Richie Koh dons heels and a corset in A Good Child, earning himself a Golden Horse Best Actor nomination

Rapidly cementing his status as the most hardcore Singapore actor of his generation, Richie Koh’s first foray into movies has earned him a Golden Horse Best Actor nod for a role that called for a head-to-toe transformation.

“I wanted to see how far I could push myself,” the 32-year-old told CNA Lifestyle.

In the film A Good Child, debuting in cinemas on Thursday (Oct 9), he plays a drag queen who returns home to care for his estranged mother (Hong Hui Fang) when she is diagnosed with dementia. Taking advantage of her memory loss, he soon finds he is able to reorient their dynamic by convincing her that he is her daughter, giving their relationship a new lease of life. In between shopping and face-masking together, the pair go about inadvertently confronting the wrongs of the past and revealing some painful, long-buried truths.

Directed by Ong Kuo Sin (Reunion Dinner, Number 1), the M18-rated film is inspired by the life story of Christopher Lim, known to drag audiences as Sammi Zhen.

While Koh’s character’s larger-than-life drag persona is magnetising, the film isn’t about exploring social taboos, but about the universally human search for belonging. Along the way, it raises questions about how identities are constructed, the meaning of home, and what would happen if we were accepted for who we were by the people who mattered most to us.

Koh turns in a mesmerising performance both on stage in full makeup, blond wig and glitter; and as the recalcitrant prodigal son who raises the neighbours’ eyebrows in an equally humorous and heartfelt movie that’s Singapore’s answer to Hedwig And The Angry Inch.

“Everyone says I’m very pretty,” quipped Koh, “thanks to the makeup and the hair.” Incidentally, the film has also picked up a Golden Horse nomination for Best Makeup and Costume Design.

It took nearly four days to perfect the all-important look, Koh recalled. Looking into the mirror in full drag for the first time, “I felt like another person,” he said. “The layers of makeup helped me visualise the performance and how I could make use of it to let people see a different side of me.”

How did it feel walking around in a crop top? “A little bit naked. It’s also very cooling,” he chuckled. “All of it helped me get into character,” including the gaze of passersby when filming on location: “When I went to the washroom, there were people who took a second look.” That said, “People now are very accepting. It’s not like it was years ago.”

The one item of clothing that instantly put him in character was a corset. "The corset straightens your back, which gives a feminine way of talking and changes the way you sit in a chair  – normally, guys slouch. Wearing high heels as well – you are forced to have a different posture so you look good and confident.

“How I felt when I wore them automatically translated into how I spoke on set, and the tonality of different lines.”

Embodying the character, even tiny gestures such as the positioning of his fingers came into play.

To transform physically for the role, he also lost an estimated 9 to 11kg over the course of a month. “For 24 hours a day, all I had was a bowl of soup with wontons and veggies. Sometimes, a bit of meat and kimchi, just to keep my stomach full before I went to sleep.”

Having undertaken fasting regimes before, it wasn’t too big of a challenge for Koh, but, he added: “Disclaimer: If you’re not familiar with fasting, please don’t do it.”

Today, he’s regained about half of that weight, but his appetite is still in recovery. At the start, “I couldn’t finish a bowl of bak chor mee or wanton noodles. Even now, if I eat lunch, I won’t feel hungry when it’s dinner time.”

While physically gruelling, “the satisfaction comes when you achieve the performance you aim for,” he said.

Koh has made no secret of wanting to take on transformative roles.

When he won Best Actor at the 2023 Star Awards for his role as a 21-year-old with the intellectual age of a seven-year-old, he told media backstage that he wanted to play a gay character next. Turns out, he had already been approached for A Good Child.

“It was then that I started to do my homework and explore the (queer) community,” he said. “It was something I thought I would really love to try and take on. I think it’s just very challenging in terms of the body language, speech, gestures and mentality. The whole flow of the character was something that could push me to the brink. I wanted to see how far I could go with that.”

It did indeed push him to the limits, both physically and mentally. “This was the most tiring and difficult role I’ve ever had. When I finished filming for it, I became very lazy because I was just thinking about resting. I was exhausted,” he said.

But, “it was a lot of fun playing the character” due to his complex psyche. “He has deep emotional baggage and a high wall of defence with regards to childhood trauma,” Koh said.

Several scenes were filmed in a single long take, requiring intense concentration to channel emotions.

Koh credits director Ong for helping him achieve peak performance. “Without him, I could have never reached the tempo or tonality of the character. On set, he was always beside me, giving me directions. He’s just such a nice guy. He gave me a lot of free rein to play as well. We had a great time working together. He said, before the start of shooting, ‘Don’t bother about the camera. Just play the character'.”

As for his chances of bagging the Golden Horse for Best Actor, he said: “To be nominated is already a great blessing. I feel very proud because it allows people from other countries to take a look at what Singapore is able to do. And with the movie market not doing very well now, I hope it gives a boost to everyone, and also inspire new actors to persevere.”

He added, “I think everyone should watch this lovely story. Family, love, humanity – everything is in there. I hope everyone can gain some perspective on life after they step out of the cinema.”

At its heart, the story’s message is to “just be home”, he said. “Spend time with your family and your loved ones. Cherish whatever time you have because time doesn’t wait. Make the time for your loved ones.”

Personally, he hopes his “future projects will be as good as this, and as engaging as this".

He’s just started work on his next film, a comedy called Luck My Life! slated for a Chinese New Year release. He plays “a guy who was born lucky but then loses all his luck all overnight – from riches to rags. He looks for ways to get his luck back through the game of mahjong”.

When it comes to future challenges, “I would like to explore playing a blind person”, Koh shared. “Their whole world would be so different – how they react to sounds and smells and everything around. That is something I want to try.”

A Good Child opens in cinemas Oct 9.