backed newspaper Global Times.
Cover image: Film still from Sweet Sixteen
