Warning: SPOILERS for Hulu's Inner Chinatown!
Based on the novel of the same name by Charles Yu Inner Chinatown is a mind-bending, genre-bending series premiering on Hulu in November 2024. The show (executive produced by Taika Waititi and with Yu himself serving as showrunner) centers on a "Generic Asian Male" named Willis Wu (Jimmy O. Yang ) whose daily routine is disrupted when he witnesses a crime, which leads him to team up with Chinatown's mysterious new detective, Lana Lee (Chloe Bennet). As the layers of the mystery slowly unravel, Willis and Lana realize they are secondary characters in a police procedural called Black and white.
Inner ChinatownWillis's narrative-within-a-narrative introduces several other characters into Willis' life, whose agency is called into question when he realizes that the Chinatown they live in does not correspond to real life. A prime example includes Willis' day job at the Golden Palace, a stereotypical Chinese restaurant run by Uncle Wong (Power Rangers Lost GalaxyArchie Kao), who discovered he was discreetly helping "trafficked" people who appear in boxes in unknown locations. It turns out that these people are actually residents of the town who have supposedly passed away - only to be recycled as new background characters for Black and white.
TelaRant interviewed Kao about the bigger role Uncle Wong plays in Inner Chinatown mystery, how he connects the metatheatrical narrative of identity and belonging to his own life, and whether he would like to revisit Power Rangers for a special meeting or birthday.
Uncle Wong's big reveal inside Chinatown, episode 6, was a surprise even for Archie Kao
“I didn’t realize I was involved in everything I was involved in.”
ScreenRant: When you got the role of Uncle Wong, what stood out to you about the character?
Archie Kao: The funny thing is, I didn't even know about the big reveal in episode 6 [that Uncle Wong helps characters who have been "recycled"] until I was on set. This is where it becomes more indicative of who Uncle Wong is. In the early part of the series, I yell at people a lot, but there's actually a reason for that.
I didn't realize that was my arc when I joined the show, so I was exploring it while I was on set. I didn't realize I was involved in everything I was involved in.
ScreenRant: I wanted to ask about Uncle Wong's relationship with Fatty because I feel like he's protective of him, but he also knows he can push Fatty to be better than he is. Can you talk about working with Ronny Chieng on the series?
Archie Kao: First of all, I was a big fan of Ronny before. Either way, he is a tremendous talent and has a very generous spirit. I really like him as a person, so I'm extremely excited to see his continued success.
But I think the way Uncle Wong sees his relationship with Fatty is that they're both pillars of the community in their own capacities, and because this show imagines this group of residents inside Chinatown and how they're trying to make their way , there are inherent challenges to being Asian in America. Ronny's character, Fatty, made me laugh out loud watching him. He's a hilarious talent and has a lot of fun with this character, but at the end of the day he's still serving his community.
Fatty protects the residents from within, while his best friend Willis on the show is more about ventures outside Chinatown's borders. Frankly, Uncle Wong is afraid of this because he knows what dangers might reveal themselves out there.
ScreenRant: You're very familiar with police procedurals, but this show takes police procedurals and turns them on their head. I love that it's a narrative within a narrative. Do you have experience with CSI and Chicago PoliceBut can you talk about this show's approach to the procedure? I think he does a brilliant job of highlighting the tropes but also finding great character moments.
Archie Kao: When I first read this story, I thought, “I have to be a part of this. I will be very sad if I am unable to join this cast and this story.” Because that's how my personal journey in Hollywood felt, certainly after Power Rangers. I spent 10 years on CSI and was a supporting character the entire time. I was one of the only characters who I don't think ever had a flirtation with a love interest or something, who I used to refer to, jokingly but not jokingly, as the asexual Asian.
I think I was a little frustrated by that because when I was at the Chicago Police Department, I always felt like I knew that this wasn't going to be the character that saved the girl with the big gun; I would be the guy at headquarters they call. Interior Chinatown is obviously playing on this trope, where the show's pretty protagonists are the ones who get all the attention.
But that changes when you have new content creators, because content creators will create in their own likeness, which makes perfect sense. If Asians put on a show, we'd be doing the same thing. Every ethnicity does this because they want to see their stories reflected, so it's kind of ironic to use this procedural drama as a device we're all familiar with. We grew up seeing this on our screens. It uses this as architecture, and for those of you who I hope invest more interest in this, you'll see what we're really trying to say on the inside.
The Golden Palace has a deeper meaning inside Chinatown
“We think we can think of Chinatown and the Golden Palace as a safe and consistent place we can go.”
ScreenRant: The Golden Palace serves as a safe haven and a character in itself. How does the setting influence the dynamics of the characters in the series?
Archie Kao: In the first five episodes, there's a character that Lily wants to rent Old Fong's room to, and I'm really opposed to renting it to foreigners or outsiders because it's our little getaway. Certainly, I think we can think of Chinatown and the Golden Palace as a safe and consistent place we can go. Even though there is a kung fu fight that starts in the first episode, this is still something that happens under Chinatown's command and that they are aware of.
