No Heart Feelings

- Cheryl Ong

Before Elvin Ng had beef with fake news, you may remember that back in September 2010, he was engaged in an online feud with Guo Liang.

They were filming 2010 Ch 8 blockbuster Breakout, and controversy, um, broke out when Elvin took to his blog (yup, no IG stories then) to air his grouses about a “huai ren” (Mandarin for ‘bad person’) who told him during the drama’s imaging session that he’s “a lot like his role” in the drama. (FYI: Elvin’s character was autistic.) The actor also cited other instances where the “huai ren” (later revealed to be Guo Liang) had made things difficult for him. “I feel that seniors should behave like seniors. It doesn’t mean that you can do whatever you want just ’cos you have talent. If you have talent but no cultivation and integrity, it’s sad,” he wrote. “If you want others to respect you, you have to first respect other people.”

Guo Liang then hit back at the accusations. “Your character in Breakout is also sunny, innocent, naive and intelligent. I said you fit the role. You didn’t only think about the autistic part, right?” he wrote online. The industry veteran also took issue with the namecalling. “In Mandarin, saying ‘I don't like so-and-so’ is fine. But calling someone a ‘huai ren’ is a more serious accusation. Only people who rob and murder and do evil are called huai ren.”

Eight years on, the two will be sparring onscreen in Ch 8 drama Heart to Heart. In the show, Guo Liang’s teahouse towkay struggles to bring his business back to its former glory, while Elvin plays his estranged son. And the bad blood they have for each other? Well, it exists only in the drama now.

8 DAYS: In Heart to Heart, you play a teahouse boss whose efforts to catch up with the times