Singaporean actor Desmond Tan was not shy to share his drastic physical transformation in an Instagram post dated Aug 30, documenting significant weight gain for his lead role in upcoming movie Pace.
The 40-year-old plays Malcolm, a former drug offender who takes up long-distance running, in the film set to be released in Singapore cinemas on Oct 8. Filming began in November 2025 and went on until February 2026.
“What gaining weight for a movie looks like,” Tan wrote in the text alongside a carousel of shirtless photos showing his big belly, droopy pecs and love handles. “I stopped recognising the person in the mirror. And this was only one phase of the transformation.”
It is a shocking contrast to Tan’s usual athletic build. In a November 2025 interview with Chinese-language newspaper Lianhe Zaobao, Tan spoke about how he gained at least 10kg, causing his trademark eight-pack abs to merge into “one big ab”.
He likened the transformation to “carrying a bag of rice around every day”. Gaining “three layers of fat” left him easily overheated, caused profuse sweating and left him breathless.
To achieve rapid weight gain, Tan consumed fast food, which also triggered pimple breakouts on his sensitive skin.
The Mediacorp artiste also said in the interview that he was anxious about being able to bounce back to his former fit physique for the second half of the film.
Written and directed by Singaporean filmmaker Jonathan Choo, the elder son of actor Zhu Houren, Pace is Tan’s first feature film since the 2018 romance comedy The Big Day.
To prepare for the role, Tan visitied Changi Prison and spent 10 minutes alone in a cell to experience the isolation of incarceration.
The cast features Simon Khung, better known as Simonboy, a Singaporean content creator who was formerly incarcerated in real life. The 38-year-old plays Malcolm’s best friend.
Pace also stars Zhu, 71, and his younger son, actor Joel Choo, 32. Zhu plays Malcolm’s father, while Choo, who lost 10kg for his role as a marathon runner, portrays Malcolm’s brother. - The Straits Times/ANN
