S'pore actor Jaspers Lai pays production crew 'close to 6-figure sum' in ringgit after M'sian company allegedly defaults on payment

The unnamed Malaysian media company allegedly owes staff a six-figure sum in ringgit.

Lee Wei Lin | Hayley Foong | October 11, 2022, 09:07 PM

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Jaspers Lai has called out a Malaysian media company for allegedly owing a "large part" of the RM500,000 (S$153,700) production fee to several crew members.

The Kuala Lumpur-born actor, who has appeared in local movies "Ah Boys to Men 3: Frogmen" and "Number 1", posted on Instagram and Facebook on Oct. 9, bringing this matter to light.

In his posts, he claimed that an unnamed Malaysian company owes him, along with the director, editor and other crew members payment for their work done.

Company claimed they have "financial troubles"

In an interview with 8world, Lai shared he had been invited by the said company to produce two programmes together.

The company was supposed to pay a 50 per cent deposit when the contract was signed, but requested additional time to do so, according to Lianhe Zaobao.

He is currently owed a five-figure sum in Singapore dollars.

It has been about six months since the project was completed and the total production cost was RM500,000 (S$153,700), according to 8world.

Lai said the company has made multiple excuses and has paid out some money, but a large part of the production fees are still outstanding.

In his Instagram post, he mentioned the explanation he received from the company was that they were having "financial troubles".

Despite their claims, the said the company has apparently shot other productions in recent months.

As crew members approached him to ask for advice on what they can do to get their money, he decided to fork out a "close to six-figure sum" in ringgit as he "felt bad".

Not deterred from working with other Malaysian companies

Since his post was uploaded on his social media platforms, many netizens have offered him encouragement and support.

Screenshot via Jaspers Lai/Facebook

Some also asked him to reveal the name of the company to prevent other artistes and agencies from encountering a similar experience.

While Lai thanked them for their concern, he told Zaobao he does not want to escalate matters.

He also hopes that legal action will not be needed to resolve this issue.

The actor explained he decided to make the matter public to let others know that celebrities, whom others assume to lead glamorous lives, go through a lot behind closed doors.

Lai told 8world: "The money actually isn't that important. I'll take it as a lesson learnt if they don't pay me."

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Top images from Jaspers Lai via Facebook