Daniel Dae Kim and the Alien Audition
00:00Hey Prime members, you can listen to Tiger Belly ad-free on Amazon music download the app todayHey, I'm Mike Corey the host of Wanderers against the odds in our next season three friends backcountry skiing in Alaskadisturb a hibernating bear andShe attacks the skiers must wait for help to arrive before one of them succumbs to his injuriesListen to against the odds on Amazon music or wherever you get your podcastsWe had a whole thing about my easy access pants and before the show Gilbert's like change your pants before he gets hereI'm likeI just also want to say we've had hundreds of guests on the show. We've never had fruit for anybody
00:46This is the first time we've ever had fucking fruit. This is a special Korean and who you got the fruitI got the fruit from H mark the fucking right across the street man. Yeah. Yeah. Well, this is probably the first timeYou've ever had a show with an H mark right across the streetThat's so close. That's trueYou know how much joy having an H mark close by is it's amazing, isn't it because in LA like even whereWhere we live, it's at least I mean there's K-Town. There's one in GlendaleBut in the Valley, there's what not 99 ranch. Yeah, it's more Chinese. YeahYeah, I know it's just cool, but it's not the same age. It's not the same. Yeah, John
01:21Can I just say one thing to don't ever wear shorts your legs, man? I don't like them at allI mean, what is it with a lesions? What what's on your legs, man? That's a DP man. He's on the ground. Oh, you're on your kneeOh my bad, dudeThat's what you don't like about them not like the you see like the girthiness and the overall I think the thickness is veryintimidatingYeah, right like yeah, it's a strong leg my bad. Yeah, I attacked youYou're right. Is that why do you like chicken legs isn't that you want to wear this or no?Oh, yeah, you don't have to you don't have to if you don't want them chicken legs isn't as rampant
02:00Amongst Asian men I find just enough from an observation Ken Jeong has chicken legsOkay, it's so chickeny it's like it's like uniformly chickeny though like he's just thin and slenderThat's my yeah, I know that's one thing. That's a thing. It's like he's very North KoreanKorean now, you know, I mean like it famished, you know, and he's got moneyI don't know what the fuck the deal is. Yeah, like eat a donut KenYou know, I mean, I also out of any actor like he I guarantee like I put a million dollarsI would defeat him in any ring. Oh, you can't get a fight. You can't in a fight. Yeah. Oh, I would fucking winI think I'd like to see that I
02:39Know you wouldThe referee who are you rooting for who are you rooting for? I wrote I wrote for a good matchYou would have to like sprinkle in some puzzles and some IQ games in there, so why it's fighting upBecause you don't have muchYou guys have to take the MCAT I mean like there has to be anything but like that has to do with like, you knowDoctoring doctoring and books and shit. He's gonna win. Of course, but in a physical just a man-to-man MMA kind of thingYeah, I will destroy him. Oh like MMA anything like that fighting boxingOkay
03:20Are you there? All right, let's start rolling. Yeah. Anyway, let's go calm downBut I would say you have to make it like a physical 100Those guys are we could talk about that show. I mean on there. Okay. What is it? What is it? Is that the Korean show?Yeah, I've never seen it all the big Cavs are on that show. I've never seen this show people have tried to explain it to meBut for from what I hear though, it's not something that I would like to watchWhy because it's like, you know Americans we had American Ninja, whatever the gladiator shows we all that is a competition showYeah, yeah, so what's it? What's it?Well, it's just with Koreans first of all one of the things that's amazing to me about this show
03:56Is that Korea South Korea is the size of Pennsylvania? YeahNo, you don't think like there are all these jacked bodybuilders, you know, yeahYeah, and especially when when you know when I was going back and forth to Korea like bodybuilding wasn't a thing fitness wasn't a thing people were justYou know looking to survive, you know, all right, so now that we went in the 1930sKorean War what the fuck you're talking aboutThere's like pre-olympics Korea, and then there's post-olympics KoreaI also learned this thing recently that South Korea is an outlier and withHow much South Koreans have grown in height compared to other races like even I think it's like
04:40There's like a nine-inch likepenis thingLike thatThis one, but they're generally like four to five inches taller than they wereLike I was like only a couple decades ago, which is like not seen in any other populationI don't want to I don't want to talk about how great Koreans are right now because I have feelings about itAnd I don't want people to hate me. Okay, so we're going down the roadWe're you know me because if we can tout about Koreans all we want and we're very good
