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This year’s Oscar winner Ke Huy Quan was already a star as a child. Then he disappeared into oblivion for decades.
It’s a story that not only Hollywood loves, but all of America: A Vietnamese boatman comes to the United States at the age of eight and becomes a child movie star at the age of twelve.
After that he falls into oblivion. But 40 years after his debut, he is once again at the top. With cheers, he is allowed to accept an Oscar because he never gave up.
Dubious Myth
“This is the American Dream,” Ke Huy Quan cried out in tears when he received the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor in “Everything Everywhere All at Once”.
Legend:
American dream with downsides: Ke Huy Quan poses with his Oscar in the press room of the Academy Awards.
Keystone/EPA/CAROLINE BREHMAN
America, the land of opportunity and second chances. The myth celebrated at the Oscars hides the ugly side of the story. For a long time, Asian-born actors were hardly given roles beyond stereotypical figures.
A rascal with charm
Ke Huy Quan’s film debut in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom is probably still remembered by many. He played the little boy who pulls up outside the Shanghai nightclub to rescue Indiana Jones and Willie Scott.
Legend:
The rascal and the archaeologist: Ke Huy Quan made his big appearance alongside Harrison Ford in 1984 as “Short Round”.
Paramount Pictures
“Short round, step on it,” Indy calls out to him and you can see that the boy needs wooden blocks on his feet so that he can press the gas pedal. As Indy’s sidekick, he was concerned for the comic moments that thrived on his mischievous charm.
It was a steep start for Quan, starring opposite Harrison Ford and directed by Steven Spielberg. However, only one other role followed as a child star in a major US production: In 1985, Quan played the technology freak Richard “Data” Wang in the adventure comedy “The Goonies”.
Legend:
His second and last appearance as a child star: Ke Huy Quan as Richard “Data” Wang in “The Goonies”. After that, he hardly appeared in Hollywood films.
Warner Bros.
After that, the actor only appeared in little-known films and series, some of them Asian productions. “It wasn’t easy for me to get work as an Asian actor,” he said in recent interviews. And if so, they were often roles in martial arts productions.
In the shadows instead of in the headlights
In the early 2000s, he gave up his acting career. Quan went to the University of Southern California, where he received his film degree. He worked behind the camera for the next 20 years. Among other things, he choreographed the fight scenes in the first “X-Men” film, was a stunt coordinator and assistant director.
Quan wanted to work in the spotlight again. However, he had doubts. “I thought for a long time that I would never be as successful as I was when I was a child,” Quan said when he was awarded the Golden Globe two months ago for his role in “Everything Everywhere All at Once”.
Long overdue recognition
In this film, Ke Huy Quan was not only given the opportunity to live his almost lost dream again. He also received more awards for it than for all his work before.
Legend:
A decision that is long overdue: Oscar winner Michelle Yeoh and the other participants in “Everything Everywhere All at Once” are happy about the many awards for the film.
Keystone/Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP
If Michelle Yeoh is the first Asian woman to win an Oscar for Best Actress, Quan is only the second Asian winner of an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor. Before him, only Haing S. Ngor was honored in «The Killing Fields». That was in 1984, the same year that Quan first appeared on screen.
The fact that Yeoh and Quan have now been awarded is no coincidence, but a long overdue recognition of the achievements of the artists with an Asian background. They had to wait long enough for it. In the case of Ke Huy Quan, almost 40 years.