'Crazy Rich Asians,' Darren Criss, Sandra Oh, Constance Wu nominated for Golden Globe awards

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Sandra Oh and Andy Samberg were a winning duo  as presenters during the Emmy award show.

THE GOLDEN GLOBES will be extra fun to watch this year. For the first time, Asian American viewers won't have to strain to catch a passing glimpse of Asian faces in the audience and on stage.

First off, it will be hard to miss Sandra Oh, who is pegged to co-host the awards telecast with Brooklyn Nine-Nine's Andy Samberg.

The Golden Globe nominations were announced this morning (Dec. 6) where Oh was nominated in the Best Actress in a Television Drama for her role in Killing Eve., which also was nominated in the Best Television Series - Drama category.

Crazy Rich Asians, the box office and critically acclaimed romantic comedy motion picture featuring an all-Asian cast, also is nominated in two categories: Best Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy, and Constance Wu was nominated as Best Actress in Musical or Comedy.

Filipino American actor Darren Criss, who earlier won an Emmy for his performance in the teleseries The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Series, is also nominated for a Golden Globe in the category of Best Performance by an Actor in a Limited Series for Television. The series, about the mentally unstable Filipino American Andrew Cunanan, also was nominated as Best Television Limited Series Made for Television.

It was Oh's and Samberg's chemistry together in presenting an award at the Emmys that caught the attention of NBC executives.

“They bring wit, charm and style to a room filled with the very best of film and television,” the executives said Wednesday (Dec. 5) morning.

Meher Tatna, president of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA), which hosts the annual Golden Globes show, said he was looking forward to seeing the duo’s “undeniable chemistry” onstage.

Actors of Asian descent have been nominated 50 times in the history of the Golden Globes, according to HFPA's figures. Only 12 have won awards. 

Oh was the apparent favorite for an Emmy and the audience gasped when she didn't win, losing to Claire Foy for her role as Queen Victoria in The Crown. Foy even acknowledged the surprise. "Sandra Oh, I just love you," said Foy during her acceptance speech.

Oh masked her Emmy disappointment when she remarked after the show, "It's an honor just to be Asian," which drew cheers in Asian American households watching the show.
For this year's Golden Globes, Oh is up against some stiff competition, including: Julia Roberts (Homecoming), Caitriona Balfe (Outlander), Elisabeth Moss (The Handmaid's Tale) and Keri Russell (The Americans).

In his category, Criss has to be the odds-on favorite after winning the Emmy in a similar category. Fellow nominees include: Benedict Cumberbatch (Patrick Melrose), Hugh Grant (A Very English Scandal), Daniel Brühl (The Alienist) and Antonio Banderas (Genius: Picasso).

Crazy Rich Asians, adapted from the Kevin Kwan's best-seller, will be going up against some serious heavyweights: The Favourite, Green Book, Mary Poppins Returns and Vice. Both The Favourite and Green Book are in the mix for Oscar nominations. Despite its cultural impact, Crazy Rich Asians is considered a long shot for the Academy Awards.

“What a movement, and to be honored by the very community we’re trying to push the boundaries of, and to open their eyes to new types of stories, it means even more,” says director John M. Chu. “I’ve been around long enough to know that moments like this don’t come around all the time. It was going to happen — whether it’s us or someone else — at some point, so I just feel blessed I got a front row seat to the change that’s happening now.”

Constance Wu, who broke into the national scene with her iconic role in ABC's Fresh Off the Boat, might have a better chance to win a Golden Globe in her category. Joining her are: Emily Blunt, (Mary Poppins Returns), Olivia Colman, (The Favourite), Elsie Fisher, (Eighth Grade) and Charlize Theron, (Tully).

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Constance Wu promoting Crazy Rich Asians' premiere in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Wu, who admitted that she had her cell phone on "Do Not Disturb" mode this morning, woke up to a bunch of messages. “My publicist kept calling me over and over again, like, ‘Wake up! Wake up!’” she told Entertainment Weekly later. “I guess I just didn’t realize [the nominations] would be so early, and I was also just trying not to think too much about it.”
The last person of Asian descent nominated in Wu's category was Yvonne Elliman, back in 1974 for her role in Jesus Christ Superstar. Prior to her, only two other women of Asian descent were nominated in the category before that. Miyoshi Umeki for her role in Flower Drum Song in 1961, and Machiko Kyo for The Teahouse of the August Moon. Umeki went on to win an Oscar and remains the only Asian woman to win an Academy Award in an acting category.

