Beijing, Sep 23 (IANS/EFE) Top Hollywood actors like Leonardo DiCaprio, Nicole Kidman and John Travolta paraded Sunday on the red carpet at the inauguration of the Qingdao Oriental Movie Metropolis in China.
The megaproject, aimed at making the city the mecca of filmmaking when it opens its doors in 2017, is the latest ambitious initiative of China's richest man, Wang Jianlin, who so far has invested around 50 billion yuan ($8.3 billion) in the future Asian Hollywood that will bear the stamp of his firm, Dalian Wanda Group.
Although the complex will not actually open for another four years, Wang opted to hold an inauguration ceremony in Qingdao that was attended by the local mayor, the Communist Party secretary of the coastal city, as well as dozens of personalities from the world of film.
The number of Hollywood A-list actors clearly impressed the public at the event, and this was the first time that so many US film stars have been on hand in China to attend such an event along with their Chinese counterparts.
The actors arriving at the event also included Ewan McGregor, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Christoph Waltz and Kate Beckinsale, along with internationally-known Chinese actors such as Zhang Ziyi, Jet Li, Tony Leung, Donnie Yen, Zhao Wei and Huang Xiaoming.
--IANS/EFE
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