Golden Globes: 'Beef' Ali Wong, Steven Yeun win

From left, Beef's Steven Yeun, Lee Sung Jin and Ali Wong after winning their Golden Globes.

Win some. Lose some. The diversity of Asian America was on full display Sunday at the Golden Globes Awards, from the triumphs of Beef to the struggles of comedian Jo Koy, the show's last-minute host.

Beef was awarded Best Television Limited Series, Anthology Series, or Motion Picture Made for Television.

In addition, Beef’s lead factors Ali Wong and Steven Yeun took home awards for best performance by an actress and an actor, respectively.

The Netflix movie’s director and writer Lee Sung Jin, made sure to thank his counterpart in the real-life road rage incident that inspired the show. “I’d be remiss not to thank that driver,” he said. “Sir, I hope you honk and yell and inspire others for years to come.

Beef’s lead factors Ali Wong and Steven Yeun took home awards for best performance by an actress and an actor, respectively.

        FYI: Complete list of winners and nominees.

It was the first time an Asian American production won in these respective categories in Golden Globe history and Wong made history as the first Asian Amereican actress to win in that category.

The awards show also made history with its first Filipino American host Jo Koy. Unfortunately, the standup comedian’s opening monologue wasn’t his best performance. Many of his jokes fell flat in front of the show biz audience.

SCREEN CAPTURE / BBC

Jo Koy's jokes failed to hit with the show business audience. 

At one point during his monologue, Koy was met with boos prompting him to ask for the audience's understanding since he took the job only 10 days ago after several other potential emcees turned down the gig.

The morning after his hosting disaster, Koy was a gust on GMA3. Co-hosts Eva Pilgrim and DeMarco Morgan noted that Koy seemed a bit down deflated during an interview.

“I’d be lying if it doesn’t hurt,” said Koy of the reviews. “I hit a little moment there [during the monologue] where I was just like, ‘Ah.’ Hosting is a tough gig. Yes, I am a stand-up comic, but that hosting position is a different style. It’s not the same style.”

“That’s a tough gig! I’m not gonna lie,” he told the Hollywood Reporter this morning. “I really love the art of stand-up and it was cool that the opportunity came to me. Hosting is just a beast… and the crash course was really hard, too. … I literally got the call and haven’t slept since, just trying to write something, just trying to to write what we had to write. And the guys were great. Everyone was great. It’s just… that was that night. I had an off night!”

He added, “I wanted to give a little bit more of me, and I just fell a little short and that’s all.”

“It’s hard to blame the guy though given that it was not only his first time hosting an awards show but he had very little time to get his act together,” read commentary from Rolling Stone‘s Marlow Stern.

Koy tried to look at the bright side his below par performance. “That’s one thing I want to be proud about,” he said. "It was a long journey, and the opportunity came, and no one knew where the Golden Globes was gonna be, and then last second CBS picked up the show and everyone was kind of turning down the offer because of the time, and I jumped on it. I was like, ‘You know what? Let’s try it. Let’s go for it.’”

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AANHPI perspective, follow me at Threads.net/eduardodiok, @DioknoEd on Twitter or at the blog Views From the Edge.

'Beef" and 'Past Lives' garner Golden Globe nominations

Steven Yeun and Ali Wong (Beef) and Greta Lee (Past Lives) got Golden Globe nominations.

Two films with Asian American leads were among the nominees for the 2024 Golden Globes. The movies Beef and Past Lives expand Asian American characterizations beyond the typical stereotypes.

Past Lives, which is on most critics' lists of 2023's best movies, has two chances to win a Golden Globe for Best Drama Motion Picture and Best Foreign Language Motion Picture.

The romantic movie's lead actress, Greta Lee, earned a nod in the Best Actress in a Dramatic Motion Picture category.

In addition, the film won nominations for Celine Song for Best Director and her screenplay.

Unlike the Oscars which give awards to motion pictures only, and the Emmy's which award television projects, the Golden Globes hand out trophies to both mediums.

Netflix's dark comedy Beef was nominated Best Television Limited Series, Anthology Series, or Motion Picture Made for Television.

 It also won nominations for its leads Steven Yeun and Ali Wong, both of whom played against type. They both played heavily flawed characters who can show anger, be angry, obsessed, unpredictable and, at times, unlikeable. 

The pair are the first Asian actors to be nominated in the limited series category.

Charles Melton (Riverdale) received a supporting actor nomination for his role  in the romance film, May December, also a breakthrough for an Asian American actor.

Joe Hisaishi won a nomination as a composer for The Boy and the Heron, an animated film from Japan. The film also won a nomination in the Best Animated Feature category.

