It’s about this family who is Asian,
but then it’s not, like, about them being Asian.
-It isn’t. Yeah. -They’re just Asian.
And then they have a life, and they have a story.
And then people – I don’t know if people really understand
how rare that is for us, for my community,
the Asian community, that that...
For us to have a family that’s not there
because they’re Asian
and because of a representation
is so kind of low
that it is a kind of meaningful thing
to see a family that’s just being a family
and having family issues that are not really...
So, therefore, it’s kind of even more universal
than an Asian show
that’s super Asian specific.
And it’s nice that way. I mean, we really...
As an audience member, I’ve craved it,
and so it’s nice to be involved in it.
I was in Margaret Cho’s show in the 90s.
-That was “All-American Girl.” -I think that was
the first Asian family. -First Asian-American family.
-Yeah. -Yeah. And, so, you know, my...
When I compare the experience that I had on Margaret’s show,
Margaret struggled a lot, and not...
and not for any reasons that were related to Margaret
and Margaret’s stardom or talent.
It was a different time,
and Margaret was kind of, in some ways, shoehorned
into a kind of corporate idea of what Margaret could be.
And Awkwafina is allowed to really do her thing.
Awkwafina has taken the initiative
to hire writers around her
and surround herself with many women writers
and with people of color as well as directors.
And I think it shows in the final product.
We don’t flinch about all of the things
that we’re describing in the show
that are either specifically Asian
or related to being Asian because they’re all
kind of from and created by the people
who really know what those things are.
It comes from an authentic place.
-It does. -Right. It’s interesting
’cause I remember Michelle Yeoh said
that, you know, after “Crazy Rich Asians,”
which was really beautiful – she said,
“We have no problem laughing at ourselves,
but laugh with us, not at us.” -Yes, absolutely.
And there was a history of us
being laughed at or derided or whatever that took us...
It has taken us a long time
to even teach people that there’s a difference.
You know, the difference between those two things.