Latest news with #StarSearch
AsiaOne
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- AsiaOne
Zen Chong looks back on 'stuck' showbiz career, says without luck, 'no matter how hard you try, you also cannot get it', Entertainment News
Many would regard ruthless businessman Robert Zhang from The Little Nyonya (2008) as an iconic Singapore drama villain. But despite his popularity, the same cannot be said of Singapore-based Malaysian actor Zen Chong who brought him to life. The 46-year-old, who is nominated for Star Awards 2025 Top 10 Most Popular Male Artistes, told AsiaOne in an interview recently that while he enjoys acting very much, sometimes it's takes more than just passion and talent to make it a career. "It's all about luck and I think it really plays a very important role. It's like, if fate doesn't align at the moment and it (an acting opportunity) doesn't belong to you, no matter how hard you try, you also cannot get it," he said. Zen made his Singapore showbiz debut in 2001 after he finished third place in the Malaysian edition of Star Search that year. Besides playing Robert in The Little Nyonya, he's also known for playing convenient store staff Hong Daji in local Mandarin sitcom Lobang King (2003), which stars Chew Chor Meng and the late Huang Wenyong. Zen told us that luck was what helped him land the role of Robert, a character so iconic that people on the streets — even in China — still call him by that name. However, despite the success of the drama and his role, he found that his acting career became stagnant. "My career got stuck after The Little Nyonya. It wasn't booming despite what others thought. So, I decided to take a part-time job as a property agent. I felt insecure [about my showbiz career], so I needed to do something else," Zen shared. He elaborated: "There wasn't an increase in my salary and acting opportunities. I thought to myself that it was time to assess my acting career." Zen became a part-time property agent in 2012, juggling his acting career until his contract with Mediacorp ended in 2014. Despite being a public figure, Zen said he went "all in" in his new career: "I didn't care that I was an artiste and needed to protect my image. When working in the estate market, I really ' chiong ' (go for it)." He was involved in many aspects of the job including showroom sales, distributing flyers in malls and meeting potential buyers, who frequently recognised him. "I was still young then, so I had to try everything," he added. Zen now owns his own company Crescere Asset Management, where he is involved in financial management, including assets and funds. When asked if he had felt it was a pity that his acting career didn't flourish, he said: "Whether it's a pity or not, it's not my call. I like to act, but luck plays a very important part. My social skills weren't so good in the past." Zen still acts on a project basis nowadays, including as swimming coach Yan Qingheng in sports-romance drama Hope Afloat (2024) and upcoming dystopian-crime series The Leftovers (2026). He shared: "Acting is a platform for me to destress, because I am very stressed in my other career. When I am acting, I can play another person and unload my emotions through the character." Voting for Star Awards Top 10 Most Popular Male and Female Artistes is now available till July 6, 7.30pm on the Mediacorp website. Voters can make up to 10 votes per account, per award category, per day. On July 6 from 12am to 7.30pm, voters can make unlimited votes for each category. Star Awards 2025 will be presented on July 6, starting from Backstage Live at 3.30pm to 10.30pm, Walk of Fame from 5pm to 6.30pm, the awards show from 7pm to 10pm and Post-Party from 10pm to 10.30pm. The awards show and Walk of Fame will air on Channel 8, Channel U, Mewatch and the Mediacorp Entertainment YouTube channel, Post-Party will air on Channel U, Mewatch and the Mediacorp Entertainment YouTube channel, while Backstage Live will air on the latter two platforms. [[nid:719173]] No part of this article can be reproduced without permission from AsiaOne.
