Best Asian American TV and Film Roles in 2015

Constance Wu in "Fresh Off the Boat." (Ron Tom / ABC)
Aziz Ansari in "Master of None," Constance Wu in "Fresh Off the Boat," and Vincent Rodriguez III in "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend" make the list, according to CAAM staff and community folks.

The year of 2015 quickly became a pivotal year for Asian Americans in media, and on television in particular. Yes, we had Emma Stone playing a mixed race Chinese character in Aloha on the big screen, but we also had the launch of the third Asian American sitcom with ABC’s Dr. Ken (the first being Margaret Cho’s All-American Girl and Fresh Off the Boat, in its second season). We witnessed the power of truthful and personal storytelling with Aziz Ansari and Alan Yang’s Netflix hit, Master of None. We were introduced to many awesome supporting characters on television, and are hopeful that these actors will continue to do great things (see our listicle here). Not to mention Kal Penn and Margaret Cho, who are both in talks of their own TV series. While not as eventful as what has taken place on TV, there were definitely some standout roles on the big screen as well.

CAAM gathered our own staffers, interns, community partners and friends and asked: “Who would you nominate for the best TV and film roles featuring an Asian American character from 2015?”

Without further ado, here are our picks for best roles featuring an Asian American:

Constance Wu in Fresh Off the Boat
“Every time I watch Fresh Off the Boat, I derive great pleasure in watching Jessica be a mom. Perhaps because I am a mom, Jessica does everything my mom did to me that I now struggle to not re-do to my kid. Superbly acted by Constance Wu, Jessica is a complicated Asian American woman character whose unexpected parenting strategies bring me back for more.” —Dawn Lee Tu, PhD, Director, Asian Pacific American Student Development, UC Berkeley 

masterofnoneAziz Ansari in Master of None
“With just two episodes from this debut season of Master of None (Parents + Indians on TV) Ansari managed to tackle both immigrant families and Asian American media representations without being overly didactic about it. And more importantly, he’s created a relatable character in a well-written, well-directed series. For those of us who watched him on Parks and Recreation, we knew he could be funny but I don’t know how many of us realized he had the ability to pull off a grander vision like this.” —Oliver Wang, sociology professor and author of Legions of Boom: Filipino American Mobile DJ Crews of the San Francisco Bay Area

Krista Marie Yu in Dr. Ken
“Her on-screen brother Albert Tsai had a pretty good year too, playing Eddie’s nemesis Phillip Goldstein on “Fresh Off the Boat” before landing the role of Dr. Ken’s son Dave, but there’s something about the sparkle in Krista Marie Yu’s eye every time her character Molly cleverly gets her way. I feel like I’ll be rooting for her for a very long time.” —Ada Tseng, writer/editor at XFINITY Asia, Asia Pacific Arts and Audrey; host of the Asian pop culture podcast, Bullet Train and creator of the series Haikus with Hotties

Conrad Ricamora in How to Get Away with Murder
“My favorite Asian American character of 2015 has to be Conrad Ricamora’s Oliver Hampton on How to Get Away with Murder. Oliver’s role as a gay, mixed Asian, HIV-positive man is so important. As a queer mixed Asian person, watching Oliver on screen is affirming and exciting. I also think Oliver’s HIV-positive status is really significant in terms of television and mass media. He is the first major HIV-positive character to appear on a broadcast network since ABC’s Brothers & Sisters, which was cancelled in 2011. Oliver has proven to be much more than an ‘Asian sidekick’ with a nuanced character profile and evolving trajectory.” —Mika Hernandez, CAAMedia.org contributing writer

Ravi Patel in Meet the Patels and Master of None
“For me, Ravi Patel is the winner for “Breakout South Asian in Entertainment” this year, for the success of the documentary that he is featured in: Meet The Patels, where he shows off his own charm, but especially that of his parents and family, and also for staring in what I thought was the best episode of Aziz Ansari’s Netflix Masterpiece Master of None: ‘Indians on TV.'” —Neelanjana Banerjee, CAAM contributor and Managing Editor of Kaya Press

Peter Sohn in The Good Dinosaur
“Peter Sohn as Forrest Woodbush (a.k.a. the Pet Collector) in the Disney/Pixar film, The Good Dinosaur (which he also directed). I know his role was small (he appeared in only one scene), but I thought he was a perplexingly odd yet funny character. I would have liked it if he had appeared in at least one other scene. My favorite line: “This is Dreamcrusher. He protects me from having unrealistic goals.” —Lauren Lola, writer and CAAMFest intern

kihongleemazerunnerKi Hong Lee in Maze Runner and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
“2015 was a big year for Lee. He plays Dong Nguyen, the adorable love interest of Kimmy Schmidt (played by Ellie Kemper), in the Tina Fey Netflix original series. Everytime he appears onscreen, I’m like, yes! I can’t wait to find out what happens between him and Kimmy Schmidt in the nest season. Lee also plays Minho in the Maze Runner films. He is also in Wong Fu Productions’ first feature film, Everything Before Us, that came out in 2015.” —Momo Chang, Content Manager, Center for Asian American Media

Jessica Henwick in Star Wars: The Force Awakens
“Yes, there are Asians in a galaxy far, far away. And some of them are pretty badass. Blink and you’ll miss it, but British actress Jessica Henwick blasts into the much-hyped latest Star Wars installment as ace X-wing pilot Jess Pava, who flies in the climactic Resistance assault on the First Order’s Starkiller Base. The role is small, but her presence in that cockpit means everything.” —Phil Yu, blogger and Asian American media mogul, Angry Asian Man

