Chinese actor Liu Ye departs for the US on Monday to start shooting his new movie Meteor, co-starring 55-year old Hollywood actress Meryl Streep.

A brief see-off meeting, spontaneously organized by fans from Beijing, Shanghai and Hong Kong was held to show the strong support the promising actor has on the Chinese mainland.

Popular Chinese actress Zhang Ziyi, once Liu Ye's classmate, is also in the US for Steven Spielberg's latest film Memoirs of a Geisha and sent her friend a short message before his departure.

Liu Ye is best known for his role in the film The Foliage, or Mei Ren Cai in mandarin. He has also appeared in films like the Jasmine Women and a documentary on late Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping.

(CRI October 18, 2004)