The Hollywood Foreign Journalists Association which came under fire for its lack of diversity, used to give out the awards. That body dissolved last summer amid the criticism and a boycott by actors. The awards was taken over by DCP and Eldridge DCP is owned by Penske Media Eldridge, a joint venture between Penske Media Corporation and Eldridge that also owns The Hollywood Reporter.

The Globes' commitment to diversity has led to this year where 72 of the 90 performance nomination slots went to non-Hispanic white people. However, it yet to be seen if those nominations turn into awards recogntion.

The films receiving the most nominations were blindingly White. Barbie, which garnered nine nominations. Oppenheimer has eight nominations. In the television categories, Succession has the most with nine.

“This has been a year of exciting change for the Golden Globes,” said Helen Hoehne, the Globes new president. “Not only are we starting a new partnership with CBS network, but our voting body has grown to 300 members from 75 countries, making the Golden Globes the most culturally diverse major awards body.”

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AANHPI perspective, follow me at Threads.net/eduardodiok, @DioknoEd on Twitter or at the blog Views From the Edge.

'Beef,' Ali Wong, Steven Yeun receive nominations for 75th Emmy Awards

A24 / BEEF

Both Ali Wong and Steven Yeun received Emmy nominations this year.

The growndbreaking series Beef, the production that threw Asian stereotypes out the window, was nominated for 13 Emmy's.

Four Asian American actors in Beef were nominated in acting categories including leads Steven Yeun and Ali Wong and supporting actors Joseph Lee and Young Mazino, as announced July 12.

Pakistani American Kumail Nanjiani was the only Asian American actor receiving a lead actor nomination for his portrayal of Somen "Steve" Banerjee, the founder of the cultural phenomenon male dance revue in the limited series Welcome to Chippendales.

Maria Bello, who plays Wong's character's mentor in Beef, also received a nod for supporting actress.

Beef is a dramedy about angry and mentally unstable Asian Americans (Yeun and Wong) involved in a road rage incident, thus breaking down the quiet, submissive,  model minority stereotype that hangs over all Asian Americans.

The Netflix series has received eight non-acting nominations in major categories, including Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series.

Lee Sung Jin was nominated in two categories for his behind-the-camera work: Outstanding Directing and Outstanding Writing for in the Limited or Anthology Series or Movie.

Another Beef  director, Jake Schreier, was also nominated for Outstanding Director for a different episode in the 10-episode series.

The other non-acting categories Beef received nominations included Charlene Lee and Claire Koonce in Outstanding Casting For A Limited Or Anthology Series Or Movie and a nomination for Nat Fuller and Laura Zempel in Outstanding Picture Editing For A Limited Or Anthology Series Or Movie.

Penny Harold, Andrew Garrett Lange and Sean O’Malley were nominated for Outstanding Sound Mixing For A Limited Or Anthology Series Or Movie for the episode "The Great Fabricator."

Helen Huang, Beef's assistant costume designers Austin Wittick and YJ Hwang, and costume supervisor Mark Anthony Summers, received nods in Outstanding Contemporary Costumes.

Beef was produced by A24, the same independent studio that produced the Oscar winning feature Everything Everywhere All At Once.

FYI: For complete list of Emmy nominees, click here.

Padma Lakshmi was nominated for two Emmys: Outstanding Host of Nonfiction Series of the 20th season of the popular Bravo cooking series Top Chef and Hulu's Taste the Nation with Padma Lakshmi. 

Indian Matcchmaking was nominated in the category of Outstanding Unstructured Reality Program.

The nominations for the 75th Emmy Awards are dominated by Succession, The Last of Us, and The White Lotus, which represent the three most-nominated shows of the year.

Among the nominations for HBO's Succession, Indian American Andrij Parekh received a nod for Outstanding Direction for the episode "America Decides." 

The 2023 Emmy Awards is slated to be held at Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles on September 18 but if the members of the Screen Actors Guild is still on strike, the show could be postponed or cancelled.  

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AANHPI perspective, follow @eduardodiok on Threads.net, @DioknoEd on Twitter or at his blog Views From the Edge.

Time includes 14 Asians and AANHIPI among 100 top influencers

Actor Ke Hu Quan's popularity has exploded this year.

Time Magazine revealed the 2023 TIME100, its annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world. The list includes 14 Asians and Asian Americans in the arts, business and politics. 

Among the 100 are celebrities, world leaders, writers and less known, but impactful individuals including Oscar winner Ke Hue Quan, Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, Tik Tok CEO Shou Zi Chew and Hidetaka Miyazaki, who has sold millions of his popular video games worldwide.

