Portrait of Asian-American star who just won an Oscar

On the morning of March 12 (Vietnam time), the 95th Academy Awards ceremony took place and presented awards to the best individuals and film crews. Unprecedented before, Oscar 2023 attracts attention with a series of nominations for actors of Asian descent.

And the focus of the awards ceremony officially belonged to Quan Ke Huy, when the star of Everything Everywhere All at Once officially won. He overcame the famous names Brendan Gleeson, Barry Keoghan, Brian Tyree Henry and the late actor Judd Seymore Hirsch to win the Golden Statue in the category of Best Supporting Actor.

Winning the Oscar 2023, Quan Ke Huy also set a record as the first Asian actor to win the biggest movie “Three Dais” in Hollywood. Before that, the Golden Globe and the Screen Actors Guild Award (SAG) were the two “battles” that Quan Ke Huy overcame.

On the Oscar stage, Quan Ke Huy said: “My mother is 84 years old and is at home watching the Oscars. I have won the Oscar!!! Thank you so much for this lifetime opportunity”. He also thanked A24, the Everything Everywhere All at Once team and especially his wife, who has continuously supported him for the past 20 years.

Who is Quan Ke Huy?

Quan Ke Huy is also known by the stage name Jonathan Ke Quan. Quan Ke Huy’s cinematic “touch” is quite favorable.

In 1983, Ke Huy followed his brother to Los Angeles to audition for the adventure film Indiana Jones and Temple of Doom . The honest appearance and agile demeanor of the 12-year-old boy at that time quickly caught the eye of the famous director Steven Spielberg.

After that, Quan Ke Huy again surpassed 6,000 other child candidates to win the role of the child assistant Short Round of the male lead Idiana Jones played by the legendary Harrison Ford. At the age of 12, the boy Quan Ke Huy was exposed to Hollywood’s top names and flew to Sri Lanka to film. Until now, when recalling, Quan Ke Huy still thinks it was the best “adventure” of his life.

After the success of Indiana Jones and Temple of Doom , Quan was invited to play the role of Richard “Data” Wang in The Goonies (1985) – one of the best-selling children’s films of the time.

It can be seen that Quan Ke Huy has an impressive starting point. Those great opportunities also ignited in him a great love for cinema. So, after graduating from high school, Quan Ke Huy chose to attend the University of Southern California, majoring in Theater and Cinema Arts.

However, the path to conquering the cinematic dream of Quan Ke Huy later was no longer as favorable as in the beginning. During his teenage years, Quan Ke Huy still participated in Hollywood movies, but only played very small supporting roles.

Some of the films the actor appeared in can be mentioned: Together We Stand (1986-1987), Head of Class (1989-1991), Breathing Fire (1991), Encino man (1992)… The more mature, the more opportunities. acting for Vietnamese actors in the US is even more limited.

In order to change his “lucky” as well as build a more self-image, Quan Ke Huy began to expand his scope of activities in Asian countries.

In 1996, Quan Ke Huy returned to Vietnam to participate in the film collaboration between Hong Kong and Vietnam special zone cinema called Hong Hai Tac directed by Vu Tran and Nguyen Phan Huu. He played alongside famous artists of Vietnamese cinema at that time such as Ly Hung, Truong Ngoc Anh, Dang Duong…

In 2002, Quan Ke Huy participated in the film Second Time Around of Hong Kong (China), with two stars Trinh Y Kien and Truong Ba Chi. The actor also starred in the TV series Thich Long pretending to be a eunuch in 2003.

Despite his best efforts, Quan Ke Huy’s name after many years is still blurred. He decided to give up acting, turning to the work of setting design and directing martial arts.

The flash back of the star

At U60, no one expected that this Asian man would re-appear strongly on the big screen after years of backstage. This year, Quan Ke Huy caused a Hollywood fever when he reappeared in a movie called Everything Everywhere All at Once .

This is an action-fantasy film released by A24, “led” by director and screenwriter duo Dan Kwan and Daniel Scheinert. The film attracts attention when it takes the trendy multiverse theme, and features martial arts star Michelle Yeoh and veteran actor Jamie Lee Curtis. The budget for the film is up to 25 million USD. In Everything Everywhere All at Once , Quan Ke Huy plays the husband of the main character played by Duong Tu Quynh.

Everything Everywhere All at Once also contributed to bringing Quan Ke Huy’s name back. From a “too old” actor who was disgraced by Hollywood in the past, Quan Ke Huy is being sought after by the American media. The prestigious The New York Times gave him an in-depth interview, while Empire magazine wrote about his unique career and called Quan Ke Huy a “legend”. The 51-year-old actor also became an official guest of the hit talk show Kimmy Kimmel Live for the first time.