Woman has accused the actor and his producer friend, Wang Jing, of assaulting her after they all left a karaoke bar

This article is more than 1 year old

This article is more than 1 year old

A Chinese movie star and his producer friend have pleaded not guilty to raping a woman in a luxury Sydney hotel.

The actor Gao Yunxiang and producer Wang Jing on Friday pleaded not guilty at Sydney’s Downing Centre district court to sexually assaulting a woman multiple times at the Shangri-La hotel in March 2018.

Gao, a star so popular in Asia his lawyer likened him to Hugh Jackman, appeared before a courtroom packed with Chinese media while Wang appeared via video link.

Both men pleaded not guilty to all charges, including aggravated sexual assault where the victim was deprived of liberty, through an interpreter.

The woman claims Wang and Gao assaulted her repeatedly in the hotel room after they all left a karaoke bar about 2am on 27 March.

The actor, also known as Gavin Gao, was out that night with his co-accused and staff from a TV show they had just finished filming in Sydney.

A trial date was set down for late October and is expected to take six weeks.