American Born Chineseis a certified classic graphic novel.
Now it’s becoming a TV show and no one is more surprised about that than authorGene Luen Yang.
“I’m stunned that people are still reading it,” Yang tells EW.
Michelle Yeoh and Jim Liu in the ‘American Born Chinese’ TV series.Disney
I did not expect this when I first did that book.
That just checks every box for me as a TV writer."
That can be scary as an actor because you don’t do it very often."
Jin Wang (Ben Wang) and his parents on ‘American Born Chinese.'.Disney/Carlos Lopez-Calleja
“At the heart of the superhero genre is this blending of the fantastic and the mundane.
I think that really reflects the Asian-American experience in particular, and the immigrant child’s experience in general.
Many of us feel like we live in between two different worlds.
Daniel Wu stars as Sun Wukong the Monkey King in ‘American Born Chinese.'.Disney
For me, when I was a kid I spoke one language at home and another one at school.
I have one name at home and another one at school.
I lived under two different sets of cultural expectations.”
Yang continues, “In the show, the way that’s expressed is with mythology.
There really are two worlds in the show at least two.
It’s a great time to be a fan of Yeoh.
As it happens, Yeoh isn’t even the onlyEverything Everywherestar inAmerican Born Chinese.
Both Ke Huy Quan and Stephanie Hsu also appear in the series.
“She’s actually magic,” Wang says of Yeoh.
It’s just a great energy to have on set.
I probably was way too nervous around her all the time, I couldn’t shake that off.
I was like, ‘I’ll just use this nervousness.'”
American Born Chineseis set to premiere on Disney+ in 2023.
