Actress Dawn Yeoh hopes Emerald Hill role will finally earn her a Star Awards trophy after 20-year career

CNA

05-06-2025

By now, you should know that Dawn Yeoh's evil role as Kang Si Li in Emerald Hill is one of the most prominent characters from the Mediacorp blockbuster.
But is the hype surrounding the 39-year-old actress' character enough for her to bag a trophy at the upcoming Star Awards on Jul 6?
Yeoh sure hopes so.
Despite being in the industry for two decades, Yeoh has not snagged a single award at the annual ceremony. This year, she's in the running for Top 10 Most Popular Female Artiste.
"Actually I really yearn for it, but I dare not harbour too much hope because I'm afraid the disappointment will only be bigger," she told zaobao.sg.
Yeoh, however, thinks it will be very heartwarming if she clinches her first Top 10 trophy while her Emerald Hill husband Romeo Tan wins his final one at the same time. If Tan wins his 10th Top 10 this year, he will move on to become an All-Time Favourite Artiste at the next Star Awards.
According to Yeoh, playing Kang Si Li was a turning point in her career as it helped her gain attention from audiences outside of Singapore.
"That day I was at a forum and went to the booth for Chinese media company Tencent. The staff all could recognise me and said: 'San Shao Nai Nai (third young mistress, Yeoh's other title in the show) is here'," she recalled excitedly.
Yeoh was so overwhelmed by that incident that she was moved to tears.
"To be finally seen after being in the industry for 20 years feels like a weight has been lifted off my chest," she said.
She is now hoping to take on even more baddie roles in the future, especially after seeing the change in how the audience perceive such characters.
"In the past the villains were all criticised and hated on, but nowadays people are able to appreciate the complexities and charm of the characters. I don't mind playing villain roles at all, as long as I can have a breakthrough and unleash my potential," said Yeoh.
Besides acting, Yeoh is currently also a live streamer under director Jack Neo's Star Live Mall. She previously co-founded e-commerce platform Sibay Shiok with Terence Cao in 2021 before they both joined forces with Jack.
When asked about balancing acting and being an entrepreneur, Yeoh then emphasised that she "doesn't want to let go of either" sides of her career.
"If I have the ability and luck, I hope that I can go steady and far in both areas," she said, adding that more clients have taken interest in content involving her recently.
At the same time, Yeoh, who has received invitations to star in other upcoming Mediacorp dramas, is sieving through scripts and looking to go for auditions in the near future.
San Shao Nai Nai may not have had a good ending in Emerald Hill, but it seems like her real life is turning out great.