Controversy Erupts Over Singapore's Portrayal in Countdown

SINGAPORE – A recent episode of the American crime drama Countdown has ignited a firestorm of criticism as viewers claim it misrepresents Singaporean culture and society.

In the show's 11th episode, which premiered on Prime Video on August 20, American actors Jensen Ackles and Jessica Camacho play LAPD detectives who interview a Singaporean businessman named Kieran Teo, portrayed by Brian Yang. The plot centers on a suspicious death at Teo's cabin, but the portrayal takes a problematic turn.

The character is depicted speaking only Malay and relies on a translator, played by Valerie Loo, to communicate with the English-speaking detectives, a scenario many find implausible given Singapore's multilingual populace and English proficiency.

To add to the controversy, Teo's fictional company, Beruang Holdings, is inaccurately described as being “owned by the People’s Action Party of Singapore,” leading to government intervention in the investigation, further fueling allegations of creative liberties gone too far.

On Reddit, user TendTheAshenOnes voiced concern that Singapore was portrayed in a "badly misrepresented" manner, criticizing Countdown's lack of research on cultural and socio-political realities in Singapore.

"Clearly, someone on the team did a quick Google search to find out that Malay is Singapore's national language and built the character around that without digging deeper. Singaporeans are well-educated, English-speaking professionals who wouldn’t typically need a translator during such matters," the user declared.

The backlash does not stop there. Users on the platform satirically commented on the portrayal, with one suggesting, "Should they apologize or should we just brush it off because it's only TV?" Another quipped about Hollywood’s historical pattern of misrepresentation, saying, 'This is just Hollywood being Hollywood.'

The outcry surrounding Countdown is reminiscent of past critiques of other international productions. For instance, the 2018 film Crazy Rich Asians faced backlash for failing to accurately reflect Singapore’s diverse cultural tapestry. Similarly, the video game Overwatch received flak for its cringe-worthy depiction of a Singaporean robot character speaking Singlish awkwardly.

Most recently, the Marvel series The Falcon and The Winter Soldier came under fire for its portrayal of Madripoor, an island state inspired by Singapore, which was labeled as a mishmash of Southeast Asian stereotypes.

Despite the outrage, it remains to be seen if Countdown's creators will address the concerns raised by its audience, leaving many to wonder how often artistic liberties should come at the cost of cultural accuracy.