LOS ANGELES โ If Ke Huy Quan wins an Oscar for his work in โEverything Everywhere All At Once,โ he knows whoโs on the thank you list โ co-star Michelle Yeoh.
โShe inspired me to get back into acting,โ the Best Supporting Actor nominee says. โShe gave me the courage to dream again, to give voice to this dream that I had for a long, long time.โ
After making his debut at age 12 in โIndiana Jones and the Temple of Doom,โ Quan got work in โThe Gooniesโ and other kid-friendly films. As he got older, roles disappeared. He figured his acting career was over. Enrolling at the University of Southern California, he got a degree in film and transitioned to work behind the camera.
But acting? It took the success of Yeohโs โCrazy Rich Asiansโ to get him to even think about it. When Director Daniel Kwan was searching for someone to play Yeohโs husband in โEverything Everywhere,โ he found Quanโs Twitter page and asked if heโd like to audition.
โI was content (working behind the camera) until I noticed that the landscape had changed drastically,โ Quan says. โWhen I started out as a kid, it was very difficult to be an Asian actor. There were not a lot of opportunities. The last five years, thereโs a lot more progress.โ
When โEverything Everywhereโ was released, Quan got great reviews and a shot at a second career. When โawardsโ season began, his name was bandied about. At the Golden Globes and Critics Choice Awards (which he won), Quan was one of the most grateful recipients, delighting in the attention Hollywood had offered. At last weekโs Academy Awards luncheon, he was quick to meet as many fellow nominees as possible, reuniting with his old boss Stephen Spielberg and taking photos with others who could consider him competition.
To prove โEverything Everywhereโ is not a fluke, the 51-year-old has been cast in โAmerican Born Chinese,โ a new Disney+ series in which he plays Freddy Wong, a fictional character from a mid-1990s sitcom.
โItโs practically putting a mirror up to yourself and showing the audience what that was like,โ Quan says. โWhen the show comes out, the audience is going to have a range of emotions. Some are going to be very angry with it. Some are going to think itโs funny. And thatโs OK because that is something for us to talk about, to make progress, to be better.โ
โAmerican Born Chineseโ follows a teenager who moves from San Franciscoโs Chinatown to a suburb where thereโs only one other Asian student. He struggles with his identity and draws on the journeys of others to find his own path.
When Quan spoke with the seriesโ producers, he wanted to be assured they would continue to employ him if โpeople hate my character and nobody wants to hire me again.โ
Executive Producer Kelvin Yu was convinced Quan was right for the role: โWe needed an actor who (could play) a character that surprises you. Ke Quan is nothing if not an actor who surprises you.โ
If he wins the Oscar, heโll also be a drawing card for the series.
โFor the longest time, we havenโt seen a show like this,โ Quan says. โIt features an entire Asian cast. And thatโs why Iโm so grateful.โ
Even better? Michelle Yeoh co-stars in โAmerican Born Chinese,โ too. She plays the Goddess of Mercy.
โSheโs the goddess of compassion,โ Yeoh says. โShe didnโt go back to the heavens because she stayed to look after the people of the world. So all of us have a Goddess of Mercy in our house.โ
Just like Quan.
