Maggie Q- Spice Up Your Life, Korean PAP

Seoul — Lying nearly nude in a bed of crimson chili peppers next to the tagline "Spice Up Your Life – Go Vegetarian," actor and former fashion model Maggie Q stars in a new pro-vegetarian ad for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals Asia-Pacific (PETA). Maggie—who starred in the action-packed blockbuster Mission Impossible III and co-starred with Andy Lau in the action thriller Three Kingdoms: Resurrection of the Dragon—wants her millions of fans and the rest of the world to know that the best thing that they can do for animals, their health, and the environment is to kick the meat habit.

"Going vegetarian is one of the most rewarding decisions I've ever made," says Maggie. "I feel better, I have more energy on and off the set, and I have the satisfaction of knowing that I'm doing something to help stop animal suffering."

The consumption of meat and other animal products has been conclusively linked to heart disease, diabetes, obesity, and several types of cancer. Bird flu and mad cow disease are also directly related to the meat industry.

Eating meat is responsible for immense animal suffering as well. Billions of animals every year are slaughtered for their flesh—including more than 500 million in Korea alone—and as Asia continues to experience unprecedented economic growth, there has been a corresponding increase in the number of cruel, environmentally destructive factory farms. Pigs, cows, and chickens are confined to dark, filthy warehouses, where they are deprived of everything that is natural and important to them. Animals raised intensively in factory farms routinely undergo debeaking, tail-docking and castration—all without any pain relief. Only a steady diet of drugs keeps them alive long enough to be prodded to the slaughterhouse.

The striking ad was shot by photographer Ken Sax, and Maggie's hair was done by Adir Abergel for Magnet LA. Her make-up was done by Kara Yoshimoto Bua for Avant Groupe, and the set was designed by Alise Arato for Zenobia Agency. Maggie's stylist was Hong Kong's Sean K.