The actor's cut: Xinhua reporter lets Chen Daoming edit his own interview

Actor Chen Daoming would appear a man of many talents - not only is he a famed thespian and delegate to the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, he seems to have turned his hand to news editing.

A reporter with state-run news agency Xinhua prompted controversy on the weekend by releasing an interview with Chen, admitting she had let him edit it "with his own hand".

Journalist Wu Yu was upfront about how her report had gone through substantial changes by Chen, even bragging about it. "Many media colleagues may envy me - a 'super hunk' sat on the floor with me yesterday, editing my report with his own hand!" Wu wrote.

Chen, 59, a household name on the mainland, has starred in internationally released films such as Zhang Yimou's Hero and Coming Home, and the Hong Kong movie Infernal Affairs 3.

The interview was not politically sensitive. Chen had mainly talked about the quality of Chinese film production.

Wu wrote that she had promised Chen he could look at the draft before publication, "just to make sure everything's correct". She was impressed by the "meticulousness and seriousness" of the "charismatic" actor.