05:10We're very good in many ways in art. OkayListen look at the art we're good at athletics. We're good at making moviesWhy are you talking like it's a secret and no back it because I feel shame about it too, right?So it's like but everyone's good, you know, I mean, so just let's say everyone's goodBut we are growing everyone's good, but physical 100 happens to be a showAll right, so let's introduce and let's start to do the countdown and then we're gonna talk about the physical 100Three two and a oneI'm your host Bobby Lee and I um, you know, you get it
06:14You feel it. You feel it the energy, you know, I mean you feel the sexuality you feel theYou feel the dynamic, you know, I mean dick power I have butI have it, you know, I was born in the way I was born and I survived itI survived all the trauma and my dad and all that stuff, but I came up on top manAnd I'm gonna win this I'm gonna win. I'm gonna get you can and in the ring. I'm the one okayAnd remember that and movies and TV you're famous. You're doing better. It's fineBut in a fucking physical one-to-one man, and I'm not gonna forget what you did in San Francisco and youassaulted me
06:50He did assault me in San Francisco at cobs, but was it warranted? Yes, it was warranted. All right every assault that I remember has warrantedOkay, I'm not saying but it happened. Yeah. All right. So anyway, let's we're out here to talk about that guyRight. I love him. God bless you. Garoni Chang. I love you. Jimmy. Oh, yeah, I love you. Go ahead. Love you boysThey're singing for the record every single oneBut soYeah, my opinion also, you know, my opinions everyone listening, right? It has nothing to do with the guestsWe all have a different opinion. I'm just who I am. OkaySo anyway, um the guests who we have today is somebody I've had what I've wanted on for so long
07:28Listen, like I'm a huge fan of that show lost. Yeah when it first came outI thought that pilot was the craziest pilot I've ever seen with the fucking plane andYou know, I mean and then you know people running through the forest remember thatYou know, I mean, what's that guy's name the white dude jack jack running through the forest, right?Um, we've had Dominic on our podcastI love and the reason why I love lawn is because I saw a couple of characters in there where I couldn't I was like, holy fuckThere's Koreans in this and II also want to say that
08:00You know, your acting was so good. I literally thought you were a Korean. We didn't know each other back then, did we?You know, I didn't so like I didn't know you so I'm like, oh, they went to Seoul and they got this guyRight, but then when you did an interview and you spoke the way you spokeIt blew my mind. I was like, oh my god. He's like fuckingYou know what I mean? This guy fucking is an american manYou could speak out. Oh, you know me. He's so good. I don't know what the other lady's name is, but she's great, tooYou still talk to her. Uh, we haven't spoken in a little while actually. Yeah, what's her name again?yinjin kim. Yeah, she's great
08:31But anyway, that show was great and then I got to meet you and you're the nicest guy in the worldAnyway, how about a pleasure daniel day cam?You know, I'm you know, I'm excited to actually get an intro because the last like few podcasts I watched of yoursYou guys just kind of go roll right into it. You know, just like catch it mid conversationOh, that's trueBut the reason why you're special and we have fruit for you cut fruit. I know that this is an honor. You have to understand, dudeYou know, I think thatI know I was in
09:02LA in the 90s and I didn't see people that look like me doing itAnd then you know, I mean it started opening it up and you when you were one of those guys where I saw was when it was opening upRight, you think he looks like you?You looked on tv and said that guy looks like me. I can make it. What was the thought process?See what i'm saying thoughThis is the attack. There's no attack. And this is the way you guys do it, right? This is how you hurt meThere's fruit. No, I never fucking saidI never fucking said me and daniel day cam are going out for the fucking same shit, man
09:35All right, obviously i'm the sidekick. Yeah, obviously i'm the neighborYou mean obviously i'm the guy that gets the stuff, you know me on the show, whatever, you know me?But of course, he's the lead, right? But you don't have to do that right nowAll right, my bad. My bad. My bad. Sorry. I just I just like watching this. This is this is funWhat i'm saying is is that i'm gonna calm down and be realWhat i'm saying to you is is that when they opened out you're like one of those guys that I was like so proud, you knowI meanAnd I knew you were Korean because not only were you a good actor, but you're a good-looking guy. Also, you're super nice and