Yahoo
04-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
'Growing Pains' Star Says Everyone Could ‘Tell Early on' That Leonardo DiCaprio Was ‘So Good'
Ashley Johnson is remembering her time with costar Leonardo DiCaprio on Growing Pains Johnson said that DiCaprio was 'so sweet' and it was immediately apparent that he was 'so good' Johnson played Chrissy Seaver in the last two seasons of the series, while DiCaprio joined for the final oneDid you feel Leonardo DiCaprio's greatness when he appeared on Growing Pains as a teenager? If so, then you're not alone. Ashley Johnson, who appeared on Growing Pains durings seasons 6 and 7 as youngest child Chrissy Seaver, opened up about her time on the series while appearing on Pod Meets World in an episode released on Monday, June 2. Johnson, 41, recalled how she first entered the entertainment industry when a talent scout came to her school looking to cast children for Star Search. She appeared on the show and sang 'Broadway Baby' at age 5. Not long after, she joined Growing Pains as Chrissy Seaver, who had been born in season 4 and was aged up from a toddler to age 5 when the actress was cast in the role. 'Every memory that I have from that is so good,' she said on the podcast. 'It really really is.' At the time, Johnson joined an established TV family that included Alan Thicke, Joanna Kerns, Kirk Cameron, Tracey Gold and Jeremy Miller. 'Everyone was so wonderful to me,' she said. 'They just took me in like I had been there.' She even called it 'a great start' to her now decades-long acting career. In the show's final season, the Seaver family added another child to the group — a homeless teen named Luke Brower, who was played by DiCaprio. At 16, he had just started his career, and Johnson thought he had already filmed 1993's This Boy's Life, his first breakout, but it hadn't been released yet. 'He was so good,' Johnson recalled. 'You could tell so early on... I just remember everyone was like, 'This kid is so good.' Like, he had it. We felt it. He was great.' 'He was a teenager, he was a kid, but I remember he was so sweet to me,' she added. Johnson said the last time she saw DiCaprio, 50, and her other costars was when Thicke died in 2016 at 69. 'He wad the greatest,' she said of her TV dad. 'I just remember I loved hugging him and just being around him.' Though the reunion was 'bad circumstances,' she said it was 'cool' to have 'adult conversations' with them for the first time. Never miss a story — sign up for to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. Johnson had since starred in TV shows, like The Killing and Blindspot, and in movies, including What Women Want and The Help. She has also worked as a voiceover performer on Recess and Teen Titans, and provided the voice and motion capture of Ellie in The Last of Us video game series. During season 1, she portrayed Ellie's mother in the HBO series adaptation. Read the original article on People
AsiaOne
30-05-2025
- Entertainment
- AsiaOne
Ex-Mediacorp actress Le Yao makes introspective post after Ian Fang's conviction, Entertainment News
Former Mediacorp actress Le Yao has made an introspective post after Ian Fang was sentenced to jail for sexual offences against a minor. In an Instagram post today (May 20), the 42-year-old, also known as Zully Le, wrote that celebrity status is a "double-edged sword". "You want to enjoy the benefits from the limelight but don't set strict standards for yourself? You want to have social influence and make a lot of money, but don't obey the law and be a good citizen?" she added. "It's impossible to be so greedy as to 'have it all'." Le Yao wrote that she had recently read some local news that made her emotional. Though she did not mention Ian by name in her post, she later told 8World that it was because of his conviction. The 35-year-old former Mediacorp actor pleaded guilty to three charges of sexual penetration of a girl under 16. Three similar charges were taken into consideration for sentencing, along with one count of obstructing justice and one count of stalking. He received 40 months' jail on May 19, with his sentence expected to start in June. Ian was an acting teacher with a modelling school during the time of his offences, where he was teaching children aged four to 14. "Every adult is a role model and mentor for the younger generation. Children will look at things naively and believe in their teachers," Le Yao wrote. "Parents also teach them this way: Listen to teachers. "So as a practitioner in the education industry and a mother, I firmly resist people with bad morals entering the education industry. " Le Yao pursued a diploma in the Teaching Chinese Language course at Nanyang Technological University (NTU) in 2010 and currently teaches at a speech and drama centre. She added that people may firstly "not have the professional knowledge to teach" but secondly, if they have "bad conduct", they should avoid the industry to "not bring irreparable harm to the new generation of young people". [embed] Le Yao started her showbiz career with Mediacorp after placing as a finalist in Star Search 2001. Her acting credits include The Unbeatables III (2002), Holland V (2003), The Oath (2011) and My Friends from Afar (2017). This article has been edited for clarity. [[nid:717963]] drimac@
The Star
23-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Star
Chinese actress Zully Le criticises actor Ian Fang for his sexual offences
