Stars She forgave him for betrayal and distrust: the love story of Jackie Chan and Joan Lin

Chan and Joan met in 1982 when Jackie met Miss Annie Wang, the editor of Hong Kong’s Silver World magazine, to view his photographs. The journalist did not come alone, but with actress Joan Lin. The girl was already famous not only in Taiwan, but also in Asia. Chan was struck by the appearance of a new acquaintance. “She looked so pure and innocent that it seemed like there was some otherworldly creature in front of you,” he said.

On the contrary, Jackie himself was a rather rude and ill-mannered young man at the time. Behind him was the fame of a womanizer. At first, Chang never thought he could win Lin’s heart. But the oriental beauty fell in love with him at first sight. She soon discovered that her feelings were mutual.

Chan noticed immediately that Joan was different from all the girls he knew. Despite her popularity, she was sweet, shy and kind. Lin dressed modestly, wore no jewelry, and was very polite.

The girl did not try to change her lover, she accepted him along with all his shortcomings. “Despite the fact that my behavior was far from ideal, she paid no attention to it. She never corrected me when I mis-emphasized words or acted like an uncouth simpleton when we went out for dinner,” the actor recalled.

Joan always tried to be close to her loved one. She responded very vividly to everything Jackie said. Lin admired his sense of humor and considered him the most incredible person she had ever met. It didn’t matter to her how famous her beloved was and how much he earned. She was primarily attracted to Jackie’s kindness and openness. “I didn’t ask her why she liked me, but I often wondered why she was with me. She really seemed to find something in me,” Chan said.

Celebrities did not react in any way to the fact that their romance was widely discussed in the press. Jackie and Joan rarely saw each other, because at that time the actor was filming a lot.

After some time, Lin found out that she was pregnant. Before that, Chan was wary of girls who said they were expecting a child from him. But this time it was different. Jackie was incredibly touched by the news that he was about to become a father.

Soon after the happy news, the lovers held a wedding ceremony for close friends at a restaurant in Los Angeles. The stars exchanged vows and the priest said the appropriate words. That was the end of the ceremony. That evening, Joan was admitted to the hospital, and a day later, the couple gave birth to a son named Chang Zoming.

After the birth of the child, Lin left her acting career. Much more important to her was the role of a loving mother and caring wife.

After the wedding, the couple tried for a long time not to appear together in public and even more not to show their son. The reason was the tragedy that occurred after the media talked about the couple’s wedding. When two fans learned that the actor was no longer free, they committed suicide. They could not come to terms with their new idol status.

As time went by, Jackie began to pay less attention to his family. Despite the birth of the child, he still disappeared from the scene, traveled around the world and sometimes even forgot to call his family. Chan did not see his wife and son for months. At this time, Joan devoted all her time to raising the child.

After falling under the influence of friends who told him that only devastated bank accounts were waiting for them at home after a long shoot, Jackie began to distrust his wife. The actor did not spoil his wife and child with expensive gifts and sent them money only for the most necessary expenses.

As for Joan, she still loved and trusted her husband.

As a result, Jackie himself did not justify the trust. In 1998, journalists reported on his affair with Asian actress Elaine Wu Qili, who gave birth to Chan’s daughter. After that, the actor realized that a divorce was inevitable, because he believed that Joan was unlikely to forgive him for his betrayal.

But the wife turned out to be a real angel. When Jackie told her about the affair, she didn’t dare reprimand him. On the contrary, she offered help and even wanted to defend him in front of the public. She said you should never hurt another so you don’t suffer yourself. When Jackie heard these words, she burst into tears. He realized that only a loving and faithful woman could say such a thing.

Jackie repented, asked his wife’s forgiveness, gathered his strength and returned home to Joan’s son. For the first time in 15 years of marriage, he talked to his wife, to his child, and especially to himself. He realized that he had been depriving himself of true happiness all these years.

Since then, there have been no other women for Jackie Chan. There was only one left in his life – Joan Lin.

Jackie Chan’s son – Jaycee Chan – followed in his father’s footsteps: he became an actor and singer, although not so famous. The relationship between the young man and his parent was strained: in 2011, at the award ceremony in Beijing, Jackie Chan even said that after his death he would rather bequeath money to charity than leave it to his son. “If he can do something, he can make money on his own, but if he can’t, he’s wasting my money,” he said.

Jaycee and Jackie became close after the youngster served six months in a Beijing prison on charges of drug use and possession. Under Chinese law, he could have been sentenced to death, and Jackie Chan kept flying to Beijing to commute the sentence. This helped: Jaycee was released and he and his father reconciled. “I haven’t seen him in too long. I feel like he’s matured this time. We didn’t talk about sad things. It was a family conversation. We talked all night and did not sleep, “said the actor later.

Text: Alexandra Zakharova

Photo: Getty Images, social networks