It's really quite baffling that there are so few Asian actors in Hollywood. It's rare to see an Asian actress and even rarer to see an Asian actor. When you do see them, they're either not really 100% Asian (like Olivia Munn or Keanu Reeves), or they're typecast into a few predefined roles (ninjas, kung foo guys, computer nerds).
Will there ever be more Asians in Hollywood? How long will it take and what must happen for there to be more Asians?
Really?
How many Asian Actors are there supposed to be? I know I've seen lots of Asian actors/actresses. Since this is not Asia I don't have to faulty expectation of seeing lots and lots of Asian actors in a country where they are a minority.
You seem to proceed from a premise that there are just tons and tons of Asians in the U.S. trying to be actors but that everyone else is getting through, not the Asians.
This applies to all aspects of life when you start dividing people up into groups and then counting the numbers from each group in various categories and you have some baseless expectation of how many "should" be in each field.
Like looking at politics and saying there are less women so therefore something is wrong, some force is holding back the women. Based on what? Nurses are almost all women, someone must be holding back the men. Plumbers are all men. Someone must be holding back the women. Scientists and mathematicians are mostly men, someone must be holding back the women. Child workers are mostly women, someone must be holding back the men.
This whole concept of having these baseless opinions of how many from each group should be in a field is misguided. Genders, races, cultures have different interests you can't have these faulty expectations that different fields must be this % men, this % women, this % black, this % white, this % Asian and then act as if something is askew if the numbers don't work out the way you should. What percentage of the U.S. population are Asians, how many Asians try to make acting their profession? There is no right or wrong number. People do what interests them not all cultural backgrounds like the same things.
How many blacks try to make basketball and football their profession? Do you think the percentages are exactly the same as Asians trying to become basketball and football players? I have no numbers on this, I just don't expect those two to be equal but vastly different. They're are Black Americans and Asian Americans but people with different racial backgrounds and histories may have vastly different interests in life.
I know I've seen lots of Asian actors in shows. I'm sorry the numbers don't mesh with the notion you have in your head and expect but I don't detect some "need" that more Asians need to get into acting.
Why not?😉
shareWhen's the last time you saw an Asian lead in a mainstream US movie or show? The only one I can think of is Fresh off the Boat, which is a show specifically about Asians in America.
shareWell, Life of Pi was one.
Oh wait, I think that was English.
What about Slumdog Millionaire?
Oh wait, that was English.
Got dang it, not a single American movie!
I am thinking the Conservatives would revolt, if anyone other than Caucasian, were the lead.
Let this be the hierarchy: Caucasian is the lead, African American and Asian are supporting (can never be the actual lead), and other lesser minorities are background. LOL
Dr.Ken (Ken Jeong)
Master of None (Aziz Ansari)
Ping Pong Playa (Jimmy Tsai)
Harold & Kumar go to White Castle (John Cho & Kal Penn)
Well, the last one was 2004. That's more than a decade ago! Lol.
In Harold & Kumar, we know who the actual lead was. Do not be fooled! Neil Patrick Harris.
shareWell, I for one, am one Asian who wants to be an actor; however, I am finding it extremely hard. I have no accent, born and raised in the U.S., and I keep getting overlooked for some international individual, who shares my same ethnic background.
I do agree, because I also stated that it would be hard to come up with a tangible number of how one group should be represented; however, it is not exactly easy, for minorities, to be selected either. Now you would have to consider also that the U.S. is probably one of the most diverse countries out there and it would actually do us well to hire people of various ethnic backgrounds.
What kind of Asian are you? I find that it's especially hard for East Asians (Chinese, Japanese, Korean) to get any kind of roles whatsoever.
How do you go about trying to get cast? I'd be interested in trying out for some roles as well.
You know..I never thought I would EVER be cast in my life. I actually went out of my way, while I was suppose to be deciding whether I wanted to further educate or not, and came up on my state's Film Office. When people say that "you can be discovered" by anything you do, it was true. While I was looking up movies coming up, I just put my interest in an email for a movie to be cast. I fell upon a casting director and ever since then, I have been cast as at least background.
To date:
I have been in around 8 independent productions, 1 healthcare commercial (as background), featured in a t.v. series that I will probably never see (apparently, there are Hallmark channels and other premium channels one cannot just get on basic cable), stand-ins for two independent movies, and this year, who knows?
It is also great because you can do extra work, whenever you want, when a project shoots in the area. I mean you have to be available all day, for any extra day, you submit for; however, you can also put weekends. You really can luck out there, if they end up shooting on weekends.
I have also been able to work as part of the crew. Primarily, there are many documentaries that shoot out here and putting my resume up at my film office, I get a few calls a year. So it is all about putting yourself out there.
Good luck!
If you're talking about American films... about 5%... whatever the number that roughly represents the Asian American population. Until recently, an Asian American actor had about the same chance of being struck by lightning or winning powerball, as they had getting nominated for an Oscar or Emmy. Finally, they are starting to improve casting and give some Asian actors a chance.
So yeah, 5% of normal, non stereotypical roles would be about right
Simple supply and demand. There's not much demand - very few Asians want to become actors, and there's not much supply - very few Hollywood studios/directors want to cast Asians. It's a two-sided problem and both sides need to do something about it if we want change.
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