You may know Korean American actor Tim Jo as the sweet, innocent alien teenager Reggie Jackson on the ABC sitcom The Neighbors, but what happens when you switch out his character’s signature polo shirts and khakis… and dress him up like a Korean pop star?
In the meantime, some Audrey Behind-the-Scenes Extras: Tim Jo’s self-described “incredible” story of how he got to Los Angeles.
Tim Jo as Reggie Jackson in ABC’s The Neighbors.
We’re pretty outspoken about our love for Baby Lily, played by twin baby actresses Jaden and Ella Hiller on the hit sitcom, Modern Family.
So while we are going to miss them now that EW has revealed the show has cast the 4-year-old daughter of Korean American comedienne and longtime Audrey favorite, Amy Anderson, we are super excited by this casting news!
Aubrey Anderson-Emmons will now take over for the role of Lily, the adopted Vietnamese daughter of Mitchell (Jesse Tyler Ferguson) and Cameron (Eric Stonestreet).
Showrunner Steve Levitan lauded the child actress, calling her a “natural.”
“She really enjoys the process,” Levitan said, “And she looks just like Jaden and Ella! When we had her do a scene, she sounded natural — not like a cutesy kid actor.”
Sounds like Aubrey’s going to have an amazing time on Modern Family!
Check out KoreAm Journal’s 2009 feature story on Amy and other single KA ladies.
What do you think about the new Lily?
Spring break is almost here, and while many of my peers are out and about taking shots at 11 am and frolicking on the beach, one of my all time favorite pasttimes is to crack open a can of Diet Coke and sit on the couch and watch the TV until the sun goes down. Luckily for my fellow couch potatoes and me, there are many new shows either premiering or returning on air this season, four of them including actors and actresses of Asian descent. Now all that’s left to do is sit back, relax, and enjoy the shows … all spring.
FOX's new series "Traffic Light" stars Filipina American actress Liza Lapira, third from left. (Check out the adorable hapa baby!)
"The Gates" premieres tonight on ABC.
Just ’cause it’s summer doesn’t mean there’s nothing to watch on TV. We told you about the shows with AA stars that premiered a few weeks ago, including the new Pretty Little Liars and the return of Drop Dead Diva, as well as all the reality show competitions like The Next Food Network Star, Top Chef and Work of Art: The Next Great Artist.
Well, tonight, a highly anticipated new series premieres, one that delves into the whole vampire craze we’re still mired in. The Gates follows the oh-so perfect lives of the residents of the exclusive suburban community The Gates. Now, if you’ve watched the trailers, you know that some of those perfect residents are actually vampires. And yes, I’m a Twilight fan, but that’s not the main reason I’ll be watching the show. There are two good reasons for anyone to watch this blood-fest: two Asian American actresses represent on The Gates tonight, premiering on ABC at 9 pm.
Rhona Mitra, who is of Indian-English-Irish descent, plays Claire Radcliff, the perfect Gates housewife and mother. She has a beautiful home, a handsome husband, and a daughter she loves dearly. But beneath the flawless exterior, Claire is struggling with a unique addiction — one that has the power to destroy her family and everything she holds dear if she fails to keep her urges in check. (Guess we know who one of the vampires are!)
Rhona Mitra plays perfect housewife -- or is she? -- Claire Radcliff in The Gates.
Another AA actress in the series is Janina Gavankar, who plays Deputy Leigh Turner. Always ready with a witty retort and a sharp observation, Leigh is an intimidating addition to The Gates police force. But there’s more to Leigh than the tough exterior, and when it comes to love, she’s got a bad streak going.
Janina Gavankar is cool and confident as Deputy Leigh Turner in The Gates.
Gavankar, who is of Indian and Dutch descent, is best known for her role as the promiscuous Papi in The L Word. Other television credits include Stargate Atlantis, Grey’s Anatomy, The Cleaner, Dollhouse, NCIS and Three Rivers. She’s a native of Joliet, Ill., and is an accomplished pianist, vocalist and orchestral percussionist. Once a member of the girl group Endera, she has had several of her songs licensed for various films and television series.
I’ll be watching The Gates, just because of Gavankar and Mitra. Well, that and morbid curiosity. Will you?
