In moments when work seems bleak, it’s not uncommon to think of quitting — Richie Koh did this as well.
In a recent interview with AsiaOne, the local actor spoke about his lead role in the new Mediacorp drama The Grind, where he plays Jiang Wenkai, a capable office worker with a high IQ.
Central to the story is the tension between Wenkai and his girlfriend Li Rongjia (Chantalle Ng) after she quits professional badminton to pursue a corporate job. She unexpectedly lands a position in the company Wenkai is in, only to find out it was part of a ruse to make her give up working and go back to sports.
When asked if he had ever considered quitting showbiz, 32-year-old Richie quickly responded: “Yeah, Your World in Mine (2022) was supposed to be my last show.”
He attributed the push factors to money and career progression, as he had yet to bag any breakout roles from the time he began acting in 2017 till 2022.
“You still need to be realistic about whether you can have a little more money to make sure your parents don’t worry about you, or that you have enough to support the household financially,” he explained.
“There’s also planning for your future house, with transport and cars. If there’s no current progression, there’s no money — then how can we talk about passion?”
Thankfully, Your World in Mine — where he played the drama’s autistic protagonist Zheng Tiancai — turned out to be a huge success, earning him a win as Best Actor in 2023’s Star Awards. It marked Richie as the youngest awardee in 26 years, following Christopher Lee’s win at age 26 in 1997.
He was also nominated for Best Actor in a Leading Role at the Asian Television Awards in 2022 for the same role.
When asked where he would work if he had really left showbiz, Richie said he would consider becoming a hawker. With all the unpredictable factors of the entertainment industry, he cited a need for control in his job which owning a stall would grant him.
“It doesn’t have to be big money, but at least it’s a stable income. I always believe that once you learn something, you’ll always find ways to improve yourself or your craft be it acting, food or music.”
He concedes to being a control freak in the past but began to change after realising the detriment it caused him. He lamented: “When I used to control too much, I’d put pressure and expectations on myself. Then, it hit me that you can’t control the people around you as well — so why?
“If you can’t control those around you, then you’re affecting your own emotions and I think it’s not worth it. Why not manage ourselves and let people flow around us? I think nature has its way of moving as well.”
‘It felt very clustered’
The Grind’s primary set was located in the heart of the central business district (CBD) and this posed a big challenge to Richie, as he revealed to us that his mood was “quite affected” by the hustle and bustle of Raffles Boulevard.
Firstly, transportation was an issue given that their designated bus was constantly rushing through traffic. Additionally, it was a struggle for the bus to fetch the cast and crew and drop them off.
As someone with mild claustrophobia, he recounted: “Filming in the office was still manageable since on its own, it’s quite spacious. But coupled with all the lights, cameras, sound and crew around us, it felt very clustered.
“I definitely prefer more airy, outdoor sets as I can choose to walk away, and there’s also places to roam and move around.”
Between himself and his office-bound character, the two couldn’t be more different from one another in terms of ethics. While Richie believes basic respect for humans is a given, Wenkai thinks that respect must be earned and proven.
After working on The Grind, if Richie were to navigate office culture himself, he feels he would live by a “mind-your-own-business” attitude.
“Just do your job properly. Don’t go and bother about what others think of you — the moment you let things get to you, you lose,” he elaborated. “Whether it’s the office, family or normal life, there will always be politics but how you deal or not deal with it is your choice in life.”
A memorable moment on the set of The Grind was when Richie was surprised with the news of his Golden Horse Awards Best Leading Actor nomination for his role in A Good Child.
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“It was a once-in-a-lifetime moment. I think all the managers and colleagues around me had very high hopes that I would get the nomination, so I didn’t bother turning my phone on that day,” he recalled.
However, with the building pressure of the prestigious award weighing on him, he had to stay focused while filming. It wasn’t until five days later when he came home from a gala premiere of A Good Child that the impact of the news hit him.
Despite not winning the Golden Horse in the end, it was still a victory for him.
“We’re very proud of what we have done — to get nominated alone is a really good thing for Southeast Asia. Being seen as a result is something that I couldn’t have asked for,” reflected Richie.
The Grind, also starring He Yingying, Noah Yap and Jernelle Oh, is available on demand for free on Mewatch. It premieres Jan 9 on Channel 8 and will air 9pm every weekday.
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