Benjamin Tan’s first taste of acting was in an audition for a McDonald’s commercial when he was in lower primary school.
“I was so excited and practised for days in front of the mirror on how to introduce myself. But during the audition, I froze in front of the cameras. I think I was overwhelmed by the lighting, cameras and people. That’s when I thought I would never become an actor,” the 33-year-old local actor, who’s signed to talent management company The Celebrity Agency since 2019, told AsiaOne in an interview recently.
Despite that, Benjamin’s mum had noticed that while he was introverted from a young age, he had a keen interest in acting as an avid fan of wuxia dramas.
He laughed as he recounted: “Back then, we didn’t have YouTube or social media, and being an only child and no siblings to play with, my only source of entertainment apart from TV programmes was to use my blankets, towels and stuff and pretend I was some superhero from an ancient era and I would throw my ‘powers’ everywhere.
“My grandma would complain to my mum, ‘Your son is playing with all the towels again.’ At the time, I was just trying to live as the characters, and I think my mum kind of knew [my interest] and wondered if I might like to venture into acting.”
Becoming an actor was a “childhood fantasy” for him where he and his family would catch the Channel 8 primetime Chinese dramas at 9pm together. The annual Star Awards was also a family event where they would camp in front of the television set and guess which celebrities would win.
Benjamin, who had an interest in abacus since he was in nursery, eventually moved on to become an abacus tutor at a learning centre when he was in junior college, after learning it for over a decade.
Road to becoming an actor
Perhaps it was Benjamin’s destiny to become an actor.
When he was 23 years old and studying for his Bachelor of Communications degree at Murdoch University, his friend recommended he work as an extra in local Chinese dramas to earn extra allowance money.
He shared: “I remember the first drama that I was an extra in was with Rebecca Lim and Christopher Lee… I was quite amazed because I was able to go on set and see the celebrities up close and it was quite fun.
“I went on to become an extra for the movie Ah Boys to Men 3. When I say ‘extra’, I literally had no lines and might not even appear on screen eventually, it’s like those customers in the background of a scene.”
The experience on set was amusing for him, and he continued as an extra for two years until he graduated from university.
Benjamin, who had a sizeable number of followers on his Instagram account by then, was seriously considering his career and future plans.
“I think the universe works in wonderous ways, because it’s usually when you don’t want something or when you don’t put much thought into something that the universe gives it to you,” he said.
Unbeknown to him, one of his followers sent his resume to local production company Ochre Pictures, who was casting actors for the third season of local English series Lion Mums (2019).
“I received an email from Ochre Pictures one day to go for an audition. I wondered when I had submitted it and was told that someone had submitted my profile to them, and they felt that my looks might be quite suitable for the role,” Benjamin recounted.
He added he was concerned then because he was stronger in Mandarin.
Despite that, he went for the audition and landed the role of street-smart and endearing student Spencer Sng about a week later.
Benjamin said: “I was quite shocked to be honest. The whole thing was quite bizarre. I guess this is what some people mean by sheer luck. Even today, I can’t believe someone submitted my profile to a production company and I actually got a face-to-face audition and landed a role.”
While Benjamin believed he hadn’t met that follower face-to-face, he thanked him through their conversations on Instagram later.
Through filming the series, he was scouted by The Celebrity Agency’s head Ivy Low and talent manager Ada Koh, and the rest is history.
Marathon, not sprint race
In the last seven years, Benjamin has been active in showbiz, acting in multiple television series released every year, including My Guardian Angels (2020), Mr Zhou’s Ghost Stories@Job Haunting (2021), The Heartland Hero (2021), When Duty Calls 2 (2022), Strike Gold (2023), Unforgivable (2024) and Devil Behind the Gate (2025).
He also took on leading and supporting roles in microdramas including Oh My Goodness (2025), My Boyfriend Owns a Bank (2025), Woke Up In The 60s in My Grandma’s Apron (2025), Love In Transit (2025) as well as My Girlfriend is an Alien (2026).
Besides acting, he is also one of the hosts for Mediacorp’s livestream shopping programme The Wonder Shop, something he enjoys doing as he can be his true self while promoting the products.
Reflecting on popularity, Benjamin said: “The harsh reality is that if you are not very popular, then maybe the demand for you to appear in shows or brand engagement may be lower in comparison to others who are more popular.
“It’s always a struggle for me because I want to focus on my craft, but yet at the same time, I have to manage how I appear on social media and how I carry myself in order to create this impression that people want.”
He also pondered on how an artiste requires popularity but he can’t control it at the same time. “More than often not, we don’t really see the result that we desire despite putting in 200 per cent effort into it.”
Admitting that he is a “major overthinker”, Benjamin said some of the best advice he’s received was from veteran actor Chen Hanwei.
He shared: “He told me we shouldn’t treat this journey (career) like a sprint race. Instead, we should treat it like a marathon. So even if we are losing out in the first 500 metres or 1 kilometre, we shouldn’t be discouraged, because everybody runs at a different pace. We wouldn’t know who will reach the finishing line at the end of the marathon.
“That stuck deeply with me. Inevitably, we will always compare ourselves with our peers regardless of the industry we’re in. It’s more amplified in our industry because we are in the limelight and people would constantly compare us.
“But I always remind myself I just have to compare myself with who I was back then, or even just last week. If I have improved, then that’s a good thing. As long as I don’t take a few steps back, that’s fine.”
These days, he has accepted that not everything is within his control, and he should just do his best for all the opportunities that were offered to him.
