Many people might assume that Chinese actress Xu Jiao was the first child star to find favour with Hongkong director Stephen Chow, who cast her in her movie debut, 2008’s CJ7.

However, there was actually another very young actress who caught his eye way before her, and that’s Guan Peilin.

Peilin, now 43, started acting at the tender age of seven when she appeared alongside Andy Lau, Max Mok, and Cynthia Rothrock in 1986’s The Magic Crystal.

She went on to play the late Lydia Sum’s onscreen daughter in 1987’s It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad World and the cutie pie quickly won the hearts of audiences.

Despite her young age, Peilin demonstrated superb acting skills, prompting the director to cast her in the movie's sequels. It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad World eventually became one of Hongkong's most popular movie franchises of all time.

Peilin’s talents also caught the eye of Stephen, who worked with her in 1990 romcom Love is Love.

He was apparently so impressed that he reportedly described her as the most promising “star of tomorrow” — a massive compliment coming from the notoriously strict filmmaker.

With all her skills and accomplishments, Peilin seemed set to have a smooth-sailing career in entertainment… until she unexpectedly decided to respect the wishes of her parents and leave showbiz to live an ordinary life.

According to reports, her parents were worried that — to put it as gently as possible — she might not have what it takes to meet the industry’s notoriously high beauty standards.

There were also rumours that Peilin had become very arrogant after letting fame get to her head.

While working with Stephen in Love is Love, she reportedly criticised his acting skills between takes, although it’s unclear how true this is since he supposedly had such high praise for her as well.

She was also said to have offended many other actors and directors, ruining her reputation and leading to her withdrawal from showbiz.

Peilin retired from acting in 1994 and was previously rumoured to be working as a flight attendant with Cathay Pacific, but she later clarified that she was in human resources and was in charge of interviewing pilots.

Peilin is now working as a people and resourcing manager at a multinational law company in Hongkong.

Photos: IMDb, Weibo, kknews.cc, PBE Media