Views From The Edge: Randall Park

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Friday, February 21, 2020

'Fresh Off the Boat' to bid viewers a fond farewell Friday after six seasons

ABC

Behind the scenes of 'Fresh Off the Boat,' Hudson Yang and Randall Park go over their lines.

By Louis Chan

ASAM NEWS

The Asian American community is reacting with both sadness and appreciation in anticipation of the series finale of Fresh Off the Boat airing Friday night (February 21) at 8/7 Central on ABC.

Sixteen-year-old Hudson Yang who plays Eddie on the program debuted with the rest of the cast at the age of 11. The thought of life without the program is hitting him hard.

“It’s weird—it’s kind of like waking up and not knowing who you’re going to be next week! I know I’m going to miss it, I miss it already!” he told AsAmNews.

He isn’t the only one who will miss it.

“It’s really difficult knowing Fresh Off the Boat will leave the airwaves after Friday night,” said Guy Aoki, founding member of both the Media Action Network for Asian Americans and founding member of the Asian Pacific American Media Coalition.

Aoki told AsAmNews he saw the pilot script back in 2014, a year before the program premiered. The network wanted APAMC’s feedback.

“Was the title of the show offensive? One of the characters uses a racial slur. Is that OK? I gave two pages of notes and all of the scenes that I felt didn’t work, were excised. When I saw the filmed pilot months ahead of its broadcast, I knew this was something I could get behind,” Aoki said.

Asians Americans took over social media the night FOTB premiered in February 2015. They held Twitter parties quoting from the script, applauding the performances and even shedding happy tears over the story line. The show network executives likely debuted nervously was trending.

“Fresh Off The Boat was a truly groundbreaking television series in several ways,” said Daniel Mayeda Chair, Asian Pacific American Media Coalition. “FOTB told a very specific and authentic story of Taiwanese American immigrants. And it was told from the perspective of Asian Americans, as reflected in the pilot episode when Eddie Huang, trying to fit in, asked his mother to take him to the market so he could buy “White people lunch” to take to school. Asian Americans had never seen such an unapologetic portrayal of ourselves on network TV and we reveled in it.”

The show also proved a national audience would watch a show starring and centered around an Asian American family with a predominantly Asian American cast.

According to Aoki, FOTB indexed at 100 percent among White audiences. In other words, 60 percent of the nation is White. 60 percent of FOTB’s audience was also White. Blacks indexed at 105%. Asian Americans also over indexed.

ABC

Part of the final episode of FOTB is the graduation of Eddie Huang (Hudson Yang)

The show catapulted stars Constance Wu (Jessica Huang) and Randall Park (Louis Huang) into stardom. Wu went onto to star in Crazy Rich Asians and Hustlers. Park is seen frequently in both the Marvel and DC comic universe. Most recently he starred alongside Ali Wong in Always be My Maybe. He also made his directing debut for the series finale of Fresh Off the Boat.

Eight months after FOTB debut, ABC also premiered Dr. Ken starring Ken Jeong. Quantico, Andi Mack and Killing Eve would follow.

“I started at CAPE (Coalition of Asian Pacifics in Entertainment) in March 2015, right after Fresh off the Boat premiered, so the show has always been a clear demarcation for me,” Michelle K. Sugihara, CAPE Executive Director, said to AsAmNews. “It’s amazing how much has happened since then in terms of representation in media, but we still have further to go. I’m excited to see what this pilot season brings.”

The show will end Friday night with an hour-long double episode.

“I wish we were still going on because there are a lot more stories to tell, but the good thing is … it feels like we have a lot more of us telling them now, not just one show,” said Hudson Yang.

Sunday, December 22, 2019

Its a wrap for 'Fresh Off the Boat'

The groundbreaking show Fresh Off the Boat finished taping it's last episode Dec. 20.

It was an emotional moment for the cast members, who have been together the last six years, especially for Hudson Yang, who played Eddie Huang. "I'm not afraid to say I cried," Yang posted in a tweet along with photo of him crying as he said goodbye.

"I love my #Freshofftheboat family," he continued. "I always will."

The show was historic in that it centered on an Asian American family as they adjusted to life in suburban Florida in the decade of the 1990s. It was originally based on the memoirs of restaurateur Eddie Huang,

“We couldn’t be prouder of this game-changing show and the impact it has had on our cultural landscape. The success of ‘Fresh Off the Boat’ has helped pave the way for inclusion throughout the industry,” said ABC entertainment president Karey Burke.

