Richie Koh praised for 'natural' acting in heart-wrenching Covid-19 death scene

After an award-winning performance in the drama Your World in Mine, local actor Richie Koh has given another stellar performance, according to viewers of Cash On Delivery.

Set in 2020 during the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, the drama follows Juncong (Richie), a debt-ridden pub owner who works for a loanshark.

Spoiler warning for those who haven't seen the drama.

Juncong eventually quits being a loanshark runner and works hard to repay his debt.

However, he overlooks his grandmother Zhu Ma's health, until she faints and is diagnosed with Covid-19.

Zhu Ma, played by Jin Yinji, raised Juncong on her own.

The scene in particular that tugged at viewers' hearts was on Zhu Ma's last few moments, as she and Juncong are separated in different quarantine rooms and unable to say their last goodbyes in person.

The teary and emotional scene was recently posted on Mediacorp's Instagram account, where netizens took to the comment section to praise Richie, 29, for his acting skills.

 

 

 

 

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"He is such a natural in his portrayal!" said one user, who went on to add that it is the "highest skill" to be able to act while making viewers feel like the emotions portrayed are real.

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Another netizen commented that Richie's "natural and good" acting reminded them of the Covid-19 period when no one could visit their relatives and send them off when they've died.

In an interview with 8Days, Richie talked about working with Yinji to deliver the heavy scene: "She was very worried about our scenes together, so we spent a lot of time talking and building our chemistry on the first day.

"I was trying to build a history and implant her as a grandma into my mind. So with the script and the memories I made with her, I just let it flow during filming."

However, Richie felt that he could have ended the scene with "more aggression and pain", but did the best he could during the shoot.

In response to the praise he received from netizens, he replied: "I read a little here and there, not really a lot [of praise] lah. But most of them enjoyed the show, so overall, I'm glad."

syarifahsn@asiaone.com

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