Asian actress Michelle Yeoh won the best actress award for the movie “Everything Everywhere All at Once” at the 2022 Golden Globe Awards. She became the second Asian actress to win the award. this. However, according to Global Timesher speech on stage revealed the racism against Asian minorities in Hollywood over the years.
The actress shared the moment she was a victim of racism in the movie capital. “I remember going to Hollywood for the first time. It was truly a dream come true, however it was only beautiful until I was here, because of the color of my skin. I’ve heard people say:” You are just a minority,” the actress shared.
Michelle Yeoh’s speech partly revealed the barriers that many Asian actors face, even though they have worked very hard but have little chance to make their Hollywood dream come true.
Duong Tu Quynh and a voice against racism in Hollywood
Duong Tu Quynh at the Golden Globe Awards 2022. (Photo: NBC).
Asian communities have historically been frequently marginalized in the US, this includes Asian actors in Hollywood. For years, Hollywood was plagued by the heavily racist stereotype of Asian nerds, dangerous blacks, and fiery Latinos.
Racism has really become a “convention” in Hollywood, producers don’t want to hire “minority” actors of any kind. It is not until they are criticized and opposed that they have to give people of color a chance as a form of charity. But even in that case, the movie moguls still have a ranking list in their hearts that prioritizes hiring blacks and then Asians.
Michelle Yeoh recalls that when she first came to Hollywood, someone told her, “If we use a black male lead, there’s no way she’ll play the female lead, because we can’t have two minorities in the movie.” .
Chinese actress Zhang Ziyi also confirmed this bizarre practice in Hollywood. She once said in an interview: “Hollywood bullies Asian actors. They will pay you very low wages because they know you are hungry for opportunity. The roles they give Asians are often very difficult. superficiality If there is a role that has no depth, they will favor non-white actors.In Hollywood’s giant “vanity fair”, if you want to be noticed it’s not difficult, but if you want to Being a real actor is tough.”
In the service of “political correctness”, Hollywood has produced a number of minority films but the characters often fall within stereotypes within pre-existing stereotypes. The broadcast “I can beat you up – I can give you a match” by Duong Tu Quynh expressed the voice of the racial group that wanted to fight against prejudice.
While enduring and fighting prejudices in Hollywood for many years, Michelle Yeoh finally won the award at the age of 60. “As time went on, last year I turned 60. And I think it all depends. All women understand that as age increases, opportunities also decrease. But the greatest gift came to me. It was “Everything Everywhere All at Once” and I can beat anything,” she said.