A new A-B-C Series --
"Fresh off the Boat"
takes a look at the lives
of immigrants in America.
This morning we're
talking LIVE with TWO of
the show's stars.
Constance Wu and Randall
Park. They're live in
Los Angeles. Good
morning!
There hasn't been a
TV show with an
all-Asian American main
cast in 20 years. What do
you think is important
about the timing
of this show and its
relevance to today? A
show like this is long
overdue. It shouldn't
have taken 20 years. It's
undeniable people want to
see more diversity on TV.
It's being proven by the
ratings. People want to
see different voices
being represented. My
hope is that our show
will lead to even more
shows that will portray
people in more complex
ways. What do you
think makes Fresh Off the
Boat a standout comedy? A
lot of the press is
focusing on how it is
only the second time in
history that a
network has featured an
entirely Asian American
cast, and I think it
stands out not because of
what everyone else is
saying about it being an
Asian comedy, but because
at this point in America,
the Asian experience is
so incredibly diverse
that the story has become
more of an archetype for
the immigrant experience,
not the Asian experience.
I think that is a very
unifying idea. The fact
that we could
unify ourselves via
laughter is just one of
the warmest ways
you could do it. It
really has become part of
the immigrant experience
to be new in town.
Laughing over our
similarities
instead of fighting over
our differences, that is
what I think
will make it special.
You have guest starred in
television series in the
past, but
how does it feel to step
into a lead role? CW:
It's different for sure.
I have to be a lot more
farsighted in terms of
the arc of the story of
the episode and also the
arc of this family. When
you go into a guest star
role, like for example on
Law & Order, you are
focused on this one
particular crime and how
it affects this
character, but when you
are carrying a show as a
series regular, I really
had to create a biography
and a long narrative of a
history and a future for
this character so it will
inform my choices in a
more resonant way.
How does it feel to play
a mom? CW: That was
originally a challenge.
Obviously, I don't have
kids of my own and I am
very far from that stage
of my life, so that is
2 C1 2 B1
"Fresh off the boat" airs
TUESDAY nights -- at 7 --
RIGHT HERE on KITV-4. So
be sure to tune in --
right after our KITV-4
news at 6.