IF he looks familiar to you, it is probably because you have seen him in the 2018 blockbuster movie Crazy Rich Asians.
Starring alongside Awkwafina and Constance Wu, Calvin Wong played the hilarious and adorable P.T. Goh, the brother to Awkwafina’s character.
His portrayal of the supporting role won the hearts of audiences.
However, he told theSun he was not the first person the casting director had in mind for the character.
“I was actually called in to audition for another character, Bernard, who was a playboy millionaire in the movie. I thought that the character was just not me.
But I tried it anyway. A few months later, Warner Bros. Pictures emailed me to say that I got the role of P.T. Goh,” said the Selangor native.
Before the box office hit, Wong found success as a scriptwriter and board game author. Some of his earlier works included the local animation Hogie the Globehopper and the international action film Wild Justice. He also worked on numerous theatre plays.
In fact, he has written a couple of local productions through his involvement with The Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Centre’s then programme, The Platform.
“The programme was run by Gavin Yap to encourage the community to write and perform original stuff. So, I submitted a bunch of short scripts for their Short and Sweet competition that they staged.”
His first full-length play The Taste of Water was financially supported by the National Department for Culture and Arts.
It was through his active involvement with local theatre and the entertainment community that eventually scored him the role of P.T. Goh.
“I was working with local filmmaker Yeo Joon Han on his film Sell Out. It was a comedy where I played a minor character. Through this movie, I met Jerrica Lai, who was the Malaysian casting director for Crazy Rich Asians. Because she knew me through Joon Han’s productions, I got to audition for the movie.”
Was it nerve-wracking to act alongside Awkwafina and Constance Wu?
I actually didn’t know who Awkwafina was at the time. When we were shooting the film, she had only released her solo music. As for Constance Wu, I knew her from Fresh Off the Boat. Was it nerve-wracking? I thought it would be but because it was a comedy, it helped a lot. If I was supposed to say serious and dramatic lines, I would have been more self-conscious.
Did you expect Crazy Rich Asians to become the hit that it was?
Nobody expected it to be a hit. I was in Singapore for the premiere and I ran into John Penotti, who was one of the producers for the film. At the time, news about the opening were just coming in. They had just finished the premiere in Los Angeles the previous week and I heard that the movie made US$35 million (RM145 million) in its opening week.
I said: “John, how are you feeling? Did you expect to make this much?”
And he said: “No. This is triple my wildest dreams. In my wildest dreams, we made US$15 million (RM62 million).”
To us, Crazy Rich Asians was a massive production, but to Warner Brothers, it was just a small movie. It was supposed to be something on the side but it ended up being a massive success.
Hopefully, this will show both Malaysians and Singaporeans that our culture too can be celebrated, and eventually motivate local Malaysian and Singaporean filmmakers to continue making films.
How do you think we can further support local entertainers?
I think for Malaysia, the mindset and attitude towards the arts needs to change. Malaysians love to watch movies but they would rather not pay to watch local films. As a result, fewer Malaysian films get made. So, I think maybe the government can come up with ways for the public to support the arts.
For instance, maybe viewers can pay RM1 to watch a play at The Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Centre, something like Netflix. Obviously, people who are smarter than me have thought about this problem. So, I am not saying mine is the only solution. What I am trying to say is public reception towards the arts is partial because it is not accessible to them.
There is not enough local cinema and local arts. And because there is not enough, people do not see it as an opportunity for them to get into. So, we need to create more opportunities for more possibilities.
Is the process of writing for games similar to film writing?
For films and plays, it is more solitary. It is basically just you trying to figure out the characters and structure of the story. For board games, it is more collaborative because you have to meet and have discussions with the designers. The process is actually quite complex because you have to explain the mechanism of the game to people you will not meet. And I have to do it in a limited amount of space. So, it’s quite challenging.
What are your plans for the future?
If Warner Bros. Pictures wants to make China Rich Girlfriend, I would love to be in it! I would also love to continue doing more board games writing.
