Sandra Oh — Oh, She Made History
No one can argue with rapper Dumbfoundead’s line in the song Safe: “The other night I watched the Oscars, And the roster of the only yellow men were all statues.” During the Oscars in 2016, while the White actors and actresses raised their glasses, gave their speeches, and took their statues home, the Asian community was left waiting in the back parking lot.
But, there is hope.
In recent years, the media has been actively highlighting the dichotomy, pushing for more Hollywood productions and variety of roles for which Asian performers are casted. Take for instance Crazy Rich Asians — a love story directed by Jon M. Chu with an all-Asian cast without fortune cookies or tiger moms. The list of Asian-American actors is growing — there’s Steven Yeun of Sorry to Bother You, Ki Hong Lee of The Maze Runner series, Constance Wu of Crazy Rich Asians, John Cho of Searching, and the main-screen pioneer, Sandra Oh of Grey’s Anatomy.
Sandra Oh, nominated five times in the supporting category from Grey’s Anatomy, is now the first Asian woman to be nominated for lead actress in her drama series Killing Eve. In the BCC America thriller, Oh plays Eve Polastri, a M15 officer who is chasing after a serial killer and government agent played by Jodie Comer.
Oh’s nomination is groundbreaking; however, it is also frustrating. Although Oh has been a major presence in entertainment for more than a decade, she hasn’t received the deserved praise.
Born and raised in Canada to her Korean immigrant parents, Oh has been a loud advocate against the exclusion of asian representation in the entertainment industry. Oh told The Hollywood Reporter that while she has been nominated, she does not want the progress to stop there.
“I want the movement to keep on going. I want the ripple to turn into a wave,” she said.
Oh will be up against Claire Foy of The Crown, Tatiana Maslany of Orphan Black, Elisabeth Moss of The Handmaid’s Tale, Keri Russell of The Americans, and Evan Rachel Wood of Westworld.
The ceremony airs on Sept. 17. Click here for the nominations.
