James Hong’s SAG Awards speech proves we need all of his Hollywood stories
While picking up the honor for Best Ensemble in a Motion Picture, James Hong shares some of the good and bad times in Hollywood history
Aux News James Hong
With one of the best speeches of award season thus far, Hollywood veteran James Hong got to take the stage in a room full of his peers and finally talk his shit.
Everything Everywhere All At Once had a stellar evening at the 2023 SAG Awards, with Michelle Yeoh, Ke Huy Quan, and Jamie Lee Curtis all taking home statues for their respective roles in the sci-fi comedy, before earning SAG’s top prize for Cast in a Motion Picture.
Prior to handing the mic over to Hong, Yeoh introduced him. “There’s been one who has been supporting ensembles for longer than any of us have been alive,” she reflected. “He’s been acting since there were only 49 states, and he just turned 94. And it’s been 69 years in the making to get him to this stage.”
Hong kicked off his speech in Cantonese, because “we might be broadcast in Hong Kong,” before switching to English. With his fellow predominantly Asian cast members next to him on stage, Hong reflected on the time when Hollywood thought Asian actors could not play Asian characters and, flexing on everyone in the audience, recalled that his first film credit was in a Clark Gable movie. Oh, and he received his first SAG card a whopping 70 years ago, during a time when being Asian in Hollywood looked entirely different.
“Back in those days, I have to tell you this, the leading roles were played by these guys with their eyes taped up,” Hong says during his speech. “And the producer said that Asians were not good enough, and they are not box office. But, look at us now, huh?”
Since his debut in 1955's Soldier Of Fortune, Hong has amassed more acting credits than nearly anyone else in Hollywood history, with over 600 titles to his name. He became known for his work on Seinfeld, Chinatown, Blade Runner, Mulan, Big Trouble In Little China, Kung Fu Panda, and so much more, with recent roles in Turning Red and Wendell & Wild. However, his role as Gong Gong in EEAAO is the first to bring him to a major award stage in the states. He certainly seized his long-awaited moment, giving an emotionally deft speech fit with biting humor and plenty of crowd work.
He took moments to take a jab at Daniels’ wild script for EEAAO, and that Daniel Scheinert is in fact, white, before ending his speech by pulling a line from Yeoh’s own award season script: “Shut up. I can beat you up.”
At 94 years old, Hong’s been on more film and television sets than nearly anyone, and it’s a shame we’ll likely only ever hear about a sliver of his illustrious experience. However, as Hong says in his speech, we’ll hopefully see him again on the SAG stage at 100, and EEAAO will lead to even more opportunities to share his life story.
41 Comments
Oh, for a Will Harris Random Roles with James Hong.
Please make this happen! Please!! I know it’ll be a thousand pages long, but it’ll be worth it!
With our current roster of writers, I can get you a thirteen page slideshow on hypothetical projects that Wednesday Adams and Aubrey Plaza could potentially work on together. Would that work for you?
We rank the top 500 IMDB credits of James Hong.
He will always be Lo-Pan to me. Which I always used as a sorta father figure.
My mind immediately went there too from the headline. God, that would be (would’ve been? 😢) amazing.
Jesus, it would take so damn long!Worth it though.
I really do miss the good old days.
I sat down with him back in my early AVC days, but I only had a few minutes, and his hearing was…not great. Worse, it was in a bustling room, so the conversation was a bit of a struggle. Trust me, I would *love* a chance to sit down with him again!
Wasn’t he in Wayne’s World II?
flexing on everyone in the audience, recalled that his first film credit was in a Clark Gable movie. That’s a seriously impressive flex.
“he received his first SAG card a whopping 70 years ago”I think we have to call it an S.A.G. card.“Mulna”Dolores?
Multiple generations have grown up with him populating their favorite movies and TV shows. A true dude who worked his ass off. I hope he keeps getting recognition.
Yeah, guy’s a worker and I’m always happy when he shows up.
As someone who’s enjoyed his performances since I was a little kid, I am totally here for Hong flexing.
James Hong’s not my grandpa. But he’s definitely always been my grandpa.
I never heard of a movie called “Mulna.”
Is that one made by Dinsey?
How dare you leave out Lo Pan in Big Trouble in Little China?!
She…didn’t?“He became known for his work on Seinfeld, Chinatown, Blade Runner, Mulan, Big Trouble In Little China, Kung Fu Panda, and so much more”
Wonder if he still has that weird thing for green eyed girls.
There is actually a bit of real Chinese folklore mixed in with John Carpenter’s invention dealing with that. Green eyes are extremely rare in China (they are pretty much only common among people with Celtic ancestry) and so people with green eyes have often been seen as having mystical powers.
The movie is 90% direct mythological references like that, though.
I know we could do this all day, but in my mind, his list of impressive credits starts with Big Trouble in Little China. Not least because his incredible performance as Lo Pan seriously elevated the film without in any way ruining the fun.
Which Lo Pan? Little old basket case on wheels or the ten foot tall roadblock?
Oh man I at least think (if not say) “you were not brought upon this world to ‘get it’” every time someone says “I don’t get it”
Soldier of Fortune had a hard time filling the cast, because not many big stars of the time wanted to go to Hong Kong to make it. Grace Kelly and David Niven both dropped out before it ended up as we got it.
High Fives
Wow…94 years old. He really dove into that Lo Pan role! 😄Love James Hong. That is one hell of a career.
Cartwright? Cartwright!!
Made all the better for having absolutely no attempt to explain why he hears that name instead of Costanza.
We’re all strong for Hong!
It’s fucking shameful that this man is just now getting this level of recognition.
My first real-world memory of James Hong is an episode of MacGyver and him yelling “Child! Child!” thinking a special child could grant wishes. HE is one of my favorite character actors ever and I’m glad he’s getting this level of recognition.
One of the great character actors of the last century. A guy who is good in absolutely everything he’s in.
I could go on and on about how amazing James Hong is.To keep it brief, though, lemme just say that it takes an actor of James Hong’s skill to be able to be consistently hilarious in the otherwise-unfunny Balls of Fury.
I worked as a PA on a (terrible) western called Ghost Rock years ago. James Hong was in it (he’s in everything, after all) which was VERY exciting to me, as I’ve always loved him. He somehow got himself locked in his trailer and kept shouting out to the producers outside that he was going to kick the door down while they tried yelling frantically how to unlock it from the inside. I also had lunch with his daughter, who was working on the movie. She’s awesome.
There was an excellent early YouTube series “No Small Parts” that would deep dive on the lives and careers of supporting actors. It was sold to IMDB, acquired by Amazon, and now exists as 3-minute vignettes which might be fine but no comparison to the long originals.Fortunately the creator was able to re-publish his James Hong episode, one of the best, under his own new title. It’s an hour that flies by and leaves you wanting more.