You think making a comeback in Hollywood is hard? Try making a comeback in Hong Kong. Taiwanese actress Joey Wang, who retired in 2004 after 20 years of making movies, is rumoured to be considering a return to acting—except that no one seems to remember her or actually have a job for her.

Joey, now 46 and living in Canada, has kept a low profile since Shanghai Storyalmost a decade ago. But recently a cosmetics and jewellery company tried to tempt her out of retirement with a HK$1 million (RM400,800) offer to make an appearance at their Hong Kong event in May.

But while her Internet buzz has been encouraging, response from movie industry folks—including her former peers and collaborators—has been, shall we say, lukewarm at best.

Sandra Ng, Best Actress winner at 2003 Golden Horse Film Festival for her role as a prostitute in Golden Chicken and who's collaborated with Joey several times before, can't even remember who Joey Wang is. She was overheard asking, who is Joey Wang? Precisely, who is she?

"Was she the one with long hair? The really beautiful one?" Sandra, 47, asked Eric Tsang. Sandra later clarified her forgetfulness by saying, "I've not met her for a very long time. I've worked with her in a couple of movies but I don't remember the titles. It's been 30 years! It would be refreshing for viewers to see her today. I've seen her movies being played repeatedly in China."