Photos courtesy of ABC.
Bemoaning the loss of Lost? It’s the same feeling we had after Friends and Seinfeld ended. Well, television execs are not giving up on you so easily. They’ve got a whole slew of shows set to premiere for the summer season, starting tonight. Here, some shows with some AA representation you may wanna watch this week.
Drop Dead Diva, Lifetime
Premieres Sunday, June 6, 9 pm
Former Audrey cover girl Margaret Cho returns as the title character’s sassy assistant Teri in the second season of the Lifetime hit series Drop Dead Diva. Here’s the premise: shallow wannabe model Deb dies in a sudden car accident only to find her soul resurfacing in the body of a brilliant, plus-size and recently deceased attorney, Jane (Brooke D’Orsay). Deb has to come to terms not just with Jane’s curvier frame, but with how to reconcile her beauty-queen ways with her brilliant new mind. D’Orsay does an amazing job conveying Deb-in-Jane, and based on some premiere photos, it looks like Cho is gonna take on a bigger role in the series.
Margaret Cho as Teri, Jane's assistant in the law firm. Photo courtesy of Lifetime.
Looks like Cho 's gonna be upping her game in the second season of Drop Dead Diva. Photo courtesy of Lifetime.
Pretty Little Liars, ABC Family
Pretty Little Liars.
Premieres Tuesday, June 8, 8 pm
You’ve seen the billboards. Four hot young girls, covered in dirt. Eye catching, to say the least. But what really stood out to me is the girl on the far right, actress Shay Mitchell.
Mitchell plays Emily Fields, an athletic girl who is struggling with her sexuality and the loss of her best friend. Emily, along with her now estranged, former BFFs, holds a deep, dark secret within in what appears to be the perfect little town of Rosewood. But they’re not the only ones with secrets apparently, as things start to go very wrong.
Mitchell, whose mother is Filipino and father is Irish-Scottish, is a native of Toronto, Canada. She’s been performing and modeling since the age of 5, appearing in the hit series DeGrassi: The Next Generation and Disney’s Aaron Stone. She is featured in the music video for Sean Paul’s hit song “Hold My Hand” and will appear in the upcoming ABC series Rookie Blue.
Filipina-Irish-Scottish American actress Shay Mitchell.
Shay Mitchell and co-star Ashley Benson at the Prince of Persia premiere.
Troian Bellisario, Shay Mitchell, Ashley Benson and Lucy Hale of Pretty Little Liars.
But Mitchell is not the token Asian in this series. Janel Parrish also stars in Pretty Little Liars as now popular classmate Mona Vanderwall. Parrish, best known for her role as Jade in the Bratz series, and May in NBC’s Heroes, was born in Oahu, Hawaii, and is Chinese-Caucasian American.
Janel Parrish in Pretty Little Liars.
Doreen Fang competes on the new season of The Next Food Network Star.
The Next Food Network Star, The Food Network
Premieres Sunday, June 6, 9 pm
Another season of cooking hopefuls looking to land their own show. Last season, Korean American Debbie Lee made it to the top three. This season, Chinese American Doreen Fang is gonna try to make it with her California cuisine with Asian influences.
The 38-year-old from Los Angeles co-owns a catering company and teaches cooking classes for adults and children. Raised in a predominantly Chinese community, Fang says she finds culinary inspiration in her family and friends, and wants to encourage home cooks of all levels to explore new cuisines, and stretch their imagination in recreating dishes inspired by a childhood memory or favorite haunts.
True Beauty, ABC
Mondays, 10 pm
Last (and unfortunately, probably least), we have yet another season of the reality show competition where contestants think they’re being judged on their good looks, but they’re actually being judged on their “inner beauty.” (They haven’t figured it out yet??)
Vanessa Minnillo hosts True Beauty.
Filipina-Italian American Vanessa Minnillo returns to host, and this time, they’ve got an Asian American contestant, Amy, who was adopted from Korea as an infant. The bio on Amy on ABC’s website describes her as “ditzy” and she says she “doesn’t identify with Asian culture.” Hm. I say, watch at your own peril.
True Beauty contestant Amy.
