Bad Genius star shocked at sudden rise to fame – but she is ready to take her acting career to the next level
Chutimon Chuengcharoensukying began modelling at 15 years old and made her film debut in the entertaining Thai high-school caper about exam cheating. Now she is determined to break into more serious roles
How popular are Thai movies in Hong Kong? The answer would seem to be “not very”, judging by the fact that, despite a loyal following for Thai imports in the action and horror genres, The Iron Ladies – a film from 2000 based on the true story about a male volleyball team made up of gay men and transsexuals – had remained the highest-grossing Thai film in Hong Kong for 17 years.
On August 31 last year, that wacky underdog comedy’s unlikely HK$15.25 million record was finally surpassed by Bad Genius, an entertaining high school caper about exam cheating. Since then, the film has gone on to work box office magic in Asian regions that include Cambodia, Malaysia and the Philippines, as well as Taiwan and China.
Directed by Nattawut Poonpiriya, Bad Genius follows a quartet of high school students – Lynn (Chutimon Chuengcharoensukying), Bank (Chanon Santinatornkul), Grace (Eisaya Hosuwan) and Pat (Teeradon Supapunpinyo) – as they devise a sophisticated exam cheating scheme for profit.
Film review: Bad Genius – exam cheating meets heist caper in thrilling Thai crowd-pleaser
The crowd-pleasing movie has certainly struck a chord with Hong Kong’s younger audiences with its attractive cast, vibrant storytelling, and an obsession with public exam systems that would feel very familiar to local viewers.
Apart from drawing our attention back to a national cinema which once indulged viewers with exhilarating Tony Jaa action spectacles and some true terrifying ghost movies in the noughties, Bad Genius has also turned its leading lady, the 22-year-old model-actress Chutimon(nicknamed “Aokbab”), into one of the most recognisable young stars in the region.
“Almost everything came as a surprise,” she tells The Post via a translator in an interview in Macau, where she won the best newcomer prize at the 12th Asian Film Awards. It was the latest in a long line of accolades that have come Chuengcharoensukying’s way since Bad Genius’s release in Thailand last May, starting with a rising star award at the New York Asian Film Festival in the following month.
“I have more followers now, and more people know who I am – not just in Hong Kong but also around Asia,” says Chuengcharoensukying, who began modelling at age 15 and made her feature film debut with Bad Genius. “The fact that there are fans out there who care a lot about me is also something that I didn’t expect. All these arrived with the success of the film, and I’m really thankful for that.”
