‘I’d have to start from scratch’: Wang Yuqing regrets turning down TVB offer

From Eileen Yeow to Hugo Ng, Singaporeans have made quite a name for themselves in Hong Kong after joining TVB. In another timeline, we could have had veteran local actor Wang Yuqing in the mix, too.

On the latest episode of meWATCH talk show Hear U Out, the TV idol of yesteryear told host Quan Yi Fong, 48, about a huge regret when it came to showbiz — rejecting a TVB offer in 1988.

“I met TVB’s artiste management team in Hong Kong and they immediately offered me a three-year contract,” the 61-year-old said. 

The monthly pay was HK$3,500 back then, around the same as what he earned as an actor in Singapore.

He continued: “But I was worried about the language barrier, since I couldn't speak Cantonese. They said it was fine because they could teach me, and offered to put me up in a dormitory near TVB. As soon as I could speak Cantonese fluently, they'd assign roles to me.”

He thought: “I was at the top in Singapore. Had I gone there, I'd have had to start from scratch,” and turned down the offer after thinking about his family. 

Another regret he has is turning Taiwanese singer Sarah Chen down when she offered to introduce him to Taiwanese novelist and producer Chiung Yao, who has had her novels adapted into over 100 films and TV dramas. Taiwanese actor Chin Han rocketed to fame in the 1970s and 1980s after starring in adaptations of her novels.

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While Yuqing might have been hesitant about his ability to break into the Hong Kong or Taiwanese showbiz industry, he said that Leung Lap Yan, who was the head of the drama unit at the Singapore Broadcasting Corporation (now Mediacorp), was disappointed with his decision to stay put in Singapore.

He recalled a time where he met the late Lap Yan in Singapore: “The moment he saw me, he said, 'Wang Yuqing, what a pity! You've really disappointed me. Had you listened to me and gone [to Hong Kong] back then, you wouldn't be here today and you wouldn't be the same.'”

Yuqing realised that he had “a tendency to overthink things” and wondered if he would have been doing even better if he had just taken the leap of faith.

“If I had acted then how I acted when I auditioned for the local TV station at the age of 20, I'd have signed the TVB contract without much thought,” he said.

Love-hate relationship with acting

When Yuqing first joined showbiz, he remembered that “there weren’t many artistes yet” but, by the time Li Nanxing joined in 1986, the company was “searching for new faces”.

“So I felt threatened. As a man, I believe I have to plan for my future,” he said. 

When actor Zhu Houren approached Yuqing and asked if he was interested in being an insurance agent, Yuqing accepted his offer to be introduced to a friend in the industry and left showbiz, albeit temporary, in 1995.

“To be honest, I’m doing quite well,” Yuqing said about his career as a Manulife insurance agent. “I’m doing a lot of things today. But in terms of my career, I still prefer the insurance trade.”

Despite his success as an insurance agent, Yuqing could not stay away from acting for long. Just five years later, he returned at the request of producer Wang Youhong so he could “come see old friends” again.

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He added: “I had developed a love-hate relationship with acting. In fact, I love it more than I hate it. That’s why I’m still in this industry, although I left for some time in between. I’m back again and I enjoy it more and more.”

However, he felt that he had “made a mistake” because actors weren’t as close to each other when he returned. Back in the day, he recalled going to Malaysia with his co-stars to eat durians and having supper, even chatting with actress Zoe Tay until people “got the wrong idea about our relationship”.

He joked: “Now, when I go to change my clothes after filming, everyone will be gone by the time I’m out. If I’m not fast enough, they might even lock me in.”

It seems that, despite Yuqing’s mixed opinions on showbiz, he is here to stay. He joined Channel 5 long-form drama Sunny Side Up earlier this year and told Lianhe Zaobao last week that he had signed a two-year contract with the channel.

ALSO READ: 'Heart was aching': Wang Yuqing and Gurmit Singh share poignant parenting memories

drimac@asiaone.com

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