Star Awards 2025: Things we love about the Best Actor nominees

From slipping into stilettos as a drag performer caring for his dementia-stricken mother, to playing a father whose world crumbles after he’s revealed to be one of his daughter’s anonymous clients on an adult site, this year’s Best Actor for Star Awards 2025’s lineup is anything but predictable

Now in its 30th edition, the Star Awards honours performances that leave a lasting impression, whether it’s from rising names or long-time veterans. This year’s Best Actor race brings together five standout talents, each with a story worth telling. Here’s a closer look at who’s in the running, and why they deserve the spotlight.

Richie Koh

Discovered on 2013’s Hey Gorgeous, 32-year-old Richie Koh traded his birth name, Zong Yong, for a stage moniker suggested by none other than Quan Yi Fong. “She said people wouldn’t remember Xu Zong Yong,” he told Fullsmart Technology Pte Ltd. “So Richie it was.”

Since then, he’s gone from a baby-faced campus crush to breakout star in Your World In Mine, where he played Tian Cai, a young man with intellectual disabilities. Unexpectedly, he gained a reputation for being the world’s gentlest snail dad. “Ah Niu B never had a bad take,” Richie says of his molluscan co-star. “I had more bad takes than he did.”

That role not only earned him a Star Award in 2023, but also turned him into an unlikely advocate. “I think I shone a light on a group of people who require more attention from the public,” he says of the fan letters he received from families with special needs members.

In 2024, he’s pushed the envelope again – this time, in heels. Koh plays a drag queen caring for his dementia-stricken mother in his latest film, A Good Child, alongside veteran actress Hong Hui Fang. “It’s about love,” he shares in an interview with Harper’s BAZAAR Singapore. “The kind you lose, and hope to find again.” 

And he didn’t stop there. In Coded Love, Richie plays Lu Xiao Ming, a haunted data scientist who builds an AI replica of his late mother, only to find that some memories can’t be programmed away. The role has earned him two nominations at the upcoming Star Awards 2025, including Best Actor and MyPick! The Show Stealer categories.

Gavin Teo

At 31, Gavin Teo is finding his stride in Singapore’s entertainment scene with quiet conviction. The Malaysian singer-songwriter with a soulful voice first rose to public attention on Hey Gorgeous in 2013. But in recent years, it’s his acting that’s doing the heavy lifting, drawing attention not just for how he looks on screen, but also for the emotional weight he brings to it.

His role as Hu Ying Jun in 2024’s To Be Loved marked a career milestone. As a deaf man orphaned young and raised by his grandmother, Gavin’s portrayal avoided clichés, opting instead for quiet dignity. He navigated themes of disability, grief, and first love with tenderness, earning him Best Actor and Favourite Male Character nominations at this year’s Star Awards 2025.

Off-screen, Gavin has also found himself navigating emotional terrain. Last, he and fellow actress, Chen Yixin, ended their five-year relationship. Not long after, he found himself cast opposite her mother, veteran actress Xiang Yun, in Unforgivable. The situation could have been uncomfortable, but he assured the public that it wasn’t. “They’re like my Singaporean parents,” he said of Yixin’s parents and veteran actors, Xiang Yun and Edmund Chen. “That bond isn’t going anywhere.” Xiang Yun echoed the sentiment: “I’ve always doted on Gavin. He’s like a son to me.”

Beyond acting, Gavin continues to build on his musical roots. Known for bilingual hits like “我懂了” and “有我在你身边,” he’s performed at major showcases such as the Singapore Hits Awards and ATV. And while romance may be on pause, he’s not in a rush. “I’ve been too busy filming,” he told 8world. “Right now, I’m just focusing on the work.”

That focus seems to be paying off. With To Be Loved drawing critical praise and his upcoming role in 金色大道 already generating buzz, Gavin is proving that staying true to your craft can still make the loudest impact.

Qi Yuwu

Over the course of two decades, Qi Yuwu has quietly cemented his legacy as one of Singapore’s most enduring leading men. From early 2000s hits like My Genie and The Little Nyonya, to award-winning turns in The Dream Makers, his name has long been synonymous with gravitas on screen. But in Once Upon A New Year’s Eve, the actor delivers one of his most moving performances to date, earning him four nominsations at Star Awards 2025, including Best Actor, MYPICK! Most Emotional Performance, MYPICK! The Show Stealer, and MYPICK! Favourite CP for his role in the show.

In the time-travelling fantasy drama, he plays Cai Yi Ren, a successful businessman who wakes up on Chinese New Year’s Eve to find himself transported back to 2003. Given a fleeting chance to revisit his younger self, reconnect with his late wife (played by Jesseca Liu), and mend broken ties with his children, his character’s journey becomes a meditation on regret, forgiveness, and love that arrives too late. 

