Taipei City Councilor Wang Shih-cheng (王世堅) of the Democratic Progressive Party on Saturday gave film distributors permission to use his image to promote horror film Child’s Play after memes emerged linking him to Chucky, the killer doll in the movie franchise.
Wang said that he has not been part of a commercial advertising campaign before and he was not aware that he had generated a buzz online, as he rarely used social media or a smartphone.
“It is my job to protect the interests of Taipei residents, so I would be happy to be their Chucky to scare the mayor, city officials and others in authority so they do not abuse their power,” Wang said.
Photo: Yang Hsin-hui, Taipei Times
“Somebody needs to keep people with power in check,” he said.
Film distributors contacted him about an ad campaign and he agreed on condition that he does not receive payment and would not be asked to work on it until the city council is out of session, he said.
“From what I understand, Chucky was a good doll until it was possessed by an evil spirit... I am an easy-going guy when I am not working in the city council, but when I am asking the tough questions, I have a bit of a mean streak,” he said.
“The project sounds like fun and Taiwanese know how to have a good time, even when things are tough,” he said. “We understand that having a sense of humor is a good thing.”
Asked how he feels about the Internet memes, which link him to Chucky’s snarl and long, unruly hair, Wang said: “As an elected representative, I am fine with the way people see me and I respect their right to have harmless fun.”
“I happen to be a good guy who is possessed by my responsibilities,” Wang said. “I am not afraid of the dark.”
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