10:11I don't know. It just made me feel and then when I met you, I was just like, oh, this guy's really cool, tooRemember you invited me to your house. Mm-hmmLike I've never had a Korean dudeInvite me to their house. Why do you think that is? I don't know why I guess he didn't know with me that wellAnd yet here I amBut I went to your house for you know, here's what's crazy, tooLike I don't know what the Super Bowl isIt's just wild and and I've been invited to a million Super Bowl things. I was like, fuck you
10:42I'm not doing that. But when you invited me, I had to goI got the respect, you know, I mean with your family and this and that anyway, you've been so niceI think you're a great actor. He's also um was on choka hawaii five all and he also umIt produces and created the good doctor, right? I didn't create the good doctorBut um, you know, I was one of the people who brought itBrought it over from korea. Um, so it was probably the first time that a korean show actuallyMade it big in america as an adaptation. Oh, so it was an ip you bought then?Wow
11:14Yeah, there was a k drama that aired in 2013 in korea, and what was it called the good doctorRiveting questions, so we were super original in ourAre a yeah, and then when you so when you brought it to um, what network was abc? WellThe interesting part about this is that uh, when I first developed itWe shopped it around with uh, Adele limb as the writerAdele limb from crazy rich asians and we shopped it around to every network and every network passedAnd then then I bought back the rights for a second year and you you know about producing a little bitSo you know that that's generally not done once a show makes it around and does its uh, does its rounds around town
11:56It diesBut I really felt like this could be a good showSo I bought back the rights. We did it againAnd this time with david shore as a showrunner and then there was a bidding war for itWowSo it's really just a testament to perseverance and believing in stuffSo they so one of us because I don't know much about it. I didn't know you could do thatSo so I mean my friend peter
12:15Pitch a show to originally abc and then and then they had it for a year and then mbc wanted itThey just said no, right? And then I called my agent. I goWell, we could just do it again, right? And they go no. So what do I do? Do I buy it back from mbc?Is it an original idea? Yes. Tell them what the idea is. YeahWhat do you mean?What the show is it's a sitcom about a korean spa and a korean family is running a korean spa in korea townIt's a three camera sitcom and it's just and it's solely your idea. Yeah me and peter kim's idea. Yeah. Oh, yeah peterWell, if it's your idea, there's nothing technically or legally stopping you from, you know
12:55Repitching it next season. The problem is if the same executives are there. They're not going to want to hear it a second timeSo that's the issue. You know, they um forget that they heard it the first time. Well, the fact isYear to year, especially in what's been going on recentlyThe executives are all changing. Yeah, so even, you know, the same show that you tried to pitch two years agoYeah, you could go back to the same network to all different people and you might have a different outcomeThat's not a guarantee. It's not possible. Yeah, it's interesting. You say that it's changing because I remember, umI had to do another general meeting at netflixAnd because I've always had a bad vibe over there, you know, I mean and so I was like, ah
13:35They hate me this net and then when I went inIt was a love fest because it's just a whole new group of people. Right. Yeah. I like that. YeahNo, I should change it all the time for sure. And you never know and I'll you never know where your allies are going, right?Because they move around too. SoUm, so, you know, that's why it's important to really build relationships and do you I mean not to name namesBut do you feel some places don't like you? Oh, sure. You do. Yeah, I feel that too. And they think I'm crazyYeah, no, you can't be in the business. You can't be in the business as long as we have and not make an enemy or twoIt's impossible. It's impossible
14:11But he thinks everyone no, I don't no, I don'tI could I could list on a fuck I can lead just 20 names of people I can guarantee you love meJust because of their historyCalling me and when they call me for an audition. I know you know what there's love there. They're considering meThey want to see you. You know me my version of this thing, but when it's a completely like we don't want to see youThat's not love. Yeah. Is that love?You're absolutely right. No, thank you. You really are you really areAnd you have to keep track of the people who are not your fans. I'll put it that way
