Japan’s Lily Franky to Star Alongside Fan Bingbing and Gabriel Byrne in Wayne Wang’s ‘Diary of a Mad Old Man’

Japanese actor Lily Franky will appear in Wayne Wang’s next film “Diary of a Mad, Old Man,” revealed co-star Fan Bingbing at a Q&A session for the film “Mother Bhumi,” in competition at the Tokyo International Film Festival.

Franky is best known to international audiences for playing the lead character in Hirokazu Koreeda’s Palme d’Or-winning Shoplifters (2018). He was most recently in Chie Hayakawa’s Cannes competition title “Renoir.”

“I’m very happy that both director Wayne Wang and Lily-san have come to see my film [“Mother Bhumi”], because we’ve just made a film together here in Japan.” said Fan.

“Diary” is based on the 1961 hit novel of the same name by Japanese author, Tanizaki Jun’ichirō, about an elderly invalid’s erotic obsession with his daughter-in-law.

Previously announced cast members include Gabriel Byrne. The film is produced by Japan’s Fourier Films, LA’s Friendly Giant Pictures and the U.K.’s Good Chaos, among others.

“Diary” marks another globe-trotting move by Fan.

In the years since her highly publicised tax problems, the actress has been selectively cultivating her career in international indie productions, a far cry from previous appearances in high concept Mainland films.

At the Q&A session, “Mother Bhumi” director Cheong Keat Aun revealed the extent to which Fan actively sought out the role in the film. Set in a late-1990s Malaysian rice-farming village, “Mother Bhumi,” directed by Chong Keat Aun, follows Hong Im, a widowed farmer and ritual healer who struggles to protect her family and community amid political unrest and land seizures. By day, she resists developers; by night, she heals and exorcises. As colonial-era conflicts resurface, strange events unfold: spirits return, black magic stirs, and the legacy of empire haunts the land.

“The script was written a while back, and my plan was to make it in 2028 or 2029 as my sixth or seventh feature. I was planning to use unknown actors for this film,” said Cheong. “Round about December 2023, out of the blue, Fan Bingbing reached out to my producer to set up a meeting. When she heard about the script, she asked me to keep the role for her.”

“I told her I don’t normally work with well known actors, but she convinced me by telling me I could destroy her looks in the film. So I did,” continued Cheong.

Fan ended off the session by re-emphasizing her roots, while acknowledging the growing reality of pan-Asian filmmaking.

“Fifteen years ago, the Tokyo Film Festival gave me an award. Standing here today to present this film, is very emotional for me,” said Fan. “Further more, as an actress from China, starring in a Malaysian movie. It is a very, very special sort of serendipity.”