It’s a far cry from the early days of his career, when critics panned him for being too stiff. Qi himself admits he was once “too caught up in trying to be a good actor.” Now, he has learned to let go, channelling lived experience and emotional truth to steer his acting wheels. That evolution has earned him not only three Best Actor wins but also the All-Time Favourite Artiste award in 2016.

Off-screen, the father of two continues to surprise. His 2023 art exhibition, a collaboration with Chinese artist Feng Zhengjie, saw him blend his own photography with contemporary oil paintings. That same year, he became an ambassador for Van Gogh: The Immersive Experience, leading a special guided tour for 40 elderly guests.

In a rare personal post in 2023, Qi shared a photo from a then 91-year-old fan’s birthday party. “They used to wave handmade signs with my name on it,” he wrote. “Now, they’ve built families and lives of their own. I feel very fortunate.”

Andie Chen

You could say Andie Chen has done his time. After 27 years in the industry, four Best Actor nominations, and a Star Search win under his belt, the 39-year-old has somehow never taken home a Star Award. “Shouldn’t they let the old man win?” he told 8Days, referring to this year’s nod for his role as a strict, emotionally distant father in Born To Shine. 

These days, Andie isn’t as concerned with trophies. What matters more is whether the work means something. He admits he gets restless on sets where he feels replaceable, describing himself as a “mercenary for hire” when the job is purely about the pay cheque. “If another actor could do it just as well, why am I here?” he shared with AsiaOne.

Now based in Taiwan with his wife, actress Kate Pang, and their two children, Andie is navigating a life that straddles two countries, multiple responsibilities, and a shifting relationship with his own craft. In the same feature, he spoke openly about burnout, self-worth, and the mental recalibration that comes with fatherhood. “I don’t have the luxury of just doing what I love anymore,” he says. “Not when there are school fees and groceries to think about.”

Fatherhood, in particular, is a role he approaches with brutal honesty. He’s spoken openly about moments where he wondered how much easier life would be if he’d stayed single, if he’d never had kids. “I’d be lying if the thought hadn’t crossed my mind,” he admits. But he always circles back. “I’d still choose them. Every time.” 

Andie’s path hasn’t been easy. Diagnosed with dyslexia as a child, he grew up feeling inadequate in a system that prized academic excellence. “I always felt like an idiot,” he says, matter-of-factly. That insecurity, he admits, may still be fuelling his work ethic. “Maybe I’m still trying to prove I’m good enough.”

These days, he’s leaning into therapy (at his wife’s suggestion) and finding new ways to manage the pressure. 

He still dreams of acting on sets around the world, meeting different people, immersing himself in new cultures, while staying tethered to the one thing that grounds him: family. As for the Star Awards? If it happens, it happens. If not, Andie’s already moved on to the next scene.

Christopher Lee

With close to three decades in the industry, Christopher Lee has earned his place as one of Singapore’s most enduring screen icons. Now 53, the Star Search 1995 finalist is once again in the running for Best Actor at Star Awards 2025, recognised for his gripping performance in Kill Sera Sera – a slow-burn murder mystery where he plays Allan Sun, a wealthy CEO and father whose picture-perfect life unravels after the brutal death of his daughter. As the investigation deepens, dark truths emerge: Allan was one of her anonymous clients on an adult site, and to protect himself, he tampered with evidence and obstructed justice. Lee’s portrayal of a man caught between shame, guilt, and the collapse of his family has been widely praised for its emotional restraint and psychological depth.

He’s also nominated for Best Programme Host for Dishing With Chris Lee (Season 2), the food-travel series that sees him at ease in hawker stalls, wet markets, and unfamiliar towns.

Chris has a particularly impressive track record at the Golden Bell Awards in Taiwan. Out of six nominations, he’s taken home four wins, making him one of the most-lauded foreign-born stars in the award’s history. In contrast, back home, he’s received 14 acting nominations at the Star Awards, but has only won twice. Still, his legacy in Singapore remains untouchable – he was awarded the All-Time Favourite Artiste title in 2010, a nod to both his longevity and public appeal.

Alongside his wife, actress Fann Wong, Lee keeps a relatively low profile off-camera. Married since 2009, the pair share a son, Zed, born in 2014. Despite his many roles across regional productions, Lee often credits his family for keeping him grounded. His early days in the industry, whether it’s working odd jobs (he has operated machinery in Malaysia and modelled before), or using his Star Search prize money to pay off family debts (he used the $40,000 from Star Search to clear debts when his family was going through a tough time) still shape his outlook today.