Actor Andie Chen doesn't think Chen Hanwei should step down from Star Awards 2026
Stars like Tay Ping Hui and Christopher Lee have also weighed in on the controversy surrounding the seven-time Best Actor’s nomination this year.
Andie Chen. (Photo: Creative Eateries)
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By now, it’s clear there are two camps when it comes to Chen Hanwei’s 16th nomination at the Star Awards 2026: those who believe the seven-time Best Actor deserves a nod as long as his performance warrants it, and those who think he should “step aside” to give younger actors a chance.
In a recent Instagram post, local actor Andie Chen shared an 8days.sg article about Chen Hanwei’s response to the ongoing controversy surrounding his nomination.
Chen Hanwei is up for Best Actor at Star Awards 2026 on Apr 19 for his role as a terminally ill cancer patient in The Gift Of Time.
The headline of the original article read: "Will 7-time Best Actor Chen Hanwei step down from Star Awards 2026? 'Let me discuss with the company,' he says." It was also disclaimed in the standfirst that this is actually Chen Hanwei's 16th nomination, meaning that he "doesn't win all the time".
In his caption, Andie Chen asked: "Why are we asking big brother Hanwei to step down from Star Awards?"
"An award show has one job – to recognise the best performance of the year. That’s what gives it meaning," he added.
Andie Chen opined that if people are unhappy with the outcomes, the conversation should be "about fairness and transparency in the process".
"Not about who should or shouldn’t be in the running. Because if that changes – the award stops meaning what it’s supposed to mean," he wrote.
The four-time Star Awards Best Actor nominee also stated that he's been "nominated many times and never won".
"And honestly, I’d still rather lose in a fair competition than win in one that isn’t."
Some figures from the industry took to the comments to express their support.
"If an award has to be ‘given way’, who would even want it?" asked three-time Star Awards and four-time Golden Bell Best Actor Christopher Lee.
Singaporean actor and director Tay Ping Hui also weighed in. "I have personally lost to [Chen Hanwei] many times for the Best Actor award and I am not complaining, so why should anyone? If he is deserving of it, then he deserves it. No one should take it away from him," said Tay, who lost to Chen Hanwei in the Best Actor race in 2005, 2009 and 2010.
This story was originally published in 8Days.
For more 8Days stories, visit https://www.8days.sg/
