8 DAYS | 21STORY CHERYL ONG PHOTOS KELVIN CHIAKorea. My trainer said that
my back flip was slanted so
I had to adjust [my posture].
But when I jumped, I was
so focused on how to adjust
that I forgot to flip, so I
landed on my neck. Everyone
was really scared ’cos people
can suffer serious injuries
from doing such stunts.
Luckily, our area was padded
so I escaped unscathed. But
ever since then, I’ve had a fear
of doing back flips (laughs).
What shenanigans did you
and your co-star Melody Low
get up to while in Korea?
Wah! I’m thinking of what can be
printed (laughs). Okay, we stayed
in a really rural area [in Korea]
so there weren’t any laundromats
in [the vicinity]. After many days,
we finally found one, and dumped
10 days’ worth of clothing into the
washing machines. After collecting
our clothing, we were on our way
back to the hotel when Melody
said, “Eh, I’m missing a few bras.”
So we had to retrace our steps to
search for the missing bras, one
by one. It was quite an interesting
experience. I’ve never hunted for
bras before (laughs).
You put on 20kg to hit 88kg for
your Ah Boys to Men 4role.
When I was discussing with Director
Jack [Neo] about ABTM 4, I was
feeling a bit typecast in my career.
I was sick of playing the mummy’s
boy, the standard boyfriend or the
good-looking guy. So I said, “Eh,
boss, what if I were to become fat?”
He said he would think about it. A
few days later, he told me, “Joshua,
I want you to put on 30kg.” Gaining
weight was really tough ’cos I’m
a very active guy. But I managed
to put on 20kg in six months.
Towards the end of filming ABTM
4 , I went for the Flying Through
Time audition. The director liked
me. But he said that I was a bit
chubby. I told him that if I got
the role, I’ll work my ass off.
Which I did. I went from 88kg
to 74kg in a month-and-a-half. I
hope this inspires people. You
don’t have to do it at the pace I did
it, but it can be done.
After you put on weight, people
would call you “fat” or “chubby”
on your social media. Did your
self-esteem take a hit?
Obviously. Mirrors were my
biggest enemies. I hated to look
in the mirror. Before that, I never
understood how people with weight
issues feel ’cos I had always
been skinny or quite fit. So it gave
me an insight into the emotional
side of what it’s like to
struggle with obesity and
weight issues. And it
was tough lah. Like,
when people make
comments that
are true but also
unnecessary. Ittook a toll on my self-esteem. On
days when I felt really crappy, and I
saw comments like “Oh, you are fat
as [expletive],” I was like, “I wish
you didn’t say that.” Even becoming
the butt of all jokes among my own
friends hurt. And I used to make
those jokes, you know. Now I can
empathise with people who have
issues with weight. It’s not easy.
How far are you still from your
goal weight?
For this role, I play an ancient
general. So obviously, I need to
have some muscles. But I’m pretty
happy with how I look now. I’m not
far from where I want to be.Flying Through Time runs from Dec 9 to
Jan 21 at the Resorts World Theatre. Tix
from Sistic. From fatspo to fitspo:
Joshua in June during the
filming of ABTM 4(left) vs.
Joshua in Sep.Babe alert:
Sexy starlet Melody
Low plays a curva-
ceous cheerleader
in Flying Through
Time.