Actor and singer Jaden Smith suddenly canceled a spate of events scheduled in multiple cities in China, the state propaganda outlet Global Times confirmed on Monday, after a mysterious user of a regime-controlled social media application accused Smith of shouting racial slurs at Chinese and other Asians on a train in Japan.
It remains entirely unknown at press time who made the accusation — the Global Times claimed to be unable to find the person — and the accuser presented no proof of his or her claims. An English-language translation of the original post attacking Smith circulating on social media does not make it clear if the person was even accusing Smith, or merely someone in his entourage, of the outrageous behavior.
The saga began on Xiaohongshu, a social media application used in China often compared to Instagram. Xiaohongshu, like all Chinese social media applications in the country, employs strict censorship protocols to silence anything that could be interpreted as anti-communist sentiment or any posts that the Communist Party may disapprove of. Not only did the government not censor the post against Smith, but the Global Times amplified the controversy by reporting on it.
According to the Global Times, the original Xiaohongshu post claimed that the accuser was on a Shinkansen train from Kyoto to Tokyo on August 19 along with Smith and his entourage.
“Someone asked Jaden his opinion on different countries including China. Jaden replied with ‘F*** China.’ Smith repeatedly made derogatory remarks about China,” the post read, according to the Global Times, though these lines do not appear on other, unverified translations of the post circulating online.
“The post on Xiaohongshu said that Smith and his team were drinking, laughing, banging the tray table and making these offensive comments very loudly,” the state newspaper relayed. “The train attendants and someone who appeared to be a passenger had to talk to the crowd several times to get them to lower their voices. The lot didn’t seem to care despite other people’s dissatisfaction.”
Accompanying the post was a short video showing Smith getting off of a train. Smith is not engaging in any offensive actions in the video.
“Some fans noted that there was no actual proof that the rapper made any racist comments and that the original post was just a one sided story. They called for the witness to provide more concrete proof,” the Global Times conceded.
Smith, who is currently on a tour of Asia, continued to make appearances in Japan, but remained in the country instead of traveling to China after the original Xiaohongshu post surfaced. Smith posted a story message to Instagram this weekend, which automatically deletes after 24 hours, reading, “China Friends & Fans, due to unforeseen circumstances I’ve had to make the tough decision to reschedule my events with my good friends … in Shanghai, Beijing, and Shenzhen,” according to screenshots posted online.
The actor has yet to comment publicly on the allegations against him for the comments that he is accused of making.
Smith’s Instagram page has been flooded by infuriated commenters claiming to be Chinese, leaving racist comments referencing cotton-picking in the antebellum American South and threatening that Smith will “pay the price” for his alleged insults.
“China has benn [sic] a powerful country since ancient times and will not be brought down by the words of racists, but you will pay the price because of your words and deeds,” one comment read, “a strong and rich person will tolerate everything, if you want to use a few words to slander China, then you are very wrong.”
Another commenter asked, “Your dad took you out of the cotton garden, so you think you’re white?”
Several commenters linked Smith to an unrelated controversy involving Japan dumping large amounts of water used to cool the defunct Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant into the ocean, claiming “Japanese nuclear wastewater” damaged Smith’s brain.
Smith is one of the West’s most popular celebrities in China, as his father, actor Will Smith, also enjoys popularity there and has fostered a positive relationship with the Chinese government, even attempting to film PSAs for the Chinese public in Mandarin. In response, the Chinese public — as presented in social media comments the government does not delete — has defended the elder Smith through some of his most challenging moments, including flooding Chinese websites with supportive comments calling him a “real man” after slapping comic Chris Rock in the face during the live broadcast of the Academy Awards in 2022.
Jaden Smith is best known to audiences in China for playing the titular role in the 2010 remake of The Karate Kid, which was incongruously set and filmed in China. Smith starred in the film alongside one of the Chinese Communist Party’s most loyal celebrities, Jackie Chan, and critics described the film itself as being “a wonderfully organic propaganda tool for China.” Unlike other pro-China Western celebrities — such as actor John Cena and basketball player James Harden — Jaden Smith has not publicly lent his voice to any Chinese Communist Party political causes, such as condemning support for dissidents or attacking Taiwan.
The Global Times concluded by describing the bizarre situation Smith is currently in as a warning to Western celebrities that neutral friendliness towards China is not enough to protect them from fabricated scandals.
“There’s a broader lesson here about the importance of cultural sensitivity, especially for global celebrities. A casual comment can quickly spiral into a major incident with far-reaching implications, said a commentator,” the state outlet claimed. “In an age of instant information and constant connectivity, celebrities need to be more cautious than ever. And as audiences, perhaps we ought to think more critically about the figures we choose to support.”
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