Time Chief Executive Officer Jessica Sibley said: "We are thrilled to recognize this year's list of the world's most influential people. We look forward to convening the Time 100 community—one of the largest leadership communities in the world—to spotlight and hear from individuals who are wielding their influence to drive positive action toward a better world at the TIME100 Summit Featuring TimeTime CO2 and Gala this month in New York City."

Time publishes a list honoring the 100 most influential people each year who, in the opinions of the magazine editors, were most responsible for shaping the year.

The Asians and AANHPI on this year's list of the most influential are*:

• Ali Wong, actor
• Ke Hue Quan, actor
• Shah Rukh Khan, Indian actor
• Salman Rushdie, author
• Peng Lifa, Chinese activist
• S.S. Rajamouli, RRR director
• Robin Zeng, founder of Contemporary Amperex Technology (CATL)
• Sherry Rehman, Pakistani environmentalist
• Fumio Kishida, Japan's Prime Minister
• Min Aung Hlaing, Myanmar leader
• Shou Zi Chew, TikTok CEO
• Hidetaka Miyazaki, video game creator
• Padma Lakshmi, Top Chef host
• General Min Aung Hlaing, Myanmar leader

Talking about the Ke Hu Quan, who won an Oscar for Everything Everywhere All at Once, Tom Hiddleston—who worked with Quan in Loki—said about him: “Waymond’s (Ke’s character) extraordinary sweetness, his kindness, and his patience all belong to Ke. His positivity—his fight to keep the dream alive—is the most profound kind of spiritual strength. These qualities are his unique gifts. At last, the world has recognized them.”

FYI: Complete list the Time100, most influential people in 2023

For the fourth year in a row, Time Studios and ABC will present a "TIME100" primetime television special, and for the second year in a row, the television special will bring viewers inside the 17th annual Time100 Gala, airing Sunday, April 30 (7 p.m. EDT), on ABC.

To celebrate the 2023 Time100 list of the World's Most Influential People, Time will host the annual Time100 Summit Featuring Time CO2 on April 25 and the Time100 Gala on April 26.

* We list those individuals who identify themselves as Asian or AANHPI that's why omit the individuals who identify Middle Eastern.

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AANHPI perspective, follow @DioknoEd on Twitter.

'Squid Game' making history in 74th Emmy Awards

The Korean series 'Squid Game' and lead actor Lee Jung-Jae have been nominated for Emmy's

The Emmy nominations for the 2021 season produced some good news and bad news along the diversity front.

The bad news: This year there are fewer Latino and Black nominees in the high-profile acting categories.

The good news: There are nine Asian or Asian American acting category nominees; an  increase from last year. 

Altogether, there were 25 non-white nominees among the acting categories this year, a precipitous drop from 41 non-white nominees last year despite a noticeable increase in productions featuring actors, writers and directors of color.

Four of the acting nominations went to actors in the series Squid Games. The Korean dystopian drama garnered 14 nominations.

Amazingly, the American epic Pachinko with its predominantly Asian and Asian American cast was totally shut out despite its more serious tone, theme and more demanding acting roles.

FYI: For a complete list of the Emmy nominees, click here.

The Asian and AAPI Emmy nominees are:

Outstanding Drama Series: Squid Game

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series: Lee Jung-Jae (Squid Game) 

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series: Sandra Oh (Killing Eve)

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series: Park Hae-soo and O Yeung-su (Squid Game)

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series: HoYeon Jung (Squid Game)

Outstanding Supporting Actor In A Comedy Series: Bowen Yang (Saturday Night Live) and Nick Mohammed (Ted Lasso)

Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama: Lee You-mi, (Squid Game)

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie: Himesh Patel, (Station Eleven)

Outstanding Host for a Reality or Reality-Competition Program: Padma Lakshmi (Top Chef) and Tan France (Queer Eye)

Outstanding Director in a Drama Series: Wang Dong-hyuk (Squid Game); Karyn Kusama (Yellow Jackets); Cathy Yang, (Succession); and Hiro Murai,(Station 11)

Outstanding Director in a Comedy Series: Hiro Murai (Atlanta)

Outstanding Writing for a Variety Special: Ali Wong (Ali Wong: Don Wong)

The Korean series, Squid Game, is making history. It is the first non-English speaking production to be nominated for an Emmy in any category.

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AANHPI perspective, follow @DioknoEd on Twitter.

PODCAST: How Ali Wong and Randall Park pulled it all together for 'Always Be My Maybe'.

Ali Wong, left and Randall Park created the Netflix movie, Always Be My Maybe.

By Louis Chan

ASAM NEWS

Netflix this week released a podcast with commentary from director Nahnatchka Khan and actor Randall Park to go along with their hit movie, Always Be My Maybe.
The two gave fans a sneak peek of what you might expect from the podcast when they made a surprise appearance, along with Ali Wong, in San Francisco after an advance screening in May.

Wong revealed during a 2016 interview with the New Yorker that she and Park had a desire to do an Asian version of When Harry Met Sally. That lead to calls for a script when, in reality, there was no script.

The two then began collaborating. Khan, was not yet even in the picture. When approached, she declined the opportunity thinking she would be too busy.

“Nanahtchka was advising us on writing the script, but when it came time to find a director, she was busy,” said Wong. “She was committed to this other movie. When that fell through, she became available. We snatched her. Thank God, it all worked out.”

This is Khan’s first feature film and a reunion of working buddies. She served as executive producer of Fresh Off the Boat for its first five season. Wong worked on her crew as a writer from seasons 1-4 and Park, of course, costars as Eddie Hung’s father, Louis.

“I got to make a movie with my friends,” said Khan. “We had such a great time . We shot in Vancouver and SF last summer. It happened so fast.”

Khan and Park quickly learned during filming how cold San Francisco’s foggy weather can be.

“It’s a tundra. Do not be fooled by its beauty,” Wong, a native San Franciscan, said to the two others.

In Always Be My Maybe,” Park plays Marcus, lifelong best buds with Wong’s character, Sasha. They had high hopes for their film and decided to dream big. That dream lead to Keanu Reeves making a guest appearance.

“We had a whole A list,” said Park of actors they wanted to bring on board. “We’ll never tell you who’s on that list, but yeah, there was no way we were going to get that person. Netflix and our producers Nathan (Kahane) and Erin (Westerman) were like let’s just try and we tried and it happened magically.”

The idea wasn’t just to bring on an A list star. The idea was to bring one on whose character would add to the movie.

“I think when he, Marcus, finally decides he has feelings for her, we thought in terms of story , it would be great to have somebody who would be Marcus’ worst nightmare,” said Wong. “We thought who would be his worst nightmare. It should be an Asian American icon who could act (as himself) and who is also funny and willing to make fun of himself. Only one person in the entire universe fits the first three of those parameters.”

They sent a script to Reeves, who to their surprise, really took the opportunity seriously.

“He read it and liked it and wanted to meet with us,” said Khan. “I was really impressed that he read the whole script. Like he didn’t just read his section. We talked about his role in the movie and how it affects Marcus character. He had a lot of funny ideas and pitches. We went back, revised the script and sent it back He was like ‘I’ll do it.'”

Reeves took the script and made it his own. Park says the whole idea of glasses without lenses came from Reeves. He also improvised much of the shadowboxing scene.

Download Khan and Park’s podcast from Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

TGIF Feature: 'Always Be My Maybe' looks hilarious

Based on the just-released trailer of the Netflix movie Always Be My Maybe, the film is a lot like an Ali Wong standup routine: Hilarious and raunchy.

The movie starring Ali Wong and Fresh Off the Boat's Randall Park, will debut on the streaming service May 31. 

Not as heralded by the movie's publicists, the romantic comedy also features Daniel Dae Kim and Keanu Reeves, two of the biggest Asian American box-office "names."

The movie is part of a doze movies and TV series spotighting Asian cast members or themes that together, make up what is being called Asian Spring.

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Netflix project features star-studded AsAm cast

Keanue Reeves, left, and Daniel Dae Kim join Netflix film.

ASAM NEWS

A YEAR after Crazy Rich Asians debuts on the big screen with its all-Asian cast, Netflix is planning to premier another star-studded Asian/American ensemble cast.
Keanu Reeves and Daniel Dae Kim have joined the previously announced rromanticc comedy Always Be My Maybe starring Randall Park and Ali Wong, reports The Hollywood Reporter.

Randall Park and Ali Wnog will star in a Netflix romatic comedyi.

Wong and Park will play childhood sweethearts who broke up and haven’t spoken for 15 years. Wong plays Sasha, a celebrity chef who runs into Markus (Park) when she opens a restaurant in San Francisco. Park plays an artist still living with his mother

Filming is already underway in Vancouver, Canada, according to Variety. The film is set to be released in 2019. It is being directed by Nahnatchka Khan, showrunner for Fresh Off the Boat. 

Rounding out the cast are Karan Soni from Deadpool and Charlyne Yi, Michelle Buteau, Vivian Bang, James Saito, Lyrics Born and Susan Park.

