Zen Chong (; born on 15 August 1978) is a Malaysian actor who is based in Singapore and contracted artiste under

MediaCorp Mediacorp Pte. Ltd., doing business as Mediacorp and stylised as mediacorp, is a media conglomerate in Singapore. Owned by Temasek Holdings—the holding company of the Government of Singapore—it owns television, radio, and digital media prope ...

Career

Chong joined

in 2001 after finishing third in that year's Malaysian edition of

Star Search Singapore ''Star Search'' () is a television show from 1988 to 2019 organised by MediaCorp to scout for Chinese language-speaking acting talent. History Star Search started out as a Singapore local talent show, restricted to residents of Singapore. Aft ...

. One of his first major roles was in the 2003 sitcom ''

Lobang King Lobang King (我是Lobang King) is a Singaporean comedy drama which aired on Channel 8 in 2003. It is a spin-off of the popular long-running series ''Don't Worry, Be Happy'' (敢敢做个开心人), which had just ended its sixth and final season ...

'' where he was cast alongside veteran artistes

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and Irene Ang as the smooth-talking employee of Huang's character. Chong is known for portraying juvenile " ah beng" characters,

antihero An antihero (sometimes spelled as anti-hero) or antiheroine is a main character in a story who may lack conventional heroic qualities and attributes, such as idealism, courage, and morality. Although antiheroes may sometimes perform action ...

es and villains. He shot to fame for his role as a main antagonist in the hit period drama '' The Little Nyonya''. Although initially a replacement for

Andrew Seow Andrew Seow () is a Singaporean actor, celebrity, model and media personality. Seow was a model in Singapore and Asia before becoming an actor on local television. He is best known for his role as Gary Tay as the fiery tempered eldest son in th ...

, he was praised for his convincing portrayal of antagonist Robert Zhang and won a Best Supporting Actor nomination at the 2009 Star Awards, his first ever awards nomination. He was given his first lead role in the 2008 co-production '' The Thin Line''.

Personal life

A native of the " New Villages" in Kuala Lumpur, Chong studied graphic design and worked at an advertising agency prior to joining

Star Search ''Star Search'' was an American television show that was produced by T.P.E./Rysher Entertainment from 1983 to 1995, hosted by Ed McMahon, and created by Al Masini. A relaunch was produced by 2929 Productions from 2003 to 2004. On both versio ...

Malaysia. He married his long-time girlfriend Geline in January 2011. Guests at the ceremony included fellow MediaCorp artistes Darren Lim,

Christopher Lee Sir Christopher Frank Carandini Lee (27 May 1922 – 7 June 2015) was an English actor and singer. In a long career spanning more than 60 years, Lee often portrayed villains, and appeared as Count Dracula in seven Hammer Horror films, ultima ...

, Brandon Wong,

Alan Tern Alan Tern Yoke Cher (, born 31 March 1976) is a Singaporean actor. He was a full-time Mediacorp artiste from 2001 to 2011. Career Tern was a finalist in the 2001 Star Search Singapore, and he joined MediaCorp after the competition. He made hi ...

and

Zhang Yaodong Zhang Yaodong (, born Teoh Yeow Tong on 17 December 1977) is a Malaysian actor based in Singapore. Career Zhang entered the entertainment industry after finishing first runner-up in the Malaysian edition of talent-search contest Star Search ...

. In 2012, it was revealed during the release of ''The Quarters'' that Chong changed his a character in his Chinese name after consulting with a fortune teller. His English name was changed as well, from Zzen Chong to Zen Chong.

Filmography

Television

Variety shows

Awards and nominations

References

External links

Profile
on xin.msn.com
Profile
on MediaCorp TV {{DEFAULTSORT:Chong, Zen Living people 1978 births Malaysian male actors Singaporean male television actors Malaysian people of Chinese descent Malaysian people of Cantonese descent People from Kuala Lumpur