Allyzza Kay Trinidad

From Papa Chen to Ser Chief: Richard Yap’s unexpected rise to fame in his 40s

Article (news)

Liezel Dela Cruz

<p>We knew him as Papa Chen, fell hard for him as Ser Chief, and then watched him become one of the country’s favorite leading men. If life truly imitates art, Richard Yap&#x27;s own story could rival the most colorful teleseryes, and the plot twist was him becoming an actor at 44. </p><p>In an episode of &quot;Kuan on One&quot; with Melai Cantiveros, the full-blooded Chinese actor, speaking comfortably in Cebuano, looked back on his life before showbiz.  </p><div> </div><div><iframe width="916" height="543" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/pWK6ATcnS-E" title="Richard Yap recalls starting his acting career at 44 years old | Kuan On One Episode 66 Highlights" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe></div><div> </div><div><strong>His Cebuano beginnings </strong></div><p>Richard shared that the Yap clan had been in the Philippines for generations. His grandpa was just seven years old when the family moved to Manila, before settling in Cebu in the 1960s. The youngest in a brood of eight, Richard had a comfortable childhood with a businessman dad supplying rice and corn in Cebu.  </p><p>He attended an all-boys high school and entered college dreaming of becoming a doctor, but dropped the plan after two years of pre-med as his dad felt it would take too long. So, he shifted to a business course and transferred to a university in Manila, a path that perhaps made more sense for a young man growing up in a traditional Chinese family where children are often expected to take over the family business. </p><p>College life was pretty low-key for the self-confessed introvert, who mostly went from school straight home. With no lavish allowance to spend, he also learned to hustle early. By his final university year, he became a working student and took a job in furniture production. He also sold shirts to his classmates on the side. </p><p>Interestingly, even while Richard was busy carving out a different path, showbiz already had its eye on him. During a school break in Cebu, he was just waiting for a ride when someone approached him to model for a department store, though he had to pass on the offer to return to Manila for school. </p><p>After graduation, Richard flew back to Cebu to join the family’s interior furnishings business, and around this time, he met the then flight attendant Melody, who would become his wife. But their love story came with its own share of teleserye-like conflict, as Richard’s conservative Chinese parents initially disapproved of him dating a Filipina. Four years later, his parents sent him to work in China. </p><p>Besides the distance, jealousy issues eventually ended his relationship with Melody. His parents introduced him to a half-Chinese, half-Scottish woman whom he proposed marriage to. But along the way, differences in their upbringing began to surface, enough for him to realize they weren&#x27;t compatible. “We probably wouldn&#x27;t have lasted if I married her,” he reflected. </p><p>Richard eventually found his way back to Melody. Given a second chance at love, the two tied the knot in a civil ceremony, almost in secret, before they got married in church two years later. Married life meant saying goodbye to the comfortable life he had grown up with, as his parents cut off his financial support to let him stand on his own, forcing him to maximize his entrepreneurial instincts in raising his growing family.  </p><div><br/></div><div><strong>From Papa Chen to Ser Chief  </strong></div><p>While busy building a simple life with his wife and two children, modeling gigs came knocking again. A commercial model friend told him that he had the looks and potential to do it, too. Knowing this friend was earning good money from these gigs, the ever-practical businessman in him figured there was no harm in trying. </p><p>He dipped his toes into commercial modeling and became a regular face for a fast-food brand, appearing in TV commercials and print ads.  </p><p>As fate would have it, Kapamilya teleserye &quot;My Binondo Girl&quot; (2011) was searching for a talent to play Kim Chiu&#x27;s Chinese dad, and apparently, they started looking for him after seeing his print ads. Coincidentally, one of the show’s production managers was the cousin of Richard’s former classmate in Cebu, who helped the team reach him. </p><p>Richard couldn’t wrap his head around why they wanted him for a teleserye—he was already 44 and had never considered becoming an actor. But after some persistence from the production team and encouragement from Melody, he decided to meet with the series’ director. </p><p>There was just one tiny problem. He had zero acting experience. “My closest experience was a school play in high school and some TV commercials,” he admitted, but the team assured him, “Don’t worry. We’ll make it work.” And they meant right away. Because just a week later, Richard received a call on a Thursday night telling him that he was expected on set the very next day. </p><p>“Huh? We haven’t sealed the deal yet,” he recalled thinking, confused about how to prepare or even how much he would be paid. But the team said they could iron out those details later since it was only a small role and his character would be killed off anyway.  </p><p>Well, viewers had other plans. Richard’s supposed short stint as Papa Chen stretched all the way to the finale. When the story hinted that his ailing character might die, fans flooded social media with pleas to keep Papa Chen alive—and the creatives listened.  </p><p>Banking on his newfound popularity, ABS-CBN immediately handed the 40-something newbie a lead role in &quot;<a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/bcwmh/articles-photos/throwback-be-careful-with-my-heart-2012-14521" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong><u><em>Be Careful With My Heart</em></u></strong></a>.&quot; From Papa Chen, he became known as Ser Chief, the strict but loving widowed pilot who fell for his children’s nanny Maya, played by Jodi Sta. Maria.  </p><p>If viewers were already charmed by Papa Chen, well, Ser Chief took that admiration to a whole new level. As Kuantie Melai put it, Richard’s popularity skyrocketed to crush-ng-bayan level. Even his own family was surprised by the fame. “All of a sudden, people were asking to take picture with me. I don’t even take pictures of myself. I consider myself a very private person. I&#x27;m not into attending, let&#x27;s say, social functions until one day I realized that there were people who were sick who wanted to see me,&quot; he said. &quot;It made me realize that maybe God put me here because this is my purpose in life.&quot;</p><p>This realization brought him back to a time he prayed, “Lord, when I reach the age of 45, I will resign from my job. I don&#x27;t know what I&#x27;ll do after that. But I surrender everything to You.”  </p><p>At 44, he landed his first acting stint while on leave without pay from his regular job. Then, at 45, &quot;Be Careful With My Heart&quot; came along, and with the show’s hectic schedule making it impossible for him to juggle both careers, Richard finally resigned from his regular job and embraced his destiny as a full-time actor. </p><p>Laugh out loud and hear inspiring stories from Bisaya personalities in new episodes of “Kuan On One” Season 5 every Tuesday, 8 am, on the ABS-CBN Entertainment YouTube channel, and on <a href="https://app.iwanttfc.com/dFR6MWHAcVb" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong><u>iWant</u></strong></a>.  </p><div><br/></div><div><strong>More on this story: </strong></div><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/entertainment/studios/tv/2026/8/28/richard-recreates-iconic-papa-chen-and-ser-chief-teleserye-moments-with-melai-on-kuan-on-one-0002" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong><u>Richard recreates iconic Papa Chen and Ser Chief teleserye moments with Melai on “Kuan on One”</u></strong></a></div><div><br/></div><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/bcwmh/articles-photos/throwback-be-careful-with-my-heart-2012-14521" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong><u>THROWBACK: Family photos and most memorable moments in “Be Careful With My Heart” (2012)</u></strong></a></div><div><br/></div><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/articles-videos/behind-the-scenes-all-the-fun-bittersweet-happenings-on-unbreak-my-heart-last-taping-day-21046" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong><u>Behind-the-scenes: All the fun, bittersweet happenings on “Unbreak My Heart” last taping day</u></strong></a></div><div><br/></div><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/articles-videos/the-making-of-unbreak-my-heart-19837" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong><u>WATCH: The Making of “Unbreak My Heart”</u></strong></a></div><div><br/></div><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/entertainment/studios/tv/2026/6/5/chiuwenty-years-kim-chiu-revisits-the-iconic-milestones-of-her-two-decade-showbiz-career-0043" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong><u>CHIUwenty Years: Kim Chiu revisits the iconic milestones of her two-decade showbiz career</u></strong></a></div>

<p>Richard Yap looks back on the unexpected journey that took him from businessman to Papa Chen, Ser Chief, and one of the country’s favorite leading men.</p>

Richard Yap looks back on the unexpected journey that took him from businessman to Papa Chen, Ser Chief, and one of the country’s favorite leading men.