Bernice Liu, 44, says she had a meltdown on the set of Healing Hands III and that acting in the TVB drama put a strain on her relationship with her dad

Not being able to break character is a real problem for many actors. 

In fact, ex-TVB actress Bernice Liu, 44, had such a difficult time getting out of character while shooting 2005 TVB drama Healing Hands III, she had to take a two-month break before she could work again.

In a recent video Bernice shared on her YouTube channel, she recalled her time on the set of Healing Hands III.

The actress, who grew up in Canada, explained that she wasn't fluent in Cantonese and needed her father to translate her scripts for her when she first joined showbiz in Hong Kong. 

Her relationship with her dad, however, suffered when she was filming the drama because her character was on bad terms with her father, played by late TVB actor Chan Hung-lit, in the show.

Bernice was so deeply entrenched in her role, she started throwing tantrums at her real-life dad every night.

"I'm very close to my dad, but in the show, my relationship with my [onscreen] dad was terrible. We hated each other so much. I became too invested in the lines and the character. Every night when I returned home, I would lose my temper when my dad practised my lines with me," said Bernice.

"I got angry at him and would even slam the door [in his face]. We filmed the drama for eight months, and in that time, my relationship with my father really suffered."

In the drama, Bernice's character managed to reconcile with her dad before his death.

That scene led Bernice to have a complete meltdown on set.

"I totally broke down. It was the first time I couldn't stop crying. They even told the emergency first-aiders to come over because I couldn't breathe. [Ex-TVB actor] Sunny Chan, who was filming in the studio next door, also ran over to see what happened," she recalled. 

"I almost fainted 'cos I was panting so badly. The whole incident caused shooting to be halted for three hours. When I went home, I continued crying as I looked at my father," said Bernice with tears in her eyes. 

"I felt very sorry towards him," she continued, adding that she has not seen her dad in three years because of the pandemic.

Bernice also shared that the incident caused her to change the way she viewed acting.

"I had to rest for a while after filming Healing Hands III. The company saw that I need to stop filming for that period and gave me a two-month break," said Bernice.

Photos: hk01/weekendhk

Catch Bernice in Healing Hands III on meWATCH here.