14:43Yeah, I do tooBut you have to keep keep better track of the people who are your fans and who are your friendsBecause those are the ones that that you want to stay in touch with and you want to foster relationships withYeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. It's because all my people people think that I'm crazy and I just don't thinkYes, I have self-esteem issuesYes, I'm paranoidYes, all these things are true. Okay. I love your honesty your self-awareness is it's one of the best things about this podcast by the wayIt is both of you like
15:14When you were going through your breakup and all this you guys were sharing all of this on your podcastI I was I was astounded by that like just that you would choose to share this and it felt like I was eavesdropping, you knowYeah, bedroom, you know, let's say living roomI don't know if it's the healthiest thing, but it's like, yeahThis show is sponsored by better help. Hello everybody. My name is Bobby and this is Kalaila getting to know yourself can be a lifelong processEspecially because we're always growing and changingTherapy is all about deepening your self-awareness and understanding because sometimes we don't know what we want or why we reactThe way we do until we walk talk through things and we love better help so much because
16:02It's best the best online therapy in the in the market. UmAnd better help connects you with a licensed therapist who can take you on that journey of self-discovery from wherever you areAnd if you really are thinking of starting therapy, I really do think better help is a great startIt is man. UmIf uh, it's entirely online designed to be convenient flexible and suited to your scheduleJust fill out a brief questionnaire to get matched with a licensed therapist and switch therapists anytime for no additional chargeDiscover your potential with better help visit better help dot com slash belly today to get tempers off for first monthThat's better hlp.com slash belly one more time. That's better help
16:39hlp.com slash bellyYeahLife is short and it's full of a lot of interesting questions. What does happiness really mean?How do I get the most out of my time here on earth andWhat really is the best cereal?These are the questions I seek to resolve on my weekly podcast life is short with justin longIf you're looking for the answer to deep philosophical questions like what is the meaning of life?Uh, I can't really help you but I do believe that we really enrich our experience here by learning from others
17:13And that's why in each episode I like to talk with actors musicians artistsSciences and many more types of people about how they get the most out of lifeWe explore how they felt during the highs and sometimes more importantly the lows of their careersWe discuss how they've been able to stay happy during some of the harder timesBut if I'm being honest, it's it's mostly just fun chats between friends about the important stuffLike if you had a sandwich named after you what would be on it follow life is short wherever you get your podcastsYou can also listen ad-free on the amazon music or wonder a appNo, I just I because I you know, I I don't think that anyone's really listening
17:50So, you know, I know they are but it's like I just feel so comfortable hereAnd it's a it's a it's a place for me to really kind of explore things with myselfThe dangerous part about podcasting is that you forget that there's more than five people listening to youReally just is in your own home and the comfort of the same chair you've sat in for eight yearsSo you just forget you forget. Yeah, right. You guys know each other so well and you're doing it week after week after weekYeah, so it's you know, I'm only on here for like an hour. But yeah, yeahYeah, yeah, but um, I'm okay with it thoughBecause it's like I can um, I've started some wars on this, you know me accidentally and
18:26Yeah, and also it's taught me not to say certain things. So I'm learning as wellSo what I did three years ago, I wouldn't do nowRight, so I kind of edit out and in my mind and then after shows how many times do I have to go?You have to edit that edit that edit that edit that yeahBut anyway, what I'm saying is is that I am paranoid and there are certain things about but I do knowYou know when somebody likes me I feel like you know me and it's like and you knowI also what you just said make comforts me because it's not a personal thing. That's just the wayall businesses go
