Guest Post by Kathy Huynh-Phan

It’s been a month since Emmy nominations were announced, and I’m still reeling. Sandra Oh received a nod for her role as Eve Polastri in “Killing Eve,” and I am overwhelmed with joy. I suspect many other Asian actors across North America feel the same way. This is a historic moment. Oh is the first Asian woman ever up for outstanding leading role in a drama series. In the history of American television, we’ve seen very few Asian actors play leading characters, male or female. It is a huge win for Asian actors as a community to not only see a powerful woman representing us on television, but to finally be recognized for her efforts by the industry.

And another major landmark is just days away. “Crazy Rich Asians” hits theaters August 15. The Constance Wu-starrer marks the first Hollywood film with a majority Asian cast since 1993’s “Joy Luck Club.” That’s a 25-year gap!

“Crazy Rich Asians” tells the story of an Asian-American woman who accompanies her long-time boyfriend to Singapore to meet his parents for the first time. What I really love about the project is that it reflects the new world meeting the old, which many first-generation kids can relate to — minus the crazy rich part, that is.

Besides Wu, the film’s female cast members include Michelle Yeoh, Awkwafina, and Gemma Chan. It’s so refreshing to see more than one Asian female character in a film. We actually get to see women interacting with one another and sharing screen time. Asian actresses are usually pitted against each other for lousy bit roles — this time around, we’ll get the rare opportunity to see them work together.

With her roles in projects such as “Grey’s Anatomy” and “Sideways,” I could not help but look up to Oh as I made my own journey through theater school and continue to do so as I move forward with my career. I don’t doubt that other Asian actors have the same experience — there aren’t many actors in mainstream film and television for us to see lead by example.

In the books “Killing Eve” is based on, Eve Polastri is white. When she flipped through the script for BBC America’s take on the bestsellers, Oh was confused. Unable to find the stereotypical role she’s usually asked to read for, she spoke with her agent. Oh finally learned that they wanted her for the lead, realizing how jaded she’d become to the invisible wall preventing the casting of non-white actors. “It’s like, ‘Oh, it’s so easy! They just called you!’” Oh says of her casting “Right? In a way, yes, that’s true. But in another way, it took 30 years to get this call.”

Oh’s opportunities to play a leading role have been few and far between. After leaving “Grey’s Anatomy,” in which she played Dr. Cristina Yang from 2005-2014, Oh worked in theater, appeared in films such as “Catfight” and “Meditation Park,” had a recurring role on “American Crime,” and starred in a web series, “Shitty Boyfriends.” But “Killing Eve” marks the next major chapter in her career.

Whatever the medium — theater, film, or TV — there have always been very few roles for people of Asian descent to play, especially in Hollywood. Scripts aren’t often written about our community. Screenplays that are usually struggle to find funding and end up being made independently, without much exposure. Hollywood hasn’t seen many Asian-Americans as actors with “box office mojo” — because we haven’t been given the opportunity to topline films — and in turn doesn’t call us in.

Across the top 100 films of 2017, only seven percent of female characters and just five percent of male characters were Asian, a study from Dr. Martha Lauzen and the Center for the Study of Women in Television and Film found. When we do land parts, it’s occasionally a supporting role — a friend, a co-worker, a bit player. The majority of the time, however, we’re offered stereotypical roles including manicurists, pharmacists, foreign exchange students, martial artists, or sex workers. And we’re often asked to add Asian accents to the dialogue. Or asked to translate a script into our parents’ mother tongue — yes, this really happened to me.

At my very first meeting with a talent agency, I was excited and ready to work. We started with some decent sides to tape. But then they asked me if I could do an additional take in an Asian accent. When I asked “Which one?” they replied, “Oh, just any.” It was like being dunked into an ice-cold bath. I felt like I was seeing the future of my career.

When will the TV and film industry start telling our stories, the ones that reflect who we actually are?

Asian-Americans have complex, rich histories. Yes, most of our families immigrated from other countries and we are heavily influenced by our families’ heritage and history. We love to go to karaoke and eat dim sum — just as much as we like to listen to Radiohead and eat a hot dog.

I was born and bred just outside of Toronto. I learned both English and Vietnamese. But being the stubborn child I was, and my desire to assimilate at school, I tried to speak as little Vietnamese as possible. This caused me to forget almost all the Vietnamese I knew, and I had to relearn it later. In short, my “Asian” accent sucks. Having to do the accent while speaking English seems so foreign and at times, offensive. It feels like I’m making fun of my parents. They also struggled hard to fit in at work and be understood.

But things are changing. We are seeing more and more Asian characters on TV and in film. On The CW’s “Crazy Ex-Girlfriend” Vincent Rodriguez III plays Josh Chan, the musical’s very hunky leading man. There is another Josh on the show who is referred to as “White Josh,” a classification that tickles me, as this usually happens the other way around. HBO’s “Succession” sees Rob Yang playing Lawrence Yee, the founder of a company. He’s not the stereotypical Japanese business man that we normally see on TV, and the show doesn’t even address the fact that he’s Asian.

So, we have a meeting of great new roles with the dated, stereotypical ones. If we were to ask Rob Yang, Vincent Rodriguez III, or Constance Wu, they would most likely reveal they’ve auditioned for more than a few stereotypical parts, and possibly even accepted some of those roles.

There is definitely a conflict here. I’d rather not take a role where I had to do an accent or fulfill a certain stereotype. But I also have to eat. It’s very hard to silently protest when you’re starving.

Fortunately, it seems that we are on the precipice of major change. More and more artists of Asian descent are working in the industry and writing their own stories. We’re seeing the community come together to stick up for Asian performers à la the #starringjohncho and #starringconstancewu movements. Sony is in the early stages of developing “Silk,” a film about Marvel’s Korean-American superhero Cindy Moon. I can’t wait to see her face plastered on the big screen, inspiring millions.

I’m hopeful that “Crazy Rich Asians” makes a major mark at the box office and Oh’s Emmy nomination — and “Killing Eve’s” popularity with critics and viewers — marks what will be a drastic change in how shows are cast and written.

Too few Asian actors are getting work, and we’re usually competing for scraps. Projects with three-dimensional Asian characters are few and far between, but they are powerful tools that can be used to help build a future with a more opportunities.

Kathy Huynh-Phan is a Vietnamese-Canadian actor and writer currently living in New York City. She works on stage, film, television, commercial, and voiceover. She especially loves to perform in and develop new work, exploring voices that haven’t been heard of before. You can find more information on her website.