Half-S’porean ‘Avatar’ star Yvonne Chapman pursued acting thanks to taxi driver’s advice, now carving out path in Hollywood

Actress Yvonne Chapman on taking risks, staying connected to her Singaporean roots, and why food remains her love language

Like many Asian children, Yvonne Chapman did everything she was “supposed” to do.

The Chinese-Canadian actress earned a Bachelor of Commerce degree from the University of Calgary and landed a stable job in finance, a path that, one might joke, reflected the practical streak of her half-Singaporean heritage.

But even with a promising corporate future, Chapman could not shake the feeling that she was meant for something else.

That something turned out to be acting.

Now starring in Viu Original series The Season, reprising her role as Avatar Kyoshi in Netflix’s Avatar: The Last Airbender, and with a star-studded Hollywood project on the horizon, the 37-year-old is becoming a familiar face on screens around the world.

But speaking to MS News over Zoom one afternoon, Chapman came across less like an untouchable star and more like an old friend chatting warmly about home, family, her Singaporean roots, and, naturally, the food she still thinks about.

Singaporean food was a staple growing up in Canada

Although Chapman was born and raised in Calgary, Canada, Singapore was never some faraway place she only knew by name.

Through her Singaporean mother, the Lion City was a steady presence at home, showing up in family stories and, perhaps most memorably, at the dining table.

“My mom loved Singapore,” Chapman shared. “She had a really great time with her siblings over there before they moved.”

Thankfully for the actress, one of the best things her mother brought with her from Singapore was her cooking.

“I grew up on laksa,” Chapman said. “That’s something that I must eat all the time.”

Chicken rice was another staple, especially during family gatherings, which could be massive.

“With all my cousins, with all the siblings, with all the children, it’s well over 100 people,” she said.

The gatherings typically take the form of a giant potluck, with relatives bringing dishes to share.

More often than not, the spread is distinctly Singaporean, from chicken rice to local desserts.

“For me, in our family, that love language and sharing in the culture is always food,” she said.

Wants to come back to Singapore and try ‘every single hawker centre’

When Chapman finally visited Singapore a few years ago, she wasted no time embarking on a culinary pilgrimage.

“I definitely indulged, gained a few pounds, and it was worth every moment, every mouthful,” she recalled with a laugh.

When asked what she would most like to do on a future trip here, her answer came instantly:

Hawker centres. Every single one. Bring me to every single hawker centre there is.

Given that the National Environment Agency (NEA) manages 123 markets and hawker centres in Singapore, she might need to carve out a bit more time in her schedule for that mission.

For Chapman, though, the appeal is not just the food, but the experience of being there.

“I love being able to sit in that atmosphere and eat the delicious food,” she said.

She also described Singapore as “beautiful” and said she would happily spend a future visit simply walking around the city and “taking it all in”.

Filming in Hong Kong felt like coming home

Besides her Singaporean roots, Chapman also has deep family ties to Hong Kong, making her latest project, The Season, particularly meaningful.

In the show, she plays Madeline Wong, the niece of the Hex family, whom Chapman describes as “Hong Kong royalty” and the “top of the socialite food chain”.

When viewers first meet Madeline, she is returning home amid a scandal involving her late husband, much to the displeasure of those around her.

Despite the character’s glamorous exterior, Chapman found the role surprisingly complex.

Not only was Madeline navigating a place that once felt like home but no longer did, she was also dealing with what Chapman described as “a lot of emotional fracture”.

Understanding where that tension came from, she said, became one of the role’s biggest challenges.

While Madeline’s homecoming is fraught with conflict, Chapman’s own return to Hong Kong was a far happier experience.

Off-screen, the city felt very much like home. Her 99-year-old grandmother, renowned Chinese-French soprano Lola Young, still lives there, alongside cousins, aunts, uncles, and family friends Chapman has known since childhood.

“To come back here and not only be in a place that I absolutely love to film and work in, but also that my family loves, is very special and dear to my heart,” she said.

