Jesseca Liu talks about acting with husband Jeremy Chan for the first time in new drama

Local actors Jesseca Liu and Jeremy Chan are one of the cutest celebrity couples in Singapore and there's no denying it, she's way more popular than he is.

But in their new Mediacorp Chinese drama Crouching Tiger Hidden Ghost, which marks the first time they are acting together as leads, 39-year-old Jeremy could be stealing the thunder.

After all, it's a comedy (his forte), while Jesseca, 42, is more of a dramatic actress. She also admitted to her comedic shortcomings in an interview with 8world.

"When it came to controlling my facial expressions, I thought I performed to 100 per cent. But the end result could only be 70 or 80 per cent [of the desired outcome]," Jesseca said.

"The comedy genre probably requires some exaggeration [from the actors] to reach the sweet spot. But the dramas that I usually act in require restraining the show of emotions, and with time, I got used to this type of acting. I didn't dare to let myself go."

Nevertheless, she added that she got more confident and better at it towards the latter half of the series.

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Jesseca plays Xiao Fang, a ghost wandering in a building, unaware of how and why she died. She tries communicating with the residents in the building but to no avail. A year later, she meets three people who can see her and whom she can possess.

Ma Da (played by Jeremy) proclaims himself to be a psychic with the third eye; Angie (Bonnie Loo) is a swindler who targets otakus; and Ah Lun (Zong Zijie) is a fitness trainer who dreams of being a superhero.

They are forced into a ghost contract with Xiao Fang and they interact with the residents, believing one of them to be her killer, in search of the truth behind her death.

A breeze working with Jeremy

Jesseca also told 8world she found it relaxing working with Jeremy in the drama because comedy is his forte. When the couple filmed scenes together, she knew he would be an extra pair of eyes helping her in her performance.

Another advantage was that they could discuss the script at home after work.

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"Usually, after we've finished our filming for the day, we would detach from our roles and do what we've got to do. But with this drama, the advantage was that I kept to the mood from my role even after I've reached home," she said.

"We also discussed whether we could add something extra to particular scenes."

Being married to each other and their chemistry helps a lot, and she's also familiar with how he works.

"I know how to work in tandem with him. When something didn't seem right, we know how to tweak it. And because we are a married couple, it was easier for us to make adjustments."

Crouching Tiger Hidden Ghost is now showing on meWATCH and on Channel 8 every weekday at 9pm. The drama also stars Sora Ma, Ian Fang, and Allan Wu.

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kwokkarpeng@asiaone.com