US actor Mark Wahlberg goes viral after being spotted getting around Penang in Perodua car
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(From left) Hans Isaac, Mark Wahlberg and Fahmi Fadzil on the set of The Big Fix in George Town.
PHOTO: FINAS MALAYSIA/FACEBOOK
GEORGE TOWN, Penang – Netflix’s upcoming movie The Big Fix, starring American actor Mark Wahlberg, has turned Malaysia’s George Town into a Hollywood film set.
The 55-year-old has been turning heads after being spotted around the heritage enclave.
He has lit up the Malaysian social media sphere with posts showing him walking through a bazaar and arriving at a shop in a Perodua Kelisa.
Someone joked that the Kelisa owner would brag about this every Hari Raya: “Mark Wahlberg once got into my car.”
Even Hong Kong-based newspaper South China Morning Post caught the buzz in a report titled “Mark Wahlberg savours Penang’s charm as Malaysians floored by star’s humility”.
Directed by Icelandic film-maker Baltasar Kormakur, The Big Fix stars Wahlberg alongside British actor Riz Ahmed. It centres on a former Interpol officer with links to FIFA who uncovers a global match-fixing operation. Others in the cast include United States-based Malaysian actress Nuha Jes Izman, Singaporean actor Chin Han and Indian actor Vipin Sharma.
Penang’s tourism and creative economy committee chairman Wong Hon Wai said filming over the past three days had taken place at Jawi Peranakan Mansion, Cheong Fatt Tze – The Blue Mansion, Lorong Ikan and Penang City Stadium.
There will be other filming locations such as the Batu Kawan stadium in the coming weeks.
Wong said the production marked another milestone for Penang’s tourism and creative economy. “A production of this calibre brings invaluable international exposure to Penang through one of the world’s largest streaming platforms,” he said on July 14.
Penang Island City Council said the filming team had been granted a permit from July 1 to 31.
Mayor A. Rajendran said the city council had approved six local and international movie productions in 2026. Filming fees comprise a RM2,000 (S$635) refundable deposit, a RM10 daily licence fee, a RM50 processing fee and a RM50 heritage site fee, with parking charges and rentals payable where applicable.
Malaysia’s Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil and National Film Development Corporation Malaysia chairman Hans Isaac had visited the filming location for The Big Fix a few days ago.
But not everyone got a chance to watch the action. One X user lamented that he was not told about the actor’s presence. And to make it worse, he was at work at the time. THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK