Five weeks ago, one woman and just three words blew up society’s expectations of how a 60-year-old Malaysian-Chinese actress should act. She said, “Shut up, please.”
Those three words were voiced by actress Michelle Yeoh. She had just won the Golden Globes’ Award for Best Actress in Everything Everywhere All At Once (2022) and was in the middle of her acceptance speech. She was discussing how her nationality, race, gender, and age had presented barriers in her career—topics that A-list stars rarely talk about—when a pre-recorded track interrupted her. She had run out of time, and the Golden Globes was trying to usher her off the stage.
Her response meant the world to me.
In that moment, Yeoh defied what society and Hollywood expected from a person of her identity: to quietly, quickly, and gracefully wrap up her speech.
Yet, she was not afraid to stand her ground. She had something meaningful to say, and she made sure to say it.
She continued on, powerfully highlighting an important issue about womens’ longevity in the film industry: “as the days, the years, and the numbers [got] bigger, it [seemed] like opportunities [started] to get smaller as well.”
This instance is a case in point of Yeoh’s characteristic perseverance and tenacity. As an Asian girl who wants to pursue a career in film, seeing these qualities on display was inspiring and motivating. If not for Michelle Yeoh and her effects on the industry, I could not have this dream.
In her 40-year-long career, Yeoh has blazed a fresh path for so many: Asians, girls and women, older people, non-Americans, and more. I feel represented and empowered by her, and that’s why her moment at the Golden Globes was so extraordinary.
Yeoh’s strong stance at the Golden Globes was especially important as the highly popular star of Everything Everywhere All At Once (EEAAO), an A24-produced action and drama film about the multiverse, an immigrant experience, and generational trauma directed Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinhert that dominated the box office last summer, garnering $104 million worldwide. Many attribute much of the film’s success to Yeoh’s stunning performance as Evelyn Wang, the main character of EEAAO.
Yeoh not only delivered emotive acting in the film, but also comedy and action, taking on the majority of her martial arts stunts in the film.
When the film was first released, my mom told my family: “We have to watch it soon! It won’t be in theaters long.” I was surprised and asked her why, and she explained that Asian-led movies didn’t appeal to big enough audiences and couldn’t last in theaters. So we went to see it that weekend.
Coming out of the theater, my mind was blown, and my heart was racing. The film was incredible. I was impressed by how the story was so personal and universal at the same time.
Personally, I felt seen in the story. Evelyn—Yeoh’s character—reminded me of my own grandmother, an immigrant from Taiwan. Instead of opening a laundromat like Evelyn in EEAAO, my grandmother opened a Chinese restaurant. The generational trauma between Evelyn and her daughter, Joyce, presented itself in my family, too. Joyce’s struggle as an Asian-American girl between eastern and western worlds related to my experience. The list goes on.
No matter how good I thought the movie was, my mom’s voice remained: how could this film, something so chaotic and very Asian, be appreciated by others?
Somehow, though, EEAAO reached across the world, breaking barriers of how we, the world, define a successful “global” action film.
Besides extreme box office success, EEAAO received huge critical acclaim, scoring eight Golden Globe nominations, 14 Critics Choice nominations, and 11 Oscar nominations.
Yeoh is the first Asian-identifying actress nominated for a Best Actress Oscar.
By bringing an underrepresented demographic into the mainstream, Yeoh has become an important role model for Asians, Asian-Americans, and, really, anyone who’s ever been a misfit.
Michelle Yeoh has encouraged me, even when many other influential people in the film industry would not, to chase a dream.
Michelle Yoeh is blazing a path for young Asian girls across the world, and I can’t wait to see what she does next.
