Ethan Juan: ‘I hid under blanket and cried’

SINGAPORE — Taiwanese actor Ethan Juan may have a body many would kill to have. But the Golden Horse award winner admitted he had trouble undergoing gruelling physical training for his new film, Paradise In Service.

“At that time, I just concentrated on my teammates, who were training with me. I could see that we were all suffering together, and that really helped,” Juan explained during a press conference for the movie. “But sometimes, when I really couldn’t take it any more, I hid under my blankets and cried.”

Juan added that working on a movie set in a military brothel also posed its own unique challenges. For instance, there was a scene in the movie where a prostitute grabs his character’s nether regions. “It was a peculiar situation,” said the actor. “We spent two months training and three months shooting the movie on Kinmen Island. During that time, the actors weren’t allowed to have their partners visit. And in that environment, you really don’t see any other girls.”

He continued: “So when the actresses touched me, I really felt embarrassed, and I felt goosebumps on my skin. They had to be really bold too, because it’s a story about a military brothel!”

Paradise In Service opens in Singapore on Nov 6.