18:54Right, we happen to be the product in our business and you know, just like when we go shopping on amazonThere are certain things that we're going to say. Oh, I like that one. I don't like that oneYou know and it's a kind of cynical way of looking at it. But in in show business. We are the product. Yeahare there like umI don't want to you don't have to say anything but um, I just want to ask you if you haveAre there people that even though they're not aware of it that you're in competition with?Even though they're not aware of it. Well, like somebody that like you kind of goI'm up for this role and I know it's so-and-so
19:28Oh, somebody that you've been pitted against your whole career. Maybe yeah, I mean there have beenBecause you know, especially when we were starting out. There were so few roles like whenever there was a chinatown episodeYou know what I mean? Yeah, you and I could have been up for the same. I knowSo we could have actually auditioned against one another and when I would see you I'd leaveNo way, I want to fucking get this. No, if it was a comedy, trust me, I'd leave so but you know, it's uhSo we'd see the same faces at every audition. You know who they are. Yeah, I know the same ones you came up with in comedyYou know, but you know what's funny? I don't feel a lot of that anymore though because umI feel like I have my own lane
20:06Because before they they gave us one laneAnd they put all of us in one street or whatever. Is that why I don't know how the analogy worksWhat does lane mean? No, no, you had we had guardrails. So we could only do certain thingsRight, right, and we were told to do that one thing all the time rightSo I left that and went to a little lane, you know, I mean with a little guard where else but still mineYou know, I mean, and I'm just kind of doing that one on that path. You know, but it feels um because if I haven'tI changed my career so that I don't rely on themLike what you you did with good doctors like this is my show
20:41You know, I'm pitching it. I'm the boss, right? You make the decisions, right?And before like in the probably in the 90s, I don't know when you moved to LAYou had to read their thing the one option that they hadWell, I will say this, you know, I'm not I'm not the decision maker on good doctorWe have a showrunner. We have other producers. We have the studio. We have the networkBut I will say, you know being an actorYou're always subject to the roles that are out there and like does the casting director like you?Will the your agent submit you you're waiting at the bottom of like
21:13A stream a trickle down and then then the audition comes to you say I can I can go for thisBut as a producer you get to create jobs you get to create universes and it's what you're doing with podcastingWhich is why like you've your reputation has skyrocketedBecause of your work, but also because of your podcast. Oh, yeah. Yeah. Yeah, but you made that you guys made this out of nothingYeah, yeah, yeah, and that's the power of creation. That's it. That's so that's the lane that I took, you knowDaniel, I wanted to ask yousomething maybe that's a little sensitive for bobby, but umIt's why'd he get so nervous? But it's not don't don't he seems to think he's been intentionally left out of the stop Asian hate movement
21:59I've heard this. I've heard thisHe wants to do a PSA and I just want to see like yeahI want to hear your thoughts on if you think he was left out intentionally and if you think he's not a good face for the campaignNo, what I'm saying what what you're trying to shave and loseThat's it. Yes, Bobby. It's been a whole conspiracy. No, that's not what I'm sayingWhat I was saying earlier was you know in the past was is that I just don't feel like people would believe meLike even if I was saying like I remember one time will I am?Yeah
22:35Will I am goes come over because I'm doing this, you know, I don't know what the fucking cause was and I had to lift up cardslike you know howBob Dylan did in that thing, rightAnd I saw the final thing and I was the only one they cut outAnd I remember doing the cars and will I I would just be like it just doesn't feel like you careYou remember what the campaign was. I don't even remember. That's whyBut it was a minorities or something. Did you care? Did you care at the time? I was like trying to cryThey're like, what are you doing? I'm
23:11Feeling it. You know, I mean that was your intention to cryI think he was like, you know, all these people are doing I think Morgan Freeman's do all these peopleAnd they go, it's a real personal thing. I know you're a comedian, but it's realSo give me the cards man. See you you want to see real and after I was doneThey're like, yeah, okay. Thank you. And it just they just cut me outWas a card. Did they have writing on it? YeahIt's like stop racism nowHow did it they automatically work if they cut you out in the middle of a sentence?