If she wins, Wu would be the first Asian American actress to be so recognized. The broader implication of Wu's nomination was not lost on the Virginia-born actress,  “I hope this (Asian American wave) is not just a one-off, and that it gives opportunity, for people who are still waiting, to have representation and to feel like their country values their stories," she told Entertainment Weekly. "That’s what I hope is happening, and I’m certainly going to do everything I can to continue supporting that movement.”

The Golden Globes Awards will air on NBC at 5 p.m. (PST) on Jan. 6, 2019.

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Darren Criss wins historic Emmy; Sandra Oh snubbed

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Darren Criss thanked his family for their love keeping him grounded.

LIKE A good Filipino son, Darren Criss thanked his family after winning the Emmy last night for his role in American Crime Story: The Assassination of Gianni Versace. 

"Unlike the character I played, I was lucky enough to be raised in a home that was very loving and emphasized the value of hard work, compassion and not taking yourself too seriously," said Criss. Born to a mother from Cebu and a father of English, Irish, and German descent, Criss was raised in San Francisco.

Not only is Criss the first Filipino American to win an Emmy, but what makes the acting award even more unique and historic is that he played the role of Versace's murderer, Andrew Cunanan, who was a Filipino American.

"Oh, my God, you guys are witnessing the most extraordinary moment of my life thus far. I'm very privileged to be in this room among so many people who inspire the crap out of me, and I'm so honored to be nominated," Criss said in his accepting his award. "A lot of you guys, I've been a fan of for such a long time. Actors are really only as good as the moments they are given and the moments they are granted. So I am profoundly indebted to my friend Ryan Murphy for entrusting me with this opportunity of a lifetime and for believing in me."

The Assassination of Gianni Versace, nominated in eight categories, also won best drama in a limited series and for its casting.

Criss' win marks the second year in a row that an actor of Asian descent won the award. Last year, Asian Brit Riz Ahmed won in the same category for his role in The Night After.

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Sandra Oh brought her parents to the Emmy Awards. Her mother wore a traditional Korean hanbok.

The two other Asians nominated for Emmy's lost in their categories. Hiro Murai didn't win in the best director of a comedy series for Atlanta and Sandra Oh failure to win the Emmy for Best Actress in a Drama Series for her acting in the BBC spy thriller Killing Eve was a major snub. 

The best actress award went to Claire Foy of The Crown and Foy was expressed her surprise when she received the statuette. "This wasn't supposed to happen," Foy said when she took the stage to collect her first career Emmy. "Sandra Oh, I just love ya."

Despite her loss, Oh already made history for being the first Asian American actress to receive an acting nomination. This is the sixth time Oh has received an Emmy nomination.

In an earlier interview with ET, Oh said she hopes the Asian community continues to be proactive about getting their voices  and stories out into the world thanks to success of Crazy Rich Asians, Netflix's acclaimed teen romance To All the Boys I've Loved Before, John Cho's acclaimed thrillerSearching. 

The Chinese Canadian actress said she feels more comfortable expressing herself with color-blind roles like Killing Eve rather than politically. 

“Definitely understanding deeply that it’s not enough and to encourage our own community to find its own voice in its own way, that’s one thing that I feel we have not found our own footing yet. Because it has to be from us, uniquely in us, and there’s a lot to explore in that because Asians are very, very diverse," Oh said to ET. 

"Having been actively working in this space, where there has not been much representation at all and being [one] of the only visible faces, I feel like this is the only way that it works for me, I only look at it creatively."

The opening number "We Solved It," spoofed the Emmy's move towards inclusion, Saturday Night Live's kate McKinnon and Keenan Thompson introduced Oh. Oh said, "It's an honor just to be Asian." To which Thompson replied, "You see, there was none. Now there's one!"

That's no joke.

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