Star of Ocean actress Augusta Xu-Holland on how Paris Hilton puts on a front, landing roles through WeChat and working with Joseph Fiennes
- New Zealand-Chinese actress Augusta Xu-Holland made her debut opposite Joseph Fiennes and achieved stardom with her role in 2020 war film The Eight Hundred
- She based her character in hit Chinese series Star of Ocean on Paris Hilton after seeing a film about the socialite and realising she was ‘putting on a front’
For her supporting role as a beautiful model who leads a rich, glamorous life in the sleeper hit Chinese drama series Star of Ocean, Augusta Xu-Holland turned to Hollywood celebrity Paris Hilton for inspiration.
The 30-year-old New Zealand-Chinese actress wanted to flesh out her character Juliet – a young woman who seems to have everything in life but is plagued with insecurities – with emotional depth.
“But when I watched the movie on Paris’ background, I realised she was just putting on a front. Juliet’s way of getting attention from her family is to get caught by [the] paparazzi for partying too hard. She is actually quite lonely.”
The show, released on October 30, is a ratings champion in China. Critics and audience alike have praised it for capturing the zeitgeist of the late 1990s to early 2000s, when go-getters with enough grit could make it in a society awash with opportunities.