Former Mediacorp actress Zully Le (right) has lashed out at former actor Ian Fang after he pleaded guilty to three counts of sexually penetrating an underage girl. Photos: The Celebrity Agency/Instagram, Zully Le/Instagram Former Mediacorp actress Zully Le has lashed out at former actor Ian Fang after the latter was sentenced to 40 months' jail for committing sexual offences against a minor. Fang, 35, pleaded guilty on May 19 to three counts of sexually penetrating an underage girl. Better known as Le Yao, she wrote the post, titled 'The price of being in the limelight', on Instagram and Facebook on May 20. 'The limelight is a double-edged sword. It can make you a national idol or bring you back to your former self overnight,' she wrote in Chinese. 'You want to enjoy the benefits of being in the limelight, yet you don't set a strict standard for your behaviour? You want to have social influence and make lots of money, but yet you don't obey the law and be a good citizen? It's impossible to be so greedy as to 'have it all'.' 'Please – be a human first before acting,' Le wrote, without naming the person. She told Mediacorp's online publication 8world that she was referring to Fang, saying that they both hailed from Shanghai. She came to Singapore to participate in the Star Search finals after she was the female winner for the Shanghai zone in 2001. Meanwhile, actor Christopher Lee declined to comment when he was approached by Chinese-language evening daily Shin Min Daily News . Fang had previously addressed him as 'shifu' (mentor or teacher). The 53-year-old, who is married to actress Fann Wong, responded with: 'I don't know what to say.' Fang played Wong's younger brother in crime drama On The Fringe (2011) and then interned at media production company Wawa Pictures. He served as a production assistant on the medical drama The Oath (2011), which starred Lee and Jesseca Liu. Fang then played Lee's son in gambling drama Show Hand (2012) and became Lee's mentee. 'I would always 'pester' him on the set, for example, by calling him 'shifu',' Fang had said. However, on the YouTube programme Rise 'N Shine in October 2024, Fang said that he no longer called Lee 'shifu' but 'big brother' instead. 'I let him down a few times and I could feel it even though he didn't say it,' Fang said. Referring to the leak of explicit private messages between him and actress Carrie Wong in 2019, Fang said: 'I was lectured by him after the incident.' Fang quoted a disappointed Lee as saying then: 'Can you make me feel proud when you call me 'shifu'? Not the type of incredulous expression when people learn that I am your 'shifu'.' Fang added that Lee did not cut ties with him due to the text-messaging scandal. He apologised to Lee on the show and promised to be the best version of himself. The video has since been deleted. – The Straits Times/Asia News Network
Straits Times
22-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Straits Times
Ex-Mediacorp actress scolds convicted sex offender Ian Fang: 'You want to make lots of money, but yet you don't obey law'
Ex-Mediacorp actress scolds convicted sex offender Ian Fang: 'You want to make lots of money, but yet you don't obey law' Lim Ruey Yan The Straits Times May 21, 2025 Former Mediacorp actress Zully Le has lashed out at former actor Ian Fang after the latter was sentenced to 40 months' jail for committing sexual offences against a minor. Fang, 35, pleaded guilty on May 19 to three counts of sexually penetrating an underage girl. Better known as Le Yao, she wrote the post, titled "The price of being in the limelight", on Instagram and Facebook on May 20. "The limelight is a double-edged sword. It can make you a national idol or bring you back to your former self overnight," she wrote in Chinese. "You want to enjoy the benefits of being in the limelight, yet you don't set a strict standard for your behaviour? You want to have social influence and make lots of money, but yet you don't obey the law and be a good citizen? It's impossible to be so greedy as to 'have it all'." "Please - be a human first before acting," Le wrote, without naming the person. She told Mediacorp's online publication 8world that she was referring to Fang, saying that they both hailed from Shanghai. She came to Singapore to participate in the Star Search finals after she was the female winner for the Shanghai zone in 2001. Meanwhile, local actor Christopher Lee declined to comment when he was approached by Chinese-language evening daily Shin Min Daily News. Fang had previously addressed him as "shifu" (mentor or teacher). The 53-year-old, who is married to actress Fann Wong, responded with: "I don't know what to say." Fang played Fann's younger brother in crime drama On The Fringe (2011) and then interned at media production company Wawa Pictures. He served as a production assistant on the medical drama The Oath (2011), which starred Lee and Jesseca Liu. Fang then played Lee's son in gambling drama Show Hand (2012) and became Lee's mentee. "I would always 'pester' him on the set, for example, by calling him 'shifu'," Fang had said. PHOTO: MEDIACORP However, on the YouTube programme Rise 'N Shine in October 2024, Fang said that he no longer called Lee "shifu" but "big brother" instead. "I let him down a few times and I could feel it even though he didn't say it," Fang said. Referring to the leak of explicit private messages between him and actress Carrie Wong in 2019, Fang said: "I was lectured by him after the incident." Fang quoted a disappointed Lee as saying then: "Can you make me feel proud when you call me 'shifu'? Not the type of incredulous expression when people learn that I am your 'shifu'." Fang added that Lee did not cut ties with him due to the text-messaging scandal. He apologised to Lee on the show and promised to be the best version of himself. The video has since been deleted. Click here to contribute a story or submit it to our WhatsApp Get more of Stomp's latest updates by following us on:
