Ly Hung feels happy to be a "couple" with Viet Trinh

- Recently, you and Viet Trinh continued to judge a game show together. It's rare to be a judge, so why did you accept this time?

- I am a picky person, when acting in movies or participating in game shows, I always choose clean programs with good scripts. As for the recent game show, I wanted to return because Viet Trinh was a co-judge. When working together, Viet Trinh and I always had good chemistry in every situation, from responding to other judges to commenting on contestants.

The chemistry between Viet Trinh and I started more than 20 years ago, when we acted together in a movie in the 1990s. The actors who acted with me all had their own beauty and personality. For example, Diem Huong was gentle and not very active, Thu Ha and Y Phung were the same. But Viet Trinh was the one who I got along with the most and looked the best together.

- How do you see Viet Trinh change now compared to when she was your "on-screen lover"?

- Regarding beauty, I am happy that every time I meet Trinh, she is still young and attractive, while many beauties of our age have been somewhat affected by age. Although we are no longer young, we both always take care of our appearance because this is very important for artists. I always want to maintain my form and figure so that every time I appear on screen, I do not lose my image with the audience.

Over time, my feelings for her are still the same. Currently, she is experienced, has a lot of experience as a director, is very hard-working, patient and loves her job. In Viet Trinh, I feel that she has a lot of life experiences close to me. Besides her appearance, I also like Viet Trinh's personality. She becomes more gentle and profound over time. When she was young and famous early, she was somewhat impulsive. Now, Trinh is more mature and thoughtful. She knows how to admit her past mistakes and learn to overcome them.

- You and Viet Trinh are often paired as a couple whenever they appear together. How do you feel about this?

- I feel happy and touched. It is common for artists to be admired and paired by the audience, for example in Taiwan there is Tan Han and Luu Tuyet Hoa... But in Vietnam, a pair that is paired together for a long time like Ly Hung - Viet Trinh is very hard to find. I believe that the audience is the most impartial and fair judge. It is very difficult for the audience to follow the performance and recognize the roles. Up to now, I have traveled all over the North and South, and wherever I go, I still hear people talking about Ly Hung - Viet Trinh.This profession is very strange. You cannot call yourself a star - like the old days when people used to call me "Prince Charming". In our time, the audience had to cut out their own ballots and send them to the editorial office to vote, requesting their favorite actors. It is the love of the audience over the decades that has allowed Viet Trinh and I to still be sitting here.

We are already used to the rumors of love. In fact, the audience still continues to pair us up if they love us. My feelings for Viet Trinh are still like that of a brother and a sister, over the past 20 years we have cared for, looked after and maintained a beautiful friendship. On stage, we can act affectionate, but in real life we ​​have never had any intention of being lovers or husband and wife.

- How much pressure do you face from your parents when pursuing a single life?

- Every parent wants their children to get married and have children soon. But for my parents, happiness is up to the children to decide. They did not urge me to get married or my sister Ly Huong to take the next step, but only told their children to always share their feelings with each other and take care of each other. I still believe that marriage is fate. At this age, I am still waiting for fate to come.

- Compared to when you were young, what do you think about your ideal woman now?

- Actually, up until now, I have always kept the criteria for choosing a wife without considering too much about beauty or ugliness and not necessarily having a suitable family background. She just needs to be good-looking, smart, and have enough understanding to share with me in work. I appreciate sincerity and loyalty in women.

Over the years, my views on marriage have also changed. I no longer care whether she is divorced or not, what her past relationship is like, whether she is a newly-married adult or has been through a failed marriage. In terms of marriage, I believe that luck is living together for the rest of your life, and if the fate is over, you should break up to find a more suitable path.

- In recent years, you have been almost absent from the big screen. What are your plans to return to cinema?

- Many film studios invited me to act, but I am picky about scripts. If I know a role is not suitable for me, I immediately refuse. I have experience in acting, not new to it. Choosing a role with personality is the way for me to maintain the "fire" of passion.

Currently, I prioritize game shows and singing. It is my daily job, it gives me the feeling of continuous activity and being able to live with the profession. Last Tet, I did not have a day off because I had to sing continuously from the first to the fifteenth day of the lunar month, in provinces from the South to the North.

People often ask me if I work so much for the salary. That's true. For me, if I work, it must be economically beneficial, I don't want to beg anyone. If they earn, they must spend. Singing for a commercial program, for the purpose of revenue, I'm always clear about money. That's my working principle from the time I first became famous, when the salary for each film was up to several hundred taels of gold (compared to the price of gold at that time), until now. Besides, I always spend time participating in singing activities for charity and the community.