“Nahnatchka Khan and her brilliant creative team have created an unforgettable series with an Asian-American family front and center, something that hadn’t been done in two decades. The cast, led by Randall Park and Constance Wu, is one of the finest and funniest on television. We’ll miss the Huang family and are eternally grateful for the incredibly heartfelt stories they have told these past six seasons.”
It made Constance Wu and Randall Park recognizable names and faces in America's living rooms. It opened the doors for other shows to star Asian American actors or to have them play prominent roles in ensemble dramas.

Besides Yang, Wu and Park, the rest of the cast included: Forrest Wheeler, Ian Chen, Lucille Soong, Chesley Crisp and Ray Wise.
Most importantly, it showed that the immigrant experience was an American story and depicted Asian Americans as human beings.

The last episode will air on ABC on Feb. 21.

Saturday, November 9, 2019

Say goodbye to the Huang family; 'Fresh Off the Boat' cancelled

Groundbreaking ABC comedy Fresh Off the Boat will conclude its critically acclaimed six-season run on ABC, Karey Burke, president, ABC Entertainment, announced Friday.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the situation comedy's producers requested the show’s cancelation so that they could end it on their own terms. ABC's hour-long series finale will air next year on February 21, 8-9 p.m. EST.

“We couldn’t be prouder of this game-changing show and the impact it has had on our cultural landscape. The success of Fresh Off the Boat has helped pave the way for inclusion throughout the industry.

"Nahnatchka Khan and her brilliant creative team have created an unforgettable series with an Asian American family front and center, something that hadn’t been done in two decades. The cast, led by Randall Park and Constance Wu, is one of the finest and funniest on television. We’ll miss the Huang family and are eternally grateful for the incredibly heartfelt stories they have told these past six seasons,” Burke said.

“I’m so proud of the show and what we’ve accomplished over the past six seasons,” said series creator Khan. “Thank you to everyone at ABC and 20th Century Fox Television for going on this ride with us. It was truly a special experience and hopefully will forever be a reminder of all the stories out there that deserve to be told. Like B.I.G. said, ‘And if you don’t know, now you know.’”

Originally based on the memoir of Eddie Huang growing up in the Orlando suburbs. FOB stars Randall Park as Louis Huang, Constance Wu as his wife Jessica, Hudson Yang as Eddie, Forrest Wheeler as Emery, Ian Chen as Evan, Lucille Soong as Grandma Huang, Chelsey Crisp and Ray Wise as neighbors Honey and Marvin.

Set in the 1990s, the series follows the experiences of hip-hop-loving Eddie Huang and his family. In this final season, the Huang family is at a crossroads. Jessica is becoming an educator (teacher boss); Louis is trying to expand himself outside running the restaurant by becoming a business consultant; Eddie is weighing whether to attend college or to take a different path; Emery is trying acting; and even Evan tries out pukka shells and a new nickname!

When FOB debuted six years ago the show was hailed as the first sitcom to ffocus on an Asian American family since All American Girl with Margaret Cho 25 years earlier. The real Eddie Huang served as the off-camera narrator in the series' first season. The second season saw his role reduced as a consultant. He left the show over creative difference

The show began to evolve around the entire family as the role of Eddie became less of the focus. Chu and Park as the Huang parents took on a bigger part of the show.

It can be argued that the critical success of FOB spawned a whole bevy of shows that featured Asian Americans in nontraditional roles and opened the minds of networks about the possibilities of diversifying its fare of dramas and sitcoms.

FOB could very well have a spinoff in the works in an episode due to air later this month about an Indian American immigrant family.

Fresh Off the Boat was not the first AAPI family leading a show on American television, but because of its historic role, there's reason to believe -- and, hope and pray -- that it won't be the last.

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Sunday, July 7, 2019

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.

Friday, May 31, 2019

TGIF Feature: Asian American stars draw from their own personal experince for Netflix romantic comedy

Randall Park and Ali Park star in 'Always Be My Maybe.'

By Louis Chan

ASAM NEWS

Randall Park and Ali Wong made a surprise appearance at a special screening this week of Neflix’s movie Always By My Maybe in San Francisco.

