Last Christmas stars Michelle Yeoh, Henry Golding say Hollywood getting better for Asian actors but still has room for more diversity, women
- Last Christmas stars reflect on gains for Asian actors in Hollywood since the success of Crazy Rich Asians, first US film with an all-Asian cast in 25 years
- Golding wouldn’t have landed leading man role in Last Christmas, opposite Game of Thrones actress Emilia Clarke, without the 2018 romcom’s success, says Yeoh
Things are changing fast in Hollywood for Asian actors, and it’s about time, says Michelle Yeoh.
The Malaysian-born actress, who made her name as a Hong Kong action heroine in the mid-1980s, stepped back into the international spotlight with her performance in Crazy Rich Asians , the hit romantic movie she credits for Asian performers’ increased opportunities in American film and television.
“It’s been a long time coming, so let’s not make it a one-hit wonder,” Yeoh says in New York ahead of the release of her latest film, Last Christmas, a light romance inspired by the Wham! hit of the same name. “There have been changes in Hollywood, and you can definitely see more Asian faces on the screen.”
Those changes are evident in the casting for Last Christmas, which also features her Crazy Rich Asians co-star Henry Golding. “If those changes hadn’t happened, you would not be seeing Henry as a romantic leading man in Last Christmas – he would have been overlooked for sure. Things are looking better for Asians in Hollywood and that is the way to go,” she says.
As Captain Philippa Georgiou, the central character in the television series Star Trek: Discovery, Yeoh plays a starship captain in one of the world’s most respected franchises. She likes the role, as it reminds her of her action work in Hong Kong – she gets to beat guys up again, she says.