Steven Yeun in The Walking Dead
“Favorite Asian American TV role hands down goes to Glenn Rhee/Steven Yeun from The Walking Dead (Honorable Mention: Dev Shah/Aziz Ansari in Master of None). I think what’s refreshing is that the character of Glenn and his plotline have nothing to do with him being Asian American—he’s just a pizza delivery boy turned badass that’s just trying to survive and make a life out of this zombie-ridden world that is the Walking Dead. Plus and probably most important, did I mention he’s a badass?” —Lin Kung, Festival Assistant Director, Center for Asian American Media

Vincent Rodriguez in Crazy Ex-Girlfriend
“I’m really loving Crazy Ex-Girlfriend‘s Vincent Rodriguez III, who kind of reminds me of an Asian American Joey Tribianni—not the brightest guy, but extremely lovable and good-hearted. One of my favorite storylines with him so far involves him seeking advice from his young, hip priest who counsels him over a game of basketball, and the priest is played Rene Gube, a staff writer on the show who wrote the Filipino Thanksgiving episode.” —Ada Tseng, writer/editor at XFINITY Asia, Asia Pacific Arts and Audrey; host of the Asian pop culture podcast, Bullet Train and creator of the series Haikus with Hotties

Jacqueline Kim in a scene from Jennifer Phang's ADVANTAGEOUS, playing at the 58th San Francisco International Film Festival, April 23 - May 7, 2015. Photo courtesy of the San Francisco Film Society.
Jacqueline Kim in a scene from Jennifer Phang’s ADVANTAGEOUS, playing at the 58th San Francisco International Film Festival, April 23 – May 7, 2015. Photo courtesy of the San Francisco Film Society.

Jacqueline Kim in Advantageous
“Jacqueline Kim plays a strong woman lead character in this sci-fi film that touches on issues of gender, family, motherhood and race. The film has roots in Asian American independent cinema, including a screening at CAAMFest 2013 of the short version of the film. As a mother, I was really drawn in by Kim’s performance as a mother who wants to best opportunities for her daughter. It’s a futuristic film with universal appeal.” —Momo Chang, Content Manager, Center for Asian American Media

Daniel Wu in Into the Badlands
“I’m probably totally and completely biased with this one because I think Daniel Wu is absolutely hot in Into the Badlands. But I’m gonna try to set aside those feels to explain why he made this list. The backstory to how Into the Badlands and Sunny came to be is in itself noteworthy but Wu plays Sunny that shows off his real authentic martial arts chops as well as with a slow burn that keeps me coming back for more. I know Sunny’s ending is inevitably going to be tragic, but I cannot turn away from Wu’s portrayal and Sunny’s emerging sense of self and possibility.” —Dawn Lee Tu, PhD, Director, Asian Pacific American Student Development, UC Berkeley 

Justin Chon in Seoul Searching
“Chon shows his serious acting skills in Benson Lee’s Seoul Searching (CAAMFest 2015 Opening Night film), and rocks the 80s hairdo and ensemble really well. This film, overall, had many great roles for Asian and Asian American actors.” —Momo Chang, Content Manager, Center for Asian American Media

 

Priyanka Chopra in ABC's "Quantico." (ABC/Phillippe Bosse)
Priyanka Chopra in ABC’s “Quantico.” (ABC/Phillippe Bosse)

Priyanka Chopra in Quantico
“After watching Priyanka Chopra’s stardom rise in Bollywood, followed by her lower-key venture into into pop music in the States a couple years ago, it seemed natural that acting in American film and television would be in Chopra’s future. But it was great to see that Hollywood, who so often casts big Asian stars in forgettable supporting roles, recognized that Priyanka Chopra should be the star. In Quantico, she plays the title role of Alex Parrish, the FBI officer who’s on the run for her life after being framed for a terrorist attack, and she leads us through both real-time danger and nostalgic flashbacks as we try to solve the mystery of who the real culprit is.” —Ada Tseng, writer/editor at XFINITY Asia, Asia Pacific Arts and Audrey; host of the Asian pop culture podcast, Bullet Train and creator of the series Haikus with Hotties.

Jadyn Wong in Scorpion
“Wong seems to channel a bit of Ming Na Wen’s Agent May in her deft portrayal of ironically nicknamed Happy Quinn, a genius at mechanics and tools with anger management issues. Though Happy’s race isn’t ever named in the show, Wong’s portrayal is important because Happy is unlike anything you’ve seen before. She is angry, smart and good with her hands, uses tools, is a foster child, and has trust issues, all of which make for a uniquely Asian American woman role.” —Dawn Lee Tu, PhD, Director, Asian Pacific American Student Development, UC Berkeley 

Ming Na Wen in Agents of SHIELD
“Agent May is straight up kick ass. I have said to friends and family that if someone were to make a biopic of me, Ming Na Wen’s demeanor as Agent May would be perfect to portray the way I think I’m kick ass and that poker face cranky cat meme all at the same time. Agent May is a breakthrough Asian American character on primetime tv because she’s hooked up with some hot men of color and takes crap from no one. Wen’s ability to display sympathy and heartbreak in a snarl is a testament to her adept acting abilities.” —Dawn Lee Tu, PhD, Director, Asian Pacific American Student Development, UC Berkeley