Shawn Thia

Shawn Thia (born 7 December 1995) is a Singaporean actor.

Early life and career
Thia has an older sister. His parents divorced when he was a toddler, and he has not been in contact with his father since secondary school. Thia's mother used to run a business doing post-natal massages and has since retired.

Thia attended Hougang Primary School and Yio Chu Kang Secondary School. He was originally in the Express stream, but was placed in the Normal Academic stream in Secondary 3. He eventually dropped out of school at age 15, and went on to do odd jobs for a year before sitting for his O Levels as a private candidate. He did not do well for the exams and half a year later, he enlisted in the army at the age of 16. Subsequently, he completed a private diploma in mass communications at MDIS, and began acting in 2015, appearing in a number of commercials and student films. At one point, Thia drove for Uber. In 2017, he took up a job in the marine industry running offshore operations and remained on the job for about two years. He auditioned for a role in Titoudao: Inspired by the True Story of a Wayang Star and was successfully cast in 2019, and thereafter began full-time acting.

He was once managed by TCP Artistes and is currently signed to SGAG, a social media agency.

Personal life
Thia is a Christian.

In May 2022, Thia announced his engagement to online personality and actress Xenia Tan. The couple are currently living together in a rented HDB flat. They began dating after co-starring in The Algorithm, a six-episode drama series. Both had also appeared in a Fresh Takes! series short and the long-form drama Sunny Side Up.

Filmography
Thia has appeared in the following programmes and films:

Television series

 * Fried Rice Paradise (2019)
 * Love Shop (2019)
 * 128 Circle (2019)
 * Titoudao: Inspired by the True Story of a Wayang Star (2020)
 * Reunion (2021)
 * The Algorithm (2021)
 * Sunny Side Up (2022−present)
 * Genie In A Cup (2022)
 * My One and Only (2023)

Web series

 * Tiles War (2020)

Film

 * High (2020; NCADA interactive short film)

Variety and reality show

 * Streamers Go Live (2022)

Music video appearances

 * "Shine Your Light" (2023; NDP theme song)