The series chronicles the trials and tribulations of a regular American teenager whose life is forever changed when he befriends the son of a mythological god.
It was clear immediately: Michelle Yeoh was the only choice to play a goddess, says Kelvin Yu.
Yu is the showrunner of American Born Chinese, which is based on Gene Luen Yang’s groundbreaking graphic novel that chronicles the trials and tribulations of a regular American teenager whose life is forever changed when he befriends the son of a mythological god. The story, of a young man’s battle for his own identity, is told through family, comedy, and action-packed Kung-Fu.
In the narrative, Oscar winner Yeoh plays who plays an unassuming auntie who maintains her secret identity as the Goddess of Compassion;
The series also stars Ben Wang in the lead role, and yet another Oscar winne, Ke Huy Quan, who plays Freddy Wong, a fictional character from a popular mid-1990s sitcom;
Also, the series creator, Yu is joined on the creative team by Destin Daniel Cretton, who serves as executive producer and director. Yang rounds out the team as an executive producer of the series.
Yeoh explains that, “In the Chinese families, you have an altar, and you always have the Goddess of Mercy, because she’s the Goddess of Compassion and she is there ‑‑ she didn’t go back to the heavens, because she stayed to look after the people of the world. So, all of us have the Goddess of Mercy in our house.”
Because of this, Yu says, “When you’re casting that role, it’s sort of like casting the Queen of England or the Great Gatsby or something — you need somebody that has that kind of weight, and I don’t know that there’s anybody more than Michelle Yeoh who can enter a room and you’re like, ‘Yeah, that’s a goddess.
