KUALA LUMPUR, July 21 \u2014\u00a0Whether as Yu Shu Lien in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000), Wai Lin in the 1997 James Bond film Tomorrow Never Dies, or Evelyn Quan Wang in 2022\u2019s Everything Everywhere All at Once, Tan Sri Michelle Yeoh has spent decades making her mark on the global film industry..<\/p>\n
Her latest project, It\u2019s My Time, sees her play Zhao Yanhong, a character inspired by real-life Zhejiang retiree Zhao Wenying, who became the fastest person aged over 60 to solve a Magic Cube while blindfolded.<\/p>\n
The film also marks Yeoh\u2019s return to Chinese-language cinema.<\/p>\n
In an earlier statement, the Ipoh-born actress said she was drawn to Zhao Yanhong\u2019s optimism and determination to embrace life despite its challenges, qualities that ultimately convinced her to take on the role.<\/p>\n
To prepare for the performance, Yeoh observed elderly women at local markets, studying their gestures, expressions and everyday interactions to bring authenticity to the character.<\/p>\n
Speaking to Malay Mail, Yeoh reflected on her return to Chinese-language cinema following her historic Academy Award win for Best Actress for Everything Everywhere All at Once.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was never about where the film was made,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI simply fell in love with Zhao Yanhong and her spirit.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe reminds us that life doesn\u2019t stop because we reach a certain age \u2014 that message felt very meaningful to me.\u201d<\/p>\n
It\u2019s My Time is directed and co-written by Bai Xue and produced by Wen Muye, with the Magic Cube playing a central role in the story.<\/p>\n
Asked whether she had any experience solving one before taking on the project, Yeoh admitted: \u201cNone at all!\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI honestly thought, \u2018How difficult can it be?\u2019 Then I realised very quickly that it takes incredible patience and discipline.<\/p>\n
\u201cI definitely have a new respect for everyone who can solve one in seconds,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n
Yeoh also recalled how meeting Zhao Wenying in person deepened her admiration for the woman whose story inspired the film.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe has such warmth and humility, and she never thinks she\u2019s done anything extraordinary.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe simply kept moving forward one step at a time.<\/p>\n
\u201cI did not want to imitate her; I wanted audiences to feel her heart and understand how her journey has touched so many people,\u201d Yeoh added.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s My Time premiered in China on June 30 and opens in Malaysian cinemas on July 23 through distributor Brilliant Pictures.<\/p>\n
The film follows 70-year-old Zhao Yanhong, who is sent to a nursing home by her son.<\/p>\n
Determined to reclaim her life, her fortunes change when a young coach discovers her extraordinary talent for the Rubik\u2019s Cube, transforming her into a television sensation.<\/p>\n
The cast also includes Liu Haoran, Sa Rina, Bai Ke, Han Tongsheng, Qi Xi and Liu Yang, with special appearances by Tian Yu, Huang Yao and Chen Halin.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"KUALA LUMPUR, July 21 \u2014\u00a0Whether as Yu Shu Lien in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000), Wai Lin in…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":560652,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[134427,321,93,100350,61,60,236945,49676,236947,236946],"class_list":["post-560651","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-celebrities","tag-bai-xue","tag-celebrities","tag-entertainment","tag-everything-everywhere-all-at-once","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-it039s-my-time","tag-michelle-yeoh","tag-rubik039s-cube","tag-zhao-yanhong"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/560651","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=560651"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/560651\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/560652"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=560651"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=560651"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=560651"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}