Singaporean actress Jeanette Aw is usually known for her cheerful and easygoing personality, but she revealed on Irene Ang’s talk show The Irene Ang Show that she also has a tough side, and once got angry at a co-star on set.
During the programme, Irene Ang shared that younger actors often see Jeanette as approachable and patient. She then asked if Jeanette had ever lost control before. Jeanette paused and replied, “Of course I have.” This surprised Irene, who pressed further: “You actually lost control before? When? Why? Who?”
Jeanette explained,
“I will be patient if I can see the other person really trying, putting in effort to do the scene well. Even if they keep NG-ing, I will go through it with them again and again because maybe they are just nervous. But if it is obvious that the other person is lazy and did not prepare before filming, then I will get angry.”
Co-star did not prepare properly
Jeanette went on to share one such experience on set, expressing her frustration with an unnamed co-star.
“It was a very emotional drama with many crying and quarrelling scenes between us. But he often did not prepare. He would only start looking at the script when he arrived on set, even while eating breakfast, while the rest of us were already running lines.”
Irene reacted immediately: “Oh my god… I also cannot tolerate that.”
Jeanette continued,
“During the scene, he kept going ‘uh, uh, uh,’ while trying to recall lines. I told him straight, ‘Can you at least do your homework? Because this affects everyone. It is a heavy emotional scene, and I have to film it from morning till night. If you prepared, we could finish much faster.’”
Co-star snapped back at Jeanette
Unexpectedly, the co-star snapped back at Jeanette:
“You think it is that easy? You try acting in another language.”
Irene tried to empathise, saying that Mandarin was also not her strong suit, so when she filmed two Mandarin dramas last year, it was indeed not easy. Jeanette, however, clarified that the co-star actually spoke Mandarin, and added,
“If I see that someone’s attitude is serious, I will help, because everyone goes through difficult stages.”
When Shin Min Daily News reached out to Jeanette for more details, she declined to elaborate. She only replied briefly via text: “Thank you very much for watching my interview with Irene, but I prefer not to go into details about that actor. Thank you for understanding.”
Irene Ang recalls her own experience with an unprofessional co-star
Irene said she did not expect Jeanette to openly share such a story.
“I was surprised because to me, Jeanette is someone who never loses her temper, she can handle everything calmly. I was also surprised the other party dared to talk back to her like that.”
So how would Irene handle an unprofessional co-star? She replied,
“It depends on how bad it is. Usually, I let the director correct them. If it is just that their lines are not right or they did not prepare, I feel drained and just walk away. I once had a movie scene that should have taken one hour, but because of such an actor, it dragged on for five hours. Everyone was frustrated. I just told the team to give that person space to get ready before coming back.”
She added that after so many years in the industry, she has indeed encountered all sorts of unprofessional actors.
“For example, there was once a veteran Hong Kong actor who came to act in our English comedy Phua Chu Kang Pte Ltd. He was very troublesome, kept giving a lot of opinions, and was very disrespectful to the director and other actors. He kept wanting to change the script and lines. That kind of behaviour affects the rest of us who had already prepared. I do not like that attitude. It is not that changes cannot be made, but there must be team spirit and discussion,” she shared.
Still, Irene also said she has worked with many professional actors such as Zheng Geping, Mark Lee, Guo Liang, and Richard Low. She praised them as not only professional but also patient in giving juniors advice and tips on acting.
You may watch the episode here.
