'I stopped recognising the person in the mirror': S'pore actor Desmond Tan gained over 10kg for new movie

An actor's job is never easy.

Taking on a new role requires one to step into the shoes of the character, and for local actor Desmond Tan, his latest role demanded even more.

He had to transform his physical appearance to bring the character to life.

"Meet Malcom."

In an Instagram post on Aug. 30, the 40-year-old actor shared photos of himself with a noticeably bigger belly and love handles.

"Meet Malcolm," his caption wrote. "More soon. PACE 《脚踏实地》 in Singapore cinemas 8 Oct."

In the carousel, Tan also opened up about the physical transformation, writing:

"What gaining weight for a movie looks like. I stopped recognising the person in the mirror. And this was only one phase of the transformation."

Pace marks the directorial feature film debut of Jonathan Choo, and also stars his veteran actor father Zhu Houren and brother Joel Choo.

In the movie, Tan plays a middle-aged man who is trying to rebuild his life after overcoming a drug addiction.

As he reintegrates into society, he discovers a passion for marathon running.

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A post shared by DESMOND TAN 陈泂江 (@thedesmondtan)

Gained over 10kg

In an interview with 8world in November 2025, Tan revealed that he had gained more than 10kg to take on the appearance of an "ordinary middle-aged man".

"Over the past weeks, I adjusted my diet and exercise, taking photos for the director to track my progress. I'm not promoting extreme weight gain or loss. My goal is to reach the role's required physique safely," Tan said.

According to the actor, he used to have eight-pack abs, but after gaining weight, he did not dare to look at himself in the mirror in the morning.

"My skin is not in a good condition as well," he added.

In another interview with Lianhe Zaobao, he described the experience as being like "carrying a bag of rice around every day".

The additional weight left him with what he described as "three layers of fat", causing him to overheat easily, sweat profusely, and become breathless.

Tan said the experience was so much harder than he imagined.

"When I first got the script, I was only focused on the story. Gradually, I realised that the body transformation is the toughest part. I don't gain weight easily and still have some idol-image pressure, so it was overwhelming and stressful," he told 8world.

Tan added that he told his wife: "I'm not sexy anymore".

"My pants no longer fit, and even walking leaves me breathless," he said.

Visited Changi Prison

Besides the physical transformation, Tan also took steps to better understand Malcolm’s past, including visiting Changi Prison to experience the environment first-hand, 8world reported.

"My character has been imprisoned and went through rehabilitation, so I requested a visit. I spent only 10 minutes alone in a cell, but the oppressive loneliness was very real," he said.

Carrying his "third" child

His dedication to the role drew praise from several celebrity friends in the comments section of his Instagram post.

Singaporean content creator @bombiibii joked: "omg the rumours are true… your 3rd one is coming 🫃".

Tan, whose second child was born in September 2025, played along with it, replying: "Hahaha yes, im carrying the third one!"