The sneak preview put on by the Center for Asian American Media, the Asian American Journalists Association, San Francisco and the Ed Lee Asian Pacific Democratic Club attracted a mostly young, female skewing audience in a theater filled to capacity.

The crowd hooted and cheered when Wong, a native San Franciscan and Park, made their appearance. They were joined by director Nanahchka Khan who was also the executive producer of Fresh Off the Boat for its first five seasons. The trio is also a reunion of FOTB cast and crew. Randall stars as Eddie Huang’s dad on the program and Wong wrote for the show in its first four seasons.

The romantic comedy stars Park as Marcus and Wong as Sasha-two inseparable childhood friends who did everything together and I mean everything. As often happens in real life, the two go their separate ways until a chance meeting orchestrated by Sasha’s girlfriend and special assistant, Veronica, as played by Michelle Buteau. The chemistry begins to ignite, but Marcus doesn’t quite know how to tell Sasha he loves her after being friends for so many years.

Wong and Park, who actually have been friends since attending UCLA together, wrote the script, along with Michael Golamco.

“I love Marcus’ character, ” said Wong. “He was inspired by a lot of guys you grew up with and dated-guys who didn’t want to move out of their parent’s home because its so expensive, but still manage to have incredible lives.”

Park, just like his character, also had a band out of college. The paintings in the movie were those of his real mom, he shared with the audience.

Khan described Sasha’s character perfectly, calling her “successful, but still vulnerable, like woman you actually know.”

Park shared the movie was inspired by something Wong said during an interview with the New Yorker in 2016, saying the two have been wanted to do their version of Harry Met Sally for years.

“That made it into the article and got picked up by a bunch of online, like Vulture,” he said. “It just kind of caught fire online. Then we started getting all these calls for this script. People wanted to read the script and we didn’t even have a script. So Ali and I were like, well, let’s write the script.”

Also joining the cast are Daniel Dae Kim and Keanu Reeves.

“Daniel Dae Kim is so funny, so handsome,” said Khan as Ali let out a squeal. “When he shows up at the restaurant and he greets Ali, we had to do a bunch of different take and Ali was experiencing pure adult women joy,” she said to laughter.

For Keanu Reeves part, Wong said they envisioned “an Asian American icon who could act and who is also funny and willing to make fun of himself.”

People forget that superstar Keanu Reeves has coedic credits and AAPI heritage.

They sent Reeves the script and he made some suggestions. They then wrote some of his suggestions into the script and he agreed to do the film. Some of the funniest scenes in the movie involve Park, Reeves and Wong.

Khan described Park as self-deprecating, recalling the scene when Sasha and Marcus have sex.

Turning to Park she said “Remember that scene after you guys had sex and you’re like ‘Do you want to airbrush some abs on me?’ I was like no. We’re OK. I think you look good. Randall is a snack in these treats. So sexy in this movie,” she said.

Always Be My Maybe hit theaters nationwide on Thursday, May 30. a day before it begins streaming on Netflix Friday, May 31.

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Tuesday, May 21, 2019

#IAm profiles for Asian Pacific American Heritage Month

The Coalition of Asian Pacifics in Entertainment (CAPE) has teamed up with US Bank to observe Asian Pacific American Heritage Month with the #IAm Campaign, a series of video interviews of Asian American and Pacific Islanders.

The question asked of the interviewees is: How did you become successful? The journey to success has been tough for many of the subjects, only made hopeful by those who supported them along the way.

As they received encouragement along they way, the subjects have broken barriers and opened doors for others to follow.

This Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, let us not only remember those that have opened doors for us, but that our unique stories are also opening doors for others. Let us celebrate the success and the support, and most importantly, celebrate what’s possible.

Drawn mainly from the world of entertainment, it also lists a few journalists, writers and sports. Among the AAPI personalities spotlighted are George Takei, Jeremy Lin, Lisa Ling, Ming-Na Wen and Apolo Ono. Start with actor George Takei's #IAm story:

There are a ton of other videos and profiles so check them out for yourself, and participate: “Share YOUR #IAm story. Join the conversation and share what inspires you the most and express your I Am_ aspiration via Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Instagram with the hashtag #IAm. Or simply share this campaign with your friends and family.”

More links provided below. If they don't work, click here.