Actor Pierre Png wants to use his fame to tackle teen suicide, silent struggles, menopause

SINGAPORE – After 27 years in show business, most celebrities would be content to coast, pick comfortable roles and enjoy the occasional red carpet. 

But home-grown actor Pierre Png wants to use his fame for a greater good – to shine a light on subjects that many still consider taboo, including suicide, mental health and menopause.

The 52-year-old is standing by his wife Andrea De Cruz, 51, as she speaks publicly about her menopause journey. Since March, the former TV personality has been talking about coping with perimenopause and menopause symptoms on the podcast And One Should Know.

He sees De Cruz’s openness about menopause as part of a much-needed cultural shift.

“In Asian society, a lot of things are still taboo – be it menopause, andropause, suicide, divorce,” Png says. “I think it’s about time. As long as you make the information available, no more can people say, ‘I don’t know about this, or I don’t care.’”

He was speaking to The Straits Times at the Asia TV Forum & Market at Marina Bay Sands on Dec 3. He was promoting the Thai-Singapore collaboration Decalcomania, an eight-episode thriller also featuring Thai actors Mookda Narinrak, Chai Chatayodom Hiranyatithi and Thaneth Warakulnukroh. 

Decalcomania, streaming on mewatch, follows two women (played by Mookda) – one a socialite in Singapore and the other a nightclub owner in Bangkok. They discover they are long-lost twins after a car accident causes them to mysteriously switch bodies. 

Png takes on a supporting role in the series, playing a dedicated policeman and devoted husband to Cynthia Koh’s domineering wife. His character takes in one of the twins, causing a rift with his mother-in-law, played by Hong Huifang.

The actor jokes that De Cruz must have spoken to Koh about who wears the pants at home. “Cynthia and I have played husband and wife quite a few times already. I know Cynthia for way too long, so she can’t boss me around,” he adds with a laugh. 

Png, who married De Cruz in 2003, says a husband’s role is not to offer solutions, but to be present and provide support.

“Anything I know about the female species, it is just to be there,” he says. “Don’t offer any suggestions. We have nothing wise to say.”

And if a partner asks for an opinion, he believes the response must be genuine: “Let it come from the heart, you can’t go wrong with that.”

Reaching out to young people

Another passion project on Png’s plate is SPEAK, a suicide prevention initiative he started with parenting coach Michelle Choy in July. SPEAK is an acronym for Suicide Prevention through Empathy, Awareness and Kindness.

The turning point came when he learnt of some tragic yet preventable incidents related to teen suicides, and how young people are drowning in information and expectations, especially through social media.

“There’s just this overflow of information that’s given to them, and they don’t know what to do with it,” he says. “Kids nowadays feel like they have to put up something on TikTok or whatever, and then the comments that come in... It’s no longer a safe world for children.”

For Png, the answer is not more silence, but more conversation – at home, not just online.

“There’s got to be more light shed on suicide,” he stresses. “People need to know that suicide is not contagious. We need to talk about this at the table and how to approach it.”

SPEAK has organised free webinars and discussion panels for parents on teen mental health issues.

If his words carry urgency, it is because Png is acutely aware of time.

“I’m 52. If the average lifespan of a man is like 70, 80, I’m more than halfway through my life,” he says. “I feel more satisfaction doing charity than winning an acting award.

“If I don’t make use of my voice, or if I don’t make use of what little shelf life I have in entertainment to bring awareness, the opportunity is wasted.”

He and De Cruz do not have children, but they have like-minded friends who have rallied behind SPEAK. 

Between his radio shifts – he guest-hosts on Gold 905 every Tuesday from 8 to 10am – acting projects and advocacy work, life is hardly slowing down. 

Yet, the Crazy Rich Asians (2018) actor insists he is not busier than before, just more intentional.

“Someone once told me, it’s not that you have no time, it’s just organising yourself,” he says. “Whatever empty pockets and whatever opportunities, I make full use of them.”

He is also hoping for a Crazy Rich Asians sequel or spin-off. “I haven’t heard anything from Jon Chu,” says Png. He adds that it was a regret he could not meet up with the American film-maker when he was in Singapore recently for the Wicked: For Good film premiere.

“All of us remained in the (Crazy Rich Asians) chat group, secretly hoping Jon would announce something. But he’s too busy,” says Png.