Taiwanese actor Sunny Wang has a background not like other stars. The 37-year-old spent most of his younger years in New York, where he also pursued a business degree at the prestigious New York University. He also hails from a wealthy family — they run a shipping company — and was expected to take on the family biz after his graduation.

Instead, the ex-boyfriend of Elva Hsiao became an actor.

Like with every struggling actor, Sunny's first few years in showbiz were tough. In his first year, he only earned TW$130K (S$6K), and that was before his then-company took their cut of his earnings. After that he was left with “nothing much”, and that made him want to give up on his dream. “I really wanted to throw the towel in. I wondered if I could be an actor, Sunny said.

His family was also not supportive of his career choice, and insisted that they would not help him out financially regardless of what happened. They also said that they would refuse to give him a job should he decide to eventually join the family business.

“It was really difficult for me and I kept wanting to give up. Thankfully, I managed to get through that phase [and get to where I am today].”

When he was asked how he persuaded his family to be okay about his career choice, Sunny chuckled, “I didn’t have to convince them. I’m the kind of person who does what I want to do, but I’m thankful to my family for giving me the space. They didn’t force me into the family business, which gave me the opportunity to figure out what I really want to do with my life.”

Photos: PBE Media

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