Exclusive Interview: Cameron Wong Talks About Channeling His Adversity into His Craft and Being True to Himself

Cameron Wong is an up-and-coming talent to keep your eye on. Whether he’s recording music in the studio or starring in projects on the screen, Cameron is channeling the adversities he’s faced in life to create meaningful and impactful narratives that are striking a chord with audiences.

His credits include projects like Babylon, Bel-Air, Baby Powder, and Cloakers, and he’ll next be seen as one of the leads of Shudder’s Let It Lie.

Pop Culturalist caught up with rising star Cameron Wong to talk about his experience in the industry, managing the different facets of his career, and more.

PC: You’ve been really open about the fact that you faced a lot of adversity in your life, but you’ve channeled those moments into your craft. How did you first discover the arts would be a vehicle for you to do so?
Cameron: That’s a great question. I’ve always enjoyed connecting with people and seeing how my actions affect somebody else. Seeing all the things that I’ve gone through and how it affects other people or seeing what they go through is really something. I always say that I love my trauma because my experiences allow me to relate to people, have empathy, and see a different side to things. I recently started getting into acting. I’ve been able to implement my backstory into a lot of different things. It’s been a blessing and such a cool experience to be able to do that.

PC: You’re just starting off in your career. Has anything surprised you about this industry thus far? What’s been the biggest thing that you’ve learned being a part of it?
Cameron: There are so many people that say, “I’ve been in it for ten years. It takes a long time. It takes this. It takes that.” It definitely does. It really does take putting yourself out there, being different, and working on your craft. But what I’ve noticed is that the opportunities come very quickly. If it’s going to happen, it’s going to happen. I know this sounds crazy, but from what I’ve learned, I feel that a lot of it is about your skill and a lot of it has to do with your relationships with people and the connections that you have. That’s always been one of my goals. On any set that I get to work on, I want to create good relationships with people.

It’s easy to see how people can go through this industry and lose themselves. People take care of you. You get pampered. You get a lot of great things, but if you don’t take it as a blessing and something to be grateful for and respect the people that are taking care of you, it can definitely take people down a path of losing their character. It’s always been important to me that that doesn’t happen to me. That’s what I’ve learned the most throughout this industry. Once things start coming your way, you can very much lose yourself. You can lose how much respect you have for people and the opportunities you’re presented. This is more than what the average person gets to experience. You have to be grateful.

PC: Who or what has had the biggest influence on your career thus far?
Cameron: I’ve always loved all sorts of different actors, genres, and television series, but I never really studied specific people to better my acting career. A lot of who I am today is because of the mentors that I’ve looked up to. I’ve had a lot of people in my life explore a lot of different sides and areas of business. I’ve seen how they hold themselves and how people that are liked hold themselves. When I came into this, I had a goal of being myself. I say this a lot, but I try not to idolize people. I really care. I respect people’s work and their craft. I really do, but I never wanted to strive to be somebody else. If I’m going to say an actor, it’s probably Matthew McConaughey. I love how his mind works, how he thinks, how he treats people, and how he goes through things very deeply.

It’s really been my mentors that have been an influence in my life and that make me want to go and do what’s important to me and what I love. I’ve always wanted to act. I’ve always had the passion for it. I’ve also always had the passion to direct. That’s something that I’ve wanted to do for the longest time, though I don’t think I had the confidence for it to be honest. A lot of the confidence I’ve gained came from having mentors that led me to see what’s inside of me, what I could give the world, and to dabble in it. I never really had huge actors or people in the industry that I looked up to. It’s more so the people that have been in my life that know me, that have given me great advice throughout my life, that have brought me to this point.

PC: Was there a pivotal moment when you realized this was the career that you wanted to embark on?
Cameron: I started doing background work in this movie called Babylon. I met a casting director who kept bringing me back. We shot from August through October. I felt the comradery on set. The friends that I made on that first film brought me to the realization that I want to be able to be real, expressive, and fun and to do all the things that are inside of me that are different. I grew up playing sports. I grew up with friends that only played sports. If you did acting, it was considered a bit weird. I didn’t treat anyone that way, but I just played sports. The people that I was around didn’t really accept that as much. Doing those things was belittled, so it didn’t come out of me as much.

Moving to LA, I slowly started meeting people that were doing this. Those friends really showed me to be yourself, have fun, express yourself, and do whatever it is that you want. That was my pivotal moment of feeling that I was being true to what I was doing and realizing that I could express that. A lot of it really has to do with the people that you’re around in this industry. That’s what they expect to see: you having fun and being yourself. That’s what appealed to me: that I could be myself.

PC: You’re in such an exciting time in your career. As you look ahead to the next five, ten years, is there a dream role that you would love to play in the future? What are the types of roles that you’re attracted to?
Cameron: Growing up, I know this sounds funny, but I always watched The Vampire Diaries and The Originals. Damon, specifically in Vampire Diaries, was this hard-nosed guy but also good-looking. He was a character that was respected and got to play so many emotions. That’s the type of character that I would love to play. Somebody that is seen one way based on his appearance, but his actions and body language tell a different story. Like I was saying earlier, I love my trauma. I would love to play a character that has a lot of emotions and has different sides to themselves.

That has always been my thing. People have asked me: “What’s the role that you want to play?” I’m like, “My job is to act. My goal is to be able to be somebody that can express so many different sides of their emotions.” That’s the space that I want to sit in. I want to be able to be an actor where viewers can feel the emotions of my characters and hopefully relate to them.

