Wong Cho-lam recently appeared on Cha Siu-yan’s online program “Red Cha Club”. In 2021, he was invited by his mentor Eric Tsang to serve as TVB’s Chief Creative Officer, but stepped down the following year. It was rumored that “factional culture” and his inability to help close friend Linda Chung win Best Actress were behind his departure; in the interview, he personally addressed these issues.
Earlier this month, after Eric Tsang resigned as TVB’s General Manager, he told One Week Star’s host, Maria Lai, that he’d give himself zero marks in dealing with the company’s internal “factional culture”. He explained that the personnel relationships within the TV station are complicated, and it’s extremely difficult to eradicate the deeply entrenched factions. When Cha Siu-yan asked Wong Cho-lam if he had deeply experienced factional culture back then, he was equally candid: “Anywhere with people will have it! With thousands of people — really, whenever there are more than two people, you’ll have cliques, a 2 vs 1 situation.”
At the 2021 TVB Anniversary Awards, Linda Chung was originally a hot favorite for Best Actress. At Wong Cho-lam’s invitation, she flew in from Canada to attend the ceremony, seemingly confident of taking home the prize. However, in the end, Rosina Lam won Best Actress. There were rumors that Wong Cho-lam felt guilty for Linda Chung and that this led to his departure from TVB. Wong Cho-lam responded: “No, first of all, upper management discussions are highly confidential, but I invited her simply because she’s a close friend, and she graciously agreed. Of course, ‘Kids' Lives Matter’ had a great reception that year and she was very popular with the public, but as for how the final decision was made, it wasn’t just about one event (in leaving). (Cha Siu-yan: So you didn’t leave TVB just because of one thing?) I just stopped being in that position, that’s all. I didn’t even really leave — I still go back to help from time to time. I just feel that handling personnel matters is a kind of talent, and I don’t have the ability to handle personnel issues in that particular environment; ultimately, it’s my own inadequacy.”
Source: HK01