5 reasons why Stephanie Hsu is Hollywood’s new ‘It’ girl: the EEAAO rising star is slated to appear in comedy film Joy Ride and Disney+ series American Born Chinese next, alongside Michelle Yeoh

Mar 28 , 2023

Stephanie Hsu is one of Hollywood’s fastest rising stars today, representing the Asian-American experience in films and TV series. Photo: @stephaniehsuofficial/Instagram

Born in California with Chinese and Taiwanese family roots, Stephanie Hsu has earned a reputation as a multitalented powerhouse performer, wowing audiences with her dual roles as protagonist Joy Wang and villain Jobu Tupaki in last year’s Everything Everywhere All At Once, which recently swept the Oscars with seven awards.

Stephanie Hsu poses in the press room with her award for best breakthrough performance for Everything Everywhere All at Once at the Film Independent Spirit Awards in Santa Monica, California, on March 4. Photo: AP

Starring alongside industry titans like the fabulous Michelle Yeoh and Jamie Lee Curtis, the 32-year-old actress stole scene after scene in an enviable wardrobe of looks by legendary costume designer Shirley Kurata, like her iconic Bagel Universe ensemble. Her performance snagged Hsu her first-ever Oscars nomination and, although she lost out to co-star Curtis, it’s evident that this proudly Asian entertainer is only just starting to show the world what she’s capable of.

Here are five ways that Stephanie Hsu is putting the “slay” in “Slaysian” – and why we love her for it.

She can sing, dance and act

Stephanie Hsu cut her teeth on Broadway, playing Christine Canigula in Be More Chill. Photo: @stephaniehsuofficial/Instagram

Triple-threat, anyone? Hsu got her start performing in school musicals as a child before earning a BFA at the prestigious Tisch School for the Arts at NYU. All that formal training paid off – some of her earliest career breaks were on Broadway, originating the role of Christine Canigula in Be More Chill and Karen the Computer in SpongeBob SquarePants: The Broadway Musical.

She refuses to pander to Asian stereotypes

Stephanie Hsu’s advice to actors of colour is turn down the role if it involves racial stereotyping. Photo: @stephaniehsuofficial/Instagram

Like many actors of colour, Hsu has faced typecasting problems and racial stereotypes throughout her career. Her solution? Turn down any roles involving such issues.

“I remember in 2012, I went into a commercial audition and they were like, ‘OK, could you do it again, but with a more Asian accent?’ And I said, ‘I’m so sorry, but this role is not for me. I don’t do that and I’m not interested in this part,’ Hsu told The New York Times earlier this year.

She uses her platform to advocate for Asian-Americans

Not one to shy away from the spotlight, Stephanie Hsu uses film and TV to represent Asian-American experiences. Photo: @stephaniehsuofficial/Instagram

Hsu has starred among some of the best Asian-led ensemble casts in the last decade, including Marvel Comics Shang-Chi and The Legend Of the Ten Rings and the TV series Awkwafina Is Nora from Queens.

Stephanie Hsu portrays Mei Lin in The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. Photo: @stephaniehsuofficial/Instagram

But she’s also represented Asian-American characters on other, less diverse shows, like her role as Mei Lin on the period dramedy series The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. Hsu’s quirky and charismatic portrayal of a Chinatown resident and medical student quickly became a favourite with fans, and she’s still a recurring character on the Amazon series. Let’s hear it for Asian representation!

Her flawless fashion sense

Stephanie Hsu looks stunning in a Giambattista Valli gown. Photo: @stephaniehsuofficial/Instagram

EEAAO earned nominations from virtually every film industry award, so naturally Hsu was expected to grace the red carpet. But no one expected her to steal the show – strutting, slaying and sashaying her way in a dazzling assortment of to-die-for gowns, wearing everyone from luxury designers Carolina Herrera and Giambattista Valli to Thai Nguyen and vintage Valentino. No wonder Hsu has been pegged as one of young Hollywood’s best-dressed starlets to watch.

What’s next?

Stephanie Hsu plays one of the characters in comedy film Joy Ride. Photo: @joyridemovie/Instagram

Young, glamorous, talented, Oscar-nominated – the world is Stephanie Hsu’s oyster right now. So what’s next for this rapidly rising star?

This summer, she’s slated to star in Joy Ride, a comedy film by Crazy Rich Asians screenwriter Adele Lim in her directorial debut. Like many of Hsu’s earlier projects, the movie features an almost all-Asian cast, including Ashley Park from Emily In Paris, Sherry Cola and Sabrina Wu, following four friends as they road-trip across China.

Hsu will also appear in American Born Chinese, a new Disney+ television series starring none other than her EEAAO co-star Michelle Yeoh and Hong Kong actor Daniel Wu.

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Fame and celebrity

This summer, Hsu is slated to appear in comedy film Joy Ride, directed by Crazy Rich Asians’ screenwriter Adele Lim, and in American Born Chinese, a new Disney+ series, alongside Michelle Yeoh
The 32-year-old actress slayed all of her ‘fits by EEAAO costume designer Shirley Kurata on-screen and rocked up to red carpet events in Carolina Herrera and vintage Valentino in real life