The experience was made even more meaningful by the chance to spend time with family between filming.

In fact, she realised during our conversation that this was the first production in her career where she had family nearby while working.

“It was amazing to be able to not only work here, but then also spend time with my family on the days I had off,” she said.

Grandmother’s artistic legacy influenced her more than she realised

That connection to Hong Kong extends beyond family and geography.

Chapman’s grandparents both left their mark on the city’s entertainment industry. While her grandmother built a celebrated career as an opera singer, her grandfather, Chapman Ho, belonged to the pioneering wave of filmmakers who helped shape Hong Kong cinema’s formative years.

Yet despite growing up around that legacy, Chapman never felt obligated to follow in their footsteps. “I never felt that pressure, nor has anyone put that on me growing up,” she said.

Looking back now, however, she believes her grandmother’s career had a greater impact on her than she initially realised. “Subconsciously, it has done a lot for me in terms of my own career as an artist.”

Family was not the only influence that shaped Chapman’s journey.

One of the most important pieces of advice she ever received came not from a relative, mentor, or acting coach, but from a taxi driver.

At the time, Chapman was wrestling with doubts about pursuing acting.

Though the dream kept pulling her back, the uncertainty of such a drastic change felt overwhelming. “I almost didn’t do it,” she admitted.

The turning point came during a conversation with a taxi driver on her way to the airport in Calgary around a decade ago.

As Chapman spoke about her fears, the driver offered a perspective that completely changed how she viewed risk: “He said, ‘I keep hearing you talk about how scared you are, as opposed to what it could be.'”

That simple observation helped Chapman shift her focus from what might go wrong to what might be possible.

“We get caught up in so much of the unknown and how scary that can be,” she said. “But the whole world is an unknown.”

If something keeps drawing you in, she added, the bravest thing you can do is give yourself the chance to pursue it. “I think that’s the greatest self-respect that anyone can do for themselves, to try for themselves.”

Today, that’s the same advice she offers anyone standing on the edge of a big decision.

Life is too short to be scared, so just go and do it. Just try.

Set to work with Hollywood heavyweights in new Oliver Stone film

That willingness to try has certainly taken Chapman further than she once imagined, including to a project she describes as a career highlight.

Chapman is set to appear in White Lies, the upcoming film directed by acclaimed filmmaker Oliver Stone and starring Willem Dafoe, Michael Douglas, and Ellen Barkin.

While she remained tight-lipped about the film’s plot, Chapman had nothing but praise for the experience of working with the legendary director.

“Oliver is wonderful,” she said. “He’s a legend, so it is more than an honour and privilege for me to be able to work with him and his genius of bringing story to life.”

Although details about her role remain under wraps, Chapman described the project as “an absolute joy” and one of the standout moments of her career so far.

Her advice for aspiring actors and dreamers

In the meantime, audiences can look forward to seeing Chapman return as Avatar Kyoshi in Season 2 of Avatar: The Last Airbender, premiering on Netflix on 25 June.

While she is excited for fans to see Kyoshi “in all her fierceness” once again, Chapman is just as passionate about encouraging others to chase their own ambitions.

Asked what advice she would give aspiring Singaporeans hoping to break into the global entertainment industry, the actress emphasised the importance of focusing on one’s own path.

“Don’t hold too tightly any comparison of yourself to anybody else’s journey,” she said.

Every career unfolds differently, and there is no universal timeline for success.

As long as someone is willing to put in the work and embrace the learning process, Chapman believes they owe it to themselves to try. “Allow yourself to have joy and learn from the process.”

Because at the end of the day, she said, success is something each person gets to define for themselves.

Catch Yvonne Chapman in The Season, now streaming on Viu.

Also Read: S’porean Nathania Ong & M’sian Abel Law proud to represent SEA in Les Misérables, always hype each other up

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Featured image courtesy of Laura Baldwinson and Netflix, and adapted from @ypchapman on Instagram.