Actor in crime drama outed for past drug use

An actor in the high-profile anti-organized crime police drama The Knockout has been found to have used drugs in real life, and the production team said on Saturday that it is revising and deleting scenes that feature him.

Netizens recently disclosed that Han Xiao, who played the drug dealer Zhong Asi in the television series, was actually involved in drugs in real life.

The drama's production team's official Weibo account released a statement on Saturday saying that they have always maintained a zero-tolerance attitude toward drugs.

It said the actor used the name Han Pujun on his resume during the preparatory stage of production. As they found that he had a lot of experience, appearing in over 10 movies and TV dramas in the last decade, they cast him.

The actor apologized to the team, the audience, his fans and the police in a statement issued on his Weibo account early on Sunday morning.

He said that he "accidentally" took the narcotic in question a decade ago for serious neck pain and wasn't aware that the drug was illegal, and that he had already served a detention of several days for the offense.

According to the news outlet People.cn, Han was detained in August 2009 and began a three-year drug rehabilitation program. He was selected as an image ambassador for Beijing for drug rehabilitation, and engaged in public welfare activities.

In 2014, the National Radio and Television Administration, the national press and media watchdog, issued a circular ordering TV stations and other outlets to stop broadcasting shows featuring stars who have used drugs or solicited prostitutes.