Another Actor Leaving Mediacorp, This Time to Go Back to China

In case you’re not aware, whenever a Mediacorp artiste leaves Mediacorp, it becomes news.

For a start, we’ve got our childhood girlfriend, Jeannette Aw, leaving the media giant in October 2017. About a month later, celebrity couple Andie Chen and Kate Pang left Mediacorp as well to focus on new media. Earlier that year, actress Julie Tan also announced her departure.

There are more, but let’s not lose focus because by now, you should get the gist.

And two days ago, another Mediacorp celebrity announced that he’s leaving the national broadcaster.

What’s even shocking is that he’s one of the “Eight Dukes of Mediacorp”: in other words, an “Ah Ge”.

Though I know what some of you are thinking: Who’s that?

Zhang Zhenhuan, 1 of the 8 Dukes of Mediacorp

Zhang Zhenhuan, who look remarkable like Lee Dong Wook from Goblin, made a surprise announcement on 30 November 2018: that after his contract ends that month (which, well, is on that day), he would not be renewing it.

By the way, here’s Lee Dong Wook from Goblin:

The resemblance is uncanny, isn’t it? I once thought they’re the same people #kidyounot

The reason for Zhenhuan’s leaving the media giant? He’s going back to China.

Which is a shock because I’ve watched a few of his shows and have always thought that he’s a Singaporean due to his accent.

But wait, he’s actually lived in Singapore for a very long time.

Full-Time Actor Since 2008

The Lee Dong Wook lookalike was born in Sichuan, China, and moved to Singapore when he was a teenager.

After being spotted in Channel U’s talent show U Are The One, he signed on with Mediacorp and won the Best Newcomer Award at Star Awards 2009.

As one of the Eight Dukes of Mediacorp, he has been playing the main lead since somewhere around 2012. His latest role is in the super-long Channel 8 drama, 不平凡的平凡, which ends its run late last month.

Upon his announcement, he hasn’t given any interview because he was “busy preparing for his move back to China”.

It’s also unknown if he would continue acting over in his native country.

Disappeared from Online World all of a Sudden

And for some reason, he has set his Instagram profile to private, and has not posted anything on his Facebook Page since 16 November 2018.

In April this year, the hunk went public on his relationship with Sally Pan, who’s ten years younger than him and isn’t in showbiz.

According to Today Online, Zhenhuan’s parents own businesses in China as well.

Therefore there has been speculations on whether he’s going to get married, run his parents’ businesses or maybe just buy a land in China and name it Yishun.

Who knows, but seeing that ex-Mediacorp celebrities usually come back to act on a freelance basis, we might be seeing him again.

Unless he does a Xie Shaoguang lah.