Can Christopher Lee make
it regional?
(Click on pictures for larger image)
Christopher Lee, former Best Actor and Most
Popular Top 10 Male Actor in Star Awards 1998 joined Ah Ge and Ah Jie
in making their stand. He will stay on in MediaCorp. As a show of his
dedication, he has signed a 5-year contract with the TV station and his
plans after this? "To go regional. I would like to act in say Hong Kong
or Taiwanese TV serials or even movies so that I can learn from the various
overseas artistes and I would like to expand my singing career and go
regional," says the smiling Christopher. Great aspirations and fantastic
plans we say. But can he? Eastciti finds out.
 [Eastciti.com,
October 12] Yesterday was a happy day for Christopher
Lee. Despite losing out in the Top 10 Most Popular Male Artiste Award
in Star Awards 1999 and despite the fact that he has disappeared from
our goggle boxes for no less than a year since his last serial, Coup De
Scorpion. MediaCorp has taken a positive move by approaching the star
9 months before his contract is due to re-negotiate. The result: the signing
of a long-term (5 year) contract with the star with the promise to make
his dream of going regional come true.
We are excited. We are pleased. After all, name me
1 male MediaCorp artiste who has the greatest potential of going regional
other than Christopher and Ah Ge, Li Nanxing? Besides, Christopher is
a role model to many of our Star Search wannabes too. The last I heard,
one aspiring Star Search finalist has made becoming 'Christopher Lee Number
2' as one of his goals in his acting career.
YES HE CAN! BECAUSE HE…
Has the X-Factor
I am not trying to be discouraging but to be quite honest, not everyone
CAN be Christopher Lee for he has what most people do not have- the star
X-factor. And that is something that I feel cannot be cultivated no matter
how hard you try. You either have it or you don't. Chow Yun Fatt has it,
Tony Leung has it, Li Nanxing has it, so has Shen Junxing (if you still
remember that ultimate baddie who played Lawrence in The Three Faces Of
Eve alongside Zoe Tay who was his lover, Bobo?) and of course Christopher
Lee.
He can just be sitting down there and doing nothing.
He can be smiling or he could be just drinking a cup of tea but he would
be the man, the face you would do a double take to take a second look
at.
Can Act
Hey! Christopher has after all coveted at least one acting award in his
5 years in show business for his role as a traitor in the very popular
The Price Of Peace. True though he may not be the best of the lot when
it comes to flexing his acting skills (who can beat Shaoguang who is the
artiste with the most acting credits to his name?). But at the very least,
he was equally believable as the nice brother of Ah Lang in The New Tales
Of Ah Lang and the evil nephew hungry for revenge in Mo Sheng Ren.
Has 'The Look'
"I am glad I look quite versatile," says Christopher with a smile when
I talk to him about the role he aspires to play. "I want to try out as
many different roles as possible," he says and he can for Christopher
has been blessed with a rather versatile face. He can be the evil guy
and yet, he can also be the honest-to-goodness protagonist. He can be
the modern businessman; he can be the boy (rather man) next door. He can
even be a pugilistic genius if he feels like it.
Standing at 1.82m, Christopher Lee has got 'presence'
and is a natural 'clotheshorse'; blessed with a frame which looks equally
good in anything from suits (That is why Lanvin is willing to sponsor
his wardrobe) to wakeboarding shorts and singlets.
Has Regional Appeal
Well known in Taiwan for his role as Yang Guo in The Condor Heroes (He
was Most Popular Male Artiste in Taiwan in Star Awards 1998) and well
loved by Chinese girls all over China for his role in Mo Sheng Ren, Christopher
already has a steady fan base in the region. Besides, Chris can converse
in fluent mandarin and Cantonese and this will greatly add to his regional
appeal
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