PC: That’s a great answer. In addition to acting, you’re also a musician. What have you learned from that industry and that part of your craft that you’ve been able to apply to your onscreen work?
Cameron: It’s funny that you say that. My music has always been something that I’ve kept to myself. There’s one song out there, which is one of the first songs that I’ve done. It’s fun, but it’s very different. With music, it’s about expressing emotions and the timing of your vocal delivery. Acting has actually helped with my timing in my music: with how I speak, how I say things, and how it comes out. It has more to do with understanding the process of telling the story. All songs have a little story in them. You’re trying to get something across in a way that is almost not as direct as acting is. You’re making analogies of this or that and painting pictures. It’s helped me find the clarity of understanding my script and the whole story of what’s going on behind the plot or logline of a film or show. It’s given me so much clarity in my music as to how I paint my pictures and how I make the story clear.

PC: Speaking of that single, tell us about “Dirty Love” and the inspiration behind the song. How did you decide on that being your musical introduction?
Cameron: That was the first song I ever made. I write a lot. I’ve always been a writer, so I always want to write my own music. It was the beginning of 2021. I had written these lyrics in 2017. It was about a girl that I was dating. It was rough. We went through a few rough patches. It felt like it was a bit of a dirty type of love in that it was like you can have this love if you give me all this, but even if you do this one thing, you’re done. It doesn’t matter. All of it is disregarded. You could be a great guy and love me all you want, but if you mess up one time, it’s over. This is a girl that I care a lot about. She’s great. I will never talk crap about her, but it was inspired by my relationship with this girl that I dated for a while.

PC: Is the plan to release more music in the future? How challenging is it to balance all the different facets of your talent?
Cameron: I have more plans to release music, but the route I’m going to take is actually country music. It’s very different from what I have out right now. My whole thinking about “Dirty Love” is that it was a phase. It was a period of my life that I can look back at and be like, “This is what I thought about. This is what I wanted to make back then. This is what we have coming out now.”

With country music, there’s a story and an emotion behind it. I grew up on country music. I was born in Omaha, Nebraska and then moved to Oregon and lived out in the boonies where there’s no cell service and none of that. I grew up in the woods doing that country thing. I’m leaning more towards country music. We have some great stuff coming out soon. That’ll be awesome. We’re working with great people and we’ll see what comes of it.

PC: You were also talking about writing and directing in the future. Is there a story that you would love to bring to life? Is there something that you’ve maybe written already?
Cameron: Definitely. I have a story right now about a kid that goes through his whole life, and we get to see all the different sides of his life and how he handles all that. It shows so many different areas of his life. Writing is hard because you get to write so much detail, but then you have to compact all that. That’s where I am right now.

The story that I want to put out there will start as a short film. It’s about a guy that goes through his whole life with a lot of family trouble. He struggles with drugs, and there will be flashbacks of his past and where he is now. He has to make a decision. He has to see who is in his life, the opportunities that he could lose, his children, his brothers, all of that. He’s the sole breadwinner of his family. If he goes down that path, it’d be unfortunate. There’s a lot to contemplate in there.

I want it to have a lot of action and emotion. Love is something that’s huge to me. I know it sounds funny, but love, in general, is something that I want to display in my writing or in any film that I may put out. Tough love is actually something that isn’t always seen or seen in the right light or displayed in the right light. We glorify loving people in all the lovey-dovey ways—which I mean, keep it coming.

But I also think a lot of the time we only have the lovey-dovey side of things because people don’t know how to handle or accept tough love. When somebody says, “Hey, I think this or that,” people take it as direct criticism. People think that showing tough love is when you’re directly criticized. I would love to bring that to life through real communication and conversation.

PC: As an actor, how do you create this space for yourself to dive into those more emotional moments?
Cameron: I really try to get into my head and remember those feelings and emotions that I experienced, what people around me experienced, and how it not only affected the person that it was happening to but also the whole atmosphere. I try to sit there and really imagine the whole setting. I imagine everything that’s going on because there are so many little things that you can pick up on. I could stand in my own shoes and say I feel this way. I see this. I see that. She’s feeling this way. He’s feeling this way. But there are all these people around you that give little hints as to what’s going on and how it could feel to others.

Pop Culturalist Speed Round

PC: Guilty pleasure TV show?
Cameron: It’s reality shows like Love Island.

PC: Guilty pleasure movie?
Cameron: I love comedies. Maybe Step Brothers or Talladega Nights or really anything with Will Ferrell or Seth Rogan.

PC: Favorite book?
Cameron: I do read a lot of nonfiction books and self-growth. Greenlights by Matthew McConaughey. I really like that story. He talks a lot about everything that he went through and his thoughts about it. Like I was saying earlier, I really like how he goes through his life and how he treats people.

PC: A band or artist that fans would be surprised to learn is on your playlist?
Cameron: Country music is my favorite. A lot of people are very surprised when I say country is my outright favorite. I love a whole lot of Chris Stapleton. I like Morgan Wallen. I like Cody Johnson. There’s a guy named Charley Crockett that I really like. He’s a mixture of country and folk music.

PC: First album you bought?
Cameron: This is probably hilarious, but Justin Bieber. I really like JB and his music. He’s a lover, and I feel like I’m the same way. I like his music—the story and the emotion behind it.

PC: First concert you attended?
Cameron: Justin Timberlake and Destiny’s Child.

PC: An album that changed your life and why?
Cameron: That’s a good question. I remember Justin Bieber came out with an acoustic version of Believe. It was this album about him talking about a girl. I went through one of my first breakups at the time. It was one of the hardest things. I remember there’s a song called “Nothing Like Us” that I would listen to. He put into words what I couldn’t while experiencing that breakup.

PC: Who do you want to work with in the future?
Cameron: Dave or James Franco. That would be great. I’d love to work with Margot Robbie again. I worked with her on Babylon and spent some time with her. She was super cool to hang out with and great to get to know as a person. But also the performance that she brought—it was amazing to watch.

To keep up with Cameron, follow him on Instagram.