ScreenRant: Do you see any parallels between your personal experience and the character of Uncle Wong, especially in regards to his sense of protectiveness towards his community?
Archie Kao: Yes, definitely. I grew up with two younger sisters, so I always felt like the protective older brother. They're mixed race, so we were just navigating the terrain of how to move forward and being cautiously optimistic about what might exist in the world.
You don't want to be sad and discouraged about everything, but especially when you're girls out in the world, there's another level of anxiety that comes with that. My mother says it was easier to raise a boy than a girl.
ScreenRant: Can you share your perspective on the themes of identity and representation within Inner Chinatown?
Archie Kao: I hope that when people watch Inner Chinatown, they don't think of it as an Asian show, but rather as a show about identity. It's about what we all try to do in our lives, figuring out where we fit in and where we can have value and feel appreciated. This is really the crux of the matter.
Obviously, we're looking at this through the lens of being Asian, but at the heart of it is the fact that this inner Chinatown is an extended family. As we said, the Golden Palace is a metaphor for another character who wants to hug you and protect you.
ScreenRant: What did you want to bring to the role of Uncle Wong that went beyond the page?
Archie Kao: Uncle Wong is someone who has a foot in both worlds of this meta-type show. My character is one who knows what dangers lurk beyond borders, which is why it's scary for me to have Willis adventuring and taking risks out there. Uncle Wong isn't even an immigrant, so he's just trying to be very aware of these people who are here; coming from anywhere in the diaspora to try to build their opportunity in the next phase of their lives. He doesn't want to see them get hurt.
Archie Kao reflects on the legacy of Power Rangers Lost Galaxy and his interest in playing Kai once again
“We’re trying to figure out when we’re going to get together.”
ScreenRant: I think Power Rangers is such an underrated show because it's one of the only shows that teaches you how to act, do fight choreography, and voice acting all at the same time. I would say it's a university for young actors.
Archie Kao: Oh, man. I never thought of it that way, but you're right. I didn't realize at the time how lucky I was to do this because I didn't really know what Power Rangers were for some reason. But it was like a training ground for young actors to learn how to achieve their goals, to work in the culture of a work set. There are only certain things you can do in an acting class, but you actually need to learn some things on the job.
Not to mention how much fun it was. Even though I was almost 30 when I started the show, I feel like my castmates and I have kind of grown up together, in a lot of ways. As we shared some of these formative years together, they will always be very special to me. I was on the phone with Reggie a few days ago. We are still in contact with each other; we have a group chat with all the Rangers and we're trying to figure out when we'll meet up.
ScreenRant: Your Power Rangers show was 25 years ago. Would you return to the role of Kai Chen at some point?
Archie Kao: Like a middle-aged Kai? I would be happy to reconnect with this character. I don't know how that would make sense, but I'd be willing to talk about it. Where is the show now?
I wish I could take credit for its impact, but I was lucky enough to join the cast. After all these years, I see that it brought joy to all these people and I was a beneficiary of that. I wish I could say it was my doing, but it wasn't. But I'm very excited about any possible experience with them in and around the franchise. I would be happy to consider it.
ScreenRant: Another thing you're passionate about is Homes for the Homeless. Can you tell us more about that and the impact you hope to achieve through this nonprofit?
Archie Kao: Yes, it's an opportunity to have another chance at a better life. When I was not even 1 year old, my mother and father had a very bitter separation and she had no money to feed me. She was an immigrant and her options were limited, but this really wonderful family from northwestern Pennsylvania literally took me in and put me up on a farm with them for the first few years of my childhood.
I grew up as a farmer and would get up at the sound of the rooster, put on my overalls and clean the pigsties, or climb into the silos and push the hay down. I remember kneading dough to make apple pie, and the funny thing is, life was so American that I didn't even know I was Asian. This family had five children, but they didn't treat me any differently. They punished me when I misbehaved, of course, but they never treated me any differently. This just goes to show that cultural bias is indeed taught. You have to teach, because children don't know when they are young. They just want to play.
But because that family was so wonderful, they gave me the opportunity to have the life I have now. An acting career can certainly be frustrating because it doesn't always go my way, but at least I'm committed to pursuing the life I want to have because they gave me that opportunity. There are some people who may have fallen down on their luck or something, and transformative housing can do a lot for them.
We're actually also a HUD representative office, so we can also look at the criteria for people at risk of homelessness because it's not generic. We also provide services to help you recover and run vocational programs with at-risk youth to provide them with skill sets to take into their lives so they can add value and earn a living for themselves. We've seen this to be really helpful in countless ways, so I'm proud to be a part of it. It's a huge undertaking, but it's also very rewarding.
More about the interior of Chinatown, season 1
Based on the award-winning book of the same name by Charles Yu, the show follows the story of Willis Wu, a background character trapped in a police procedural called Black & White. Relegated to the background, Willis does his job on screen, waiting tables, dreaming of a world beyond Chinatown and aspiring to be the protagonist of his own story. When Willis inadvertently becomes a witness to a crime, he begins to unravel a criminal web in Chinatown, while uncovering his own family's buried history and what it's like to be in the spotlight.
Check out our others Inner Chinatown interviews here: