Mark Lee sustains arm injury while filming Number 1 sequel in Thailand

On Sunday (Jul 9), veteran actor-comedian Mark Lee told his followers that he had sustained an arm injury while shooting his new movie, the sequel to 2020's Number 1, in Hat Yai, Thailand.

Mark posted a photo of his bandaged arm, along with the caption: "Injured just from rehearsing the first scene in Number 1's sequel."

In an interview with Chinese newspaper Lianhe Zaobao, Mark revealed that while rehearsing for a gang fight scene, another actor accidentally cut his arm, along with his capillaries. 

"The blood kept flowing, so I am now at the hospital to let them stop the bleeding."

The hospital staff gave him a tetanus shot after they stopped the bleeding. Despite his health scare, Mark still had his wit, jokingly saying: "It's a private hospital; the doctors and nurses are all good-looking and the injections don't hurt."

Mark adds that despite his injury, filming for Number 1's sequel will not be affected.

"The real shooting scene will be on Tuesday (Jul 11), so the injury should be fine by then."

Mark went on to praise Hat Yai, calling it "fun" and that "everything is cheap". This is Mark's first time filming in Thailand and he will be there for about a month.

Since uploading the picture of his injury, Mark has received a wave of well-wishes from local celebrities such as Ben Yeo, Yvonne Lim, Desmond Tan and Pan Lingling. Mark's wife, Catherine Ng, left a comment, telling him to "get well" and "not get hurt anymore".

Number 1 was released in 2020 and tells the story of how Chow Chee Beng (Mark Lee) gets retrenched from his job as a manager and winds up being a drag performer at a local drag club.

Upon the movie’s release, many critics praised Mark for his strong and moving performance. The movie ended up being nominated for two Golden Horse Awards in 2020 – winning the award for best makeup and costume design.

In June 2023, Mark revealed that the movie will have a sequel, with Ong Kuo Sin returning to direct it.