Benjamin, who has a number of upcoming works in the pipeline, also foresees himself continuing in showbiz for a long time. “I hope to continue acting till I am in my 40s and 50s, but I am also a results-oriented person, so I hope to be able to achieve the goals I set out for myself when I first entered the industry… that is to be recognised for my acting.”
‘We shouldn’t lose the innocence in us’
Outside of work, he finds small joys in gardening and journaling, explaining he finds it therapeutic to pen down his thoughts and decorate his entries. He added that while some people found his hobby “surprising”, it is his way to reflect and recount his emotions at that point in time.
He also enjoys unboxing and collecting figurines.
Benjamin added: “There is always this misconception that figurines are for kids, because we were brought up to believe that toys are for kids… I feel that we shouldn’t lose the innocence in us, as there will always be a child in all of us, it’s just a matter of whether we lock them up somewhere [inside us].
“I believe in living in the moment, because I think we never know what is going to happen tomorrow. We might just be gone in the next moment and we wouldn’t want to leave with regrets knowing that we worked hard but didn’t get to enjoy [our life].”
Star Awards wins fulfil childhood dream
When Benjamin received his first Star Awards Top 10 Most Popular Male Artistes award in 2024, it was a significant milestone in his life.
He recounted: “Getting the awards is a childhood dream… As a young kid watching all these celebrities going on stage to receive their awards, it was my impression of being in showbiz.
“It was also one of my career goals that I must get at least one Star Awards win, to hold the trophy in my own hands and display it at home. So when I received my first, I was really very happy. I thought to myself, ‘Oh my god, I did it, this is what I set out to do and I got it.'”
He added he felt “very fortunate” to be able to receive the awards subsequently in 2025 and 2026, attributing the wins to people who support and value him as an artiste.
The trophies are “confidence boosters” for him, and he displayed his trophies in a glass cabinet near the main entrance in his home, so that he could look at them for motivation when he leaves home for work.
Ever since he bagged his first award, some netizens would comment on how they don’t recognise him and wondered how he could have won.
‘A larger pool of audiences I need to convince’
We asked Benjamin how he felt reading these comments, and he responded candidly: “In the past, I would take it very personally.
“But at this point of my career, I tell myself that this just shows how much more I have to work on, because if people can’t recognise me yet, it just means that maybe my roles weren’t as prominent or I didn’t put in enough work in my roles to shine enough and attract audiences.
“Instead of getting upset or offended, it is a source of motivation for me. This means that there is more I can do, so that in the future when I receive a role and perform it, more people will be able to recognise me on television. There is a larger pool of audiences I need to convince.”
During a backstage interview at Star Awards 2024, Benjamin said he used 10 accounts to vote for himself. When we asked him about it, he clarified it was a misunderstanding.
He explained: “It was my first year getting the award and it was quite unbelievable for me. I didn’t know that after getting the award, I would still have to go backstage and do interviews (with the media).
“So when I was asked whether I voted for myself, I just said, ‘Yes, I did.’ I was too excited at the time to go into the details.
“Actually, I have relatives who wanted to vote for me but they were not tech-savvy, so I told them to just give me their email addresses, and I would help them do it. So most of the 10 accounts belong to them. Only one of the accounts belonged to me and I voted for myself.”
Benjamin added that while he did vote for himself, the majority of the votes came from his fans, collectively known as Bentective, who spent their time and effort doing so and this shouldn’t be overlooked.
“The 10 accounts wouldn’t make a major difference in comparison to strong contenders who were nominated as well,” he said, adding that he is appreciative of fans who are willing to put in the effort to vote for whoever they support.
On Bentective, Benjamin elaborated: “They are my anchor and pillar of support. It’s really not easy to survive in this industry and I hold this group of people closest to my heart because when I am down or sad, they would encourage me.
“When they told me that I give them hope, that’s when I realised the things I do and say as a public figure can really make a huge difference to people.
“I want to focus my energy on my fans and hope they can be proud of me one day. I know they are already proud of me, but I hope to do more and have a positive impact on them. That would be my greatest fulfilment.”
Acting is just another job
As someone who likes trying out different things, Benjamin has ventured into jobs outside of showbiz.
He revealed while in university in his twenties, he had tried out being an insurance agent and public relations (PR) executive.
He also set up his own businesses with his friends including a PR company and fusion western food stall Chef Bui Bui at a canteen in Kaki Bukit.
Benjamin sold his share of the former to his partners after a few years, and he believed the company has since closed. Chef Bui Bui, which began operations in September 2021, shuttered after two years due to rising rental costs.
Aside from his showbiz career, Benjamin also manages his curtain and blinds business San Design, which he started around 2016 tapping on his father’s business contacts.
He said: “My dad has been in the curtain and blinds business since I was very young. He would always bring me along when he goes to his clients’ homes, such as for the first meeting and installation.
“I have always been intrigued and amazed by the fabrics and beautiful designs and how it comes to fruition, from the sample booklet all the way to installation.”
The business operates solely online today, and Benjamin revealed he still personally goes to his clients’ homes with the curtain fabrics to promote and do sales.
He recalled with a laugh: “A few times when I turned up at the clients’ homes, they would look at me and we would go through the whole appointment without any questions asked [about my acting career].
“When we met the next time and have become more familiar with each other, they would be like, ‘Actually, are you that actor?’ and I would be like, ‘Yeah’. It’s quite funny.”
He added that some clients told him they didn’t mention it earlier because they were concerned it would be “creepy and awkward”.
“I always tell them that as much as I am an actor, we don’t have to make it a big thing. It’s just another job,” he explained.
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yeo.shuhui@asiaone.com
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