PUBLISHED ONOctober 14, 2026 5:18 AMBYYeo Shu HuiHong Kong actress-singer Josie Ho's first meeting with Dr Iman Taheri was during a rather stressful period in her life.
Her 53-year-old actor-musician husband Conroy Chan was very ill and Iman was his doctor. However, not long later, their conversations turned to the performing arts and his childhood dream.
Josie, 51, recounted to AsiaOne in a recent interview how she and Conroy discovered Iman's interest in acting: "He frequently hid in his room and we observed light coming from the gap under the door.
"We went to listen and we could hear him talking inside, so I knocked and asked what he was doing. When he opened the door, we saw an elaborate camera setup inside the room, and he told us we should check out his YouTube channel."
That was when they realised Iman, whose great-grandfather was one of the first Western-educated doctors in Iran, frequently shared selfies and videos of himself reciting poetry he wrote on social media, and he has a sizeable number of followers.
"When we asked what his interest was, he shared his childhood dream was to become an actor. So, I thought we could help him [fulfil his dream]," she added.
The couple later signed the 41-year-old Iranian-Canadian surgeon as the first artiste managed by their production company 852 Films.
The trio, as well as Hong Kong director Danny Pang, was speaking with AsiaOne in Bangkok, Thailand, for their upcoming supernatural-thriller film The Mage held in conjunction with the Bangkok International Film Festival in September.
When Danny visited to discuss The Mage, Josie invited Iman to have a meal together and the latter eventually clinched his debut role in the film.
Directed by Danny and his twin brother Oxide, who are collectively known as the Pang Brothers, The Mage centres on Lan Pui Ching (Josie), an eccentric woman who collects garbage from the streets and becomes a suspect when she repeatedly appears at crime scenes involving deaths.
While police officer Wong Ming (Carlos Chan) initially believes she is mentally unstable, he soon discovers Pui Ching's ability to see and communicate with the dead and the "garbage" she collects contains fragments of the souls of people who had died unnaturally.
As they investigate the deaths together, dodging sceptical police superintendent Iman (Iman), they gradually uncover a sinister conspiracy to extend the life of a mysterious cult leader, and it is up to Pui Ching to overcome her inner demons to stop the next death.
The Mage marks the Pang Brothers' reunion after 12 years. They are best known for their The Eye movie franchise (2002 - 2010) and last worked together on Out of Inferno (2013).
This is also the first movie to be screened in Cantonese and Mandarin in Singapore cinemas, following the relaxation of rules on dialect film screenings announced by Prime Minister Lawrence Wong during the National Day Rally in August.
Josie, whose father is the late Macau casino magnate Stanley Ho, also told AsiaOne about Iman's attractive qualities: "His features are very photogenic. When we went for a swim together, I noticed his physique and he looks like a Greek god. He is really a heartthrob... I think he has potential and would be able to attract a lot of fans.
"I believe in Hong Kong showbiz now, in fact, in the whole of Asian showbiz, there are less manly artistes; most of them are young boys and boy bands. I believe some women want to see manliness."
Conroy, who was sitting beside Josie and Iman during the interview, was asked about her observations, and he laughed in reply: "I'm very simple, I go with whatever my wife says. We are very fortunate to find Iman."
Iman expressed his gratitude towards the couple, sharing: "Part of me had always waited for this opportunity to happen. When Josie opened the door for me and asked me if I wanted to be an artiste and act in this movie, the experience was unimaginable.
"I always had an idea about how acting is, but it's totally different. It's a lot more in-depth and a lot more work. I have a huge extra respect for this job now that I've started to learn about it."
Iman added that Josie had also given him books about acting to read up. She and Conroy also told him what to expect on the film set, but getting to do it first-hand during filming was another whole new experience for him.
"Hong Kong movie-making is much faster than you can imagine. Even though I was ready for this, working on the set was way faster than I expected," he said.
Danny was full of praise for Iman's performance, sharing the latter is natural in front of the cameras, which made him wonder if he had met a "genius".
The 60-year-old also appreciated Iman for contributing ideas during filming.
"Directors sometimes have to calm rookie actors but I didn't with Iman. I regarded him as an experienced actor," he added.
Iman, who had worked as a surgeon in Iran war zones, was asked if he was more nervous on the first day of filming or during his first surgery, and he responded: "I don't think they are even comparable.
"In surgery, they don't just throw things for you to do. You start by just walking your rounds, following, shadowing and watching. It takes a long time before they let you into the operating room...
"As an actor, everything happened so fast and I had to catch up... It's a totally different story. Surgery was a very honourable thing for me to do, acting is my love and they come from different sources. I am much happier as an actor than when I was a surgeon, that's for sure."
The Mage opens in Shaw Theatres in Singapore on Oct 15 with Cantonese and Mandarin screenings.
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