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Ali Wong at the Masonic Auditorium tonight

Ali Wong

ONE OF THE brightest young comedians in the country is on tour. If you want to watch Ali Wong before she becomes a household name, here's your chance. You can always brag to your friends, I knew her before ...

Unfortunately, if you want to see Ali Wong in S.F. tonight, it's too late. Her two shows are sold out!

Wong is a stand-up comedian, writer, and actress currently living in Los Angeles, will be playing in front of her hometown crowd. 

After SF Weekly selected her as “The Best Comedian of 2009″ and the SF Bay Guardian awarded her “Best of the Bay,” she decided that it was finally time to depart her hometown. 

In 2010, Comedy Central listed Ali Wong as one of seven “Comics to Watch.” In 2011, Variety Magazine named her as one of the “10 Comics to Watch,” and Ali appeared in the 2011 and 2012 Just for Laughs Comedy Festival in Montreal, QC.

With the recent release of her Netflix Special, "Ali Wong: Baby Cobra," Ali became the first comedian to record a stand up special 7 months pregnant. 

Ali co-stars in the new ABC comedy, American Housewife, premiering this fall.

Ali has performed on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno and Late Night With Seth Meyers. She also appeared in Oliver Stone’s film, Savages and was a series regular on NBC’s Are You There Chelsea. In 2012, Ali hosted the Golden Globes Live Coverage on E! 

She recently appeared in Amy Schumer and Judd Apatow’s hit film Trainwreck an was a writer on ABC’s Fresh Off The Boat before landing her American Housewife role.

Her two San Francisco shows at the 3500-seat Masonic Auditorium shows are sold out. If you want to catch her, better luck in the following cities.

Aug 19: San Francisco The Masonic 7th and 8th shows SOLD OUT

Sept 9: Denver, CO Paramount Theatre

Sept 15: Houston, TX Revention Music Center

Sept 16: Dallas, TX Majestic Theatre 1 SHOW SOLD OUT, 2nd show added!

Sept 22-23: Toronto Winter Garden Theatre 3 SHOWS SOLD OUT

Sept 24: Toronto Sony Centre 

Oct 7: Las Vegas Park Theater

Oct 14: Minneapolis, MN State Theatre

Oct 21: Temecula, CA Pechanga Casino 1 SHOW SOLD OUT, 2nd show on sale 3pm

Nov 11: Thousand Oaks, CA Fred Kavli Theatre
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Fresh Off the Boat introduces Asian Flush

NBA star Jeremy Lin shows off his Asian Flush centered on his abs on Fresh Off the Boat.

BY NOW, you've seen or heard about the Asian Flush episode of Fresh Off the Boat. Asian Flush is a little known phenomenon that afflicts some Asians when they imbibe a bit too much.

Last week, on Episode 17 of the ABC hit, No. 1 son Eddie Huang and his friends get hold of a beer and Eddie takes a sip. He discovers he suffers from an adverse reaction to alcohol, known as the "Asian Flush," his heart beats faster, his face turns red and his body gets warm. 

His father Louis (Randall Park) takes the opportunity to share how he finally learned to deal with the condition in different situations, and how great it was to drink with his similarly afflicted Chinese college friends Chau (guest star Jeremy Lin), Stephanie (guest star Ming-Na Wen), and Margot (guest star Ali Wong). 

One of the writers, Keith Heisler, writes in EW.com  about the genesis of the skit.

"I knew about Asian flush since I had a roommate in college who had it and my wife gets it too. It’s kind of this weird thing where it’s there, and some people have it and hide it, so let’s just do something that isn’t talked about. We can get away with explaining it, and if it’s not boring, then people are like, “Oh, I didn’t even know this was a thing.” That was what intrigued us about it. 

"When our show works well, it tells something that everyone can relate to, it doesn’t matter what race they are. We’ve all gone through something similar, but here’s how it’s specific to our family or to the Asian culture. Whenever we do that is when it’s most fun for the writers and the actors to do because it’s so specific to our show. We take a lot of pride in that this is a story that only we can do. This is one of those weird little pockets that most people in America don’t know about Asian culture. You need to have fun with it, but hopefully, we did it in a way people enjoy and relate to." 

Congrats to the FOtB crew and cast for treating the topic not with kid gloves but as a fact of life.

Asian Flush is real - there's a scientific reason it occurs because some Asian/A can't process alcohol and their bodies react to alcohol as if it was allergic to it. Nothing to be ashamed of. It happens. As Louis tells his son - without lecturing - learn to deal with it.

That's the beauty of having a TV show about an Asian/American family. It exposes non-Asian Americans to some of the particularities of being Asian that they might not have know about. It helps break down stereotypes and makes us  ... well, more human.