Fish Liew moved to Hong Kong some 12 years ago to try her luck in Chinese showbiz. Photo: Fish Liew/Instagram
Fish Liew let out a small sigh midway through our interview, muttering softly to herself, “This is so difficult”.
“This” refers to conducting the interview in English.
“I’ve never spoken English in interviews,” Liew admitted when asked about her sigh.
“All my interviews are always in Cantonese, or Mandarin.”
It’s understandable. The 34-year-old Malaysian has spent over a decade toiling in Hong Kong showbiz, where she has even picked up the local accent. In order to succeed in the competitive scene there, you need to be like one of them.
So, when Liew tells her friends in Hong Kong that she’s actually from Malaysia, many find it hard to believe.
“I have been in Hong Kong for so long that even people there think I am from Hong Kong. But no, I am Malaysian,” Liew said in a recent interview in Tokyo.
She moved to Hong Kong some 12 years ago to try her luck in Chinese showbiz.
Being thoroughly assimilated into her environment – including adopting the local accent and mannerisms – has helped Liew gain traction in the entertainment industry.
In the Anita Mui biopic 'Anita'. Fish Liew (right) plays the role of the legendary singer's sister Ann. Photo: Handout
After a slow start, Liew eventually began to make headways, which culminated with a Best Supporting Actress win in 2021 for her role as Ann Mui in the Anita Mui biopic, Anita.
After years of portraying Hong Kong native, Liew expressed interest in playing a Malaysian in a Malaysian movie.
When director Chong Keat Aun heard about it, he reached out to Liew to play the lead in a new movie he was casting back in 2023.
“I liked her performance in Anita. So I talked to my producer, and we invited her to take on this role. She seemed very suitable for the character,” Chong said of his lead actress.
This led to Liew clinching her first role playing a Malaysian in a local production – Pavane For An Infant.
The movie made its world premiere at the 37th Tokyo International Film Festival, which ran from Oct 28 to Nov 6. The movie also competed in the Asian Future section alongside nine other titles (Turkish movie Apollon By Day Athena By Night eventually won).
In Pavane For An Infant, Liew plays Lai Sum, a social worker who works at a baby hatch. One day, she meets a young woman who is on a verge of a nervous breakdown as she is pregnant after being sexually abused.
“When I was offered the role of Lai Sum, I was delighted because I finally got the chance to play a Malaysian.
“I felt like I finally get to show my friends and fans in Hong Kong who I really am, my culture, the country I am from, (and that) this is the way I speak,” Liew said.
In 'Pavane For An Infant', Fish Liew plays Lai Sum, a social worker who works at a baby hatch. Photo Handout
But it wasn’t easy getting into the role of Lai Sum, who is in a state of depression herself after leaving her child in a baby hatch six years ago.
Known to be a character actor, Liew fully immersed herself in the role of a woman burdened by the trauma of abandoning her child.
“It’s like a big stone on my heart,” she said, describing the weight she carried throughout filming.
Between takes, she would try and mingle with the people on set but the attempts were futile.
“I tried to mix with (the crew) or chit-chat, but I couldn’t. I had to be alone... it made me more comfortable to stay in that feeling,” the consummate professional said.
Even harder than that, Liew admitted, was her dialogue in Malay.
In an interview with local Chinese media last year, Liew said she was anxious during filming whenever she had to speak in Malay.
So, how does she think she did in the end?
“I watched the movie for the first time yesterday and... I felt that my Bahasa is OK. But, it also sounded like I am speaking Bahasa like how a foreigner would,” Liew told StarLifestyle, adding that she also had to change the way she delivered her Cantonese lines to sound “more Malaysian than Hong Kong”.
Liew started her career as a model in 2009. She worked locally before given an opportunity to model in Hong Kong.
Liew knew she was destined for bigger things so she packed her bags and left Malaysia.
Life was tough in Hong Kong as she didn’t know anyone and had to work her way up from the bottom.
Fish Liew is quite the fashionista as she posts fashion-forward photos of herself on social media. Photo: Fish Liew/Instagram
Her first acting gig was something “daring”, she recalled. It was a Category III film called Doomsday Party (2013).
“Yes, I had to take off my clothes (for the role),” she said.
More risque roles came her way before she was offered serious ones.
In 2022, she struck gold at the Hong Kong Film Awards, where she was nominated for Best Supporting Actress for two films, Anita and Limbo.
She won the award for the former.
In her acceptance speech, she spoke in Mandarin to thank her family in Malaysia, and then addressed the audience in Cantonese.
“I came to Hong Kong 10 years ago and I started out not knowing a single person. Looking at the audience now, I’ve made so many good friends, (including those I’ve acted) with and directors, so many people gave me opportunities to act here, I’m honoured to have my dream come true in Hong Kong,” she said.
These days, the Hong Kong-based actress says she hardly has the time to come back to Malaysia as she is fully booked for projects.
“When I was younger, I had the time but no money to return home. Now I have the money to come back but no time to do so,” she laughed at the irony.
Now, Liew says she relishes the chance to play dark and gloomy characters.
Right after completing Pavane For An Infant, she went on to shoot a Cantonese drama, Cicada Cycle, where she plays a woman whose husband dies.
Playing back-to-back roles that are emotionally draining did take a toll on Liew who said she lost considerable amount of weight.
“I know these roles are sad and depressing but at the end of the day, as an actress, I can’t tell you how happy I am when I play these kind of characters,” Liew shared with a twinkle in her eyes.
In the Cantonese drama series 'Cicada Cycle', the Johor-born actress plays a woman whose husband dies. Photo: Handout
And she has a method to decompress after filming intense roles.
“I try to do simple things that remind me of myself, like patting my cat or changing my hairstyle. A change in appearance helps me separate myself from the character,” Liew said.
Whether starring in a sad movie, a thriller or biopic, Liew says she has found her mission in life.
“After 12 years in Hong Kong, I realised I found my passion and my mission as an actor. I feel so lucky to be offered these roles.
“My mission is to make people happy, to entertain them and to bring a message through my work.
“It’s not just about making them happy, but through my work, I hope to touch people in a meaningful way,” she said.
These days, the Hong Kong-based actress says she hardly has the time to come back to Malaysia as she is fully booked for projects. Photo: Fish Liew/Instagram