23:39They gave him a blank card. He had a blank card. Was yours like the period or something?No, it was one of thoseWell, I think what it was is like, you know, it's they probably saw 30 peopleAnd they cut this thing together into one thing, right? And they just I didn't even get a card or a period or nothingI was not in it and in my head. I'm like, ohI'm not, you know, I meanII'm just I'm not that's my thing people are different time though for you because now I mean you're crying a lot
24:12I know but what I'm saying is that if there's a cause for Asians, they're not going to call me is what I'm sayingBut there is no bat phone, you know, there's no like signal that goes out to say calling all Asians who care about itNo, there's noLet me ask let me ask you something, right? Did you do stop asian hate stuff? Yeah, I did. Okay. I know you did, right?So if there was no bat phone, how'd you get it? I don't know because I just started talking about itAnd that's the thingNo one you don't need permission bobby like if people if you start talking about this and it becomes important to youLike-minded people are going to find you and then they're going to be like I heard bobby talking about this on his podcast
24:54Let's have him be a part of this because I know he feels thisSo yeah, you talked about it. It's organic, but no, but you know a good wayI don't thinkYeah, I think I think my point of view was differentUm, there's a part of me that thinks that it's just human nature that you knowI mean violence is human nature and this and that butThere's also a part of me that thinks that uh human beings can evolve and change and um, it doesn't need to be a part of ourThat's the thing, right? That's the hope that that's what people like martin luther king
25:24We're we're talking about their entire lives like evolving to a place where we don't let our baser nature winThat's what we have to appeal to that's who we need to talk to becauseYou have to believe that there's a segment of the populationWho wants the same thing and if we can convince more of themTo to move us forwardThen then we'll be making progress because we can't expect that everyone is going to agree with usThere's gonna let me look at climate change and look at all the other issues facing our country that are existentialYeah, our world that are existential. Yeah, we can't make movement on it
26:01Yeah, so just goes to show you how powerful the forces on both sides areYeah, but it's really companies and ceos and stuffYou mean that you know, I mean when you when they they're when we have lobbyists like that and we have them running the fucking showThey're not gonna, you know, I mean deregulate. They're not gonna they want to make their fucking money, manRight and so then they they go to a certain segment of people and they lie to them and this is where we areYeah, you know, but you know when money's a real powerful motivator like if they say like I'll pay youYou know everything you need to live for the rest of your life if you just say something that you know is not trueright
26:41Man, we talk about like yellow dicks on this showAnd buttholes, you know what I mean, but this is like, you know, next level. This is the next level getting realYou know, it's that's why I like Star Trek. I know people make fun of me because why do you like Star Trek next generation so much and?Because that's the kind of society that I want to live in that's right, right?I want people that no money, you know, I mean a bunch of people with different kinds of people getting togetherGetting on a spaceship and we you know me and exploring and growing and learningFrom each other, you know, I mean that's the kind of society. I want to live in you knowI mean like I wouldn't want to be a Ferengi or nothing like that, but my point is is that
27:15Yeah, you know, I'm just you know, I mean but in terms of like that's why I like to show the principlesAnd the philosophy is behind it is what I want as a societyBut when you look out into the world, you kind of go we're just straying away from that, you know, I meanAnd you feel powerless Star Trek assumes that everyone on earth is living in harmonyIt does earth is one entity and and that's why I've always said nowThis is a hot take but I've always said the earth the people of earth will never be united until we confirmAlien life. Yes, that's his exact. That's exactly howDo you want change the in star trek in that world? When when did they change when the first contact first contact?
27:57VulcansThis is a general Korean theory that you guys all share. I don't know. I've never heard this theorySpoused by anyone other than me. No, he does it. Wow. I've said it. Yeah, you're I that theory I agree withI take the common but I feel like if an alien race that's hostileThen it would change us. That's absolutely right. Exactly. I think that's what I'll do because then we'll focus on what unites usYeah, exactly divides us, which is what we're focused on right now. We'll realize that no, we're the same speciesYeah, go ahead soft counter argumentThere is a section of society that are so deep in conspiracies that even if you were to slap the truth in front of their face
28:38They would somehow justifyumA different reasoning. Yes, so it's like even that movie that don't look upThere's like a good example of a comment about to get land on the earthAnd people still having, you know, two differentNah, well, you know, I think that even if you were to have some likeaggressive alien in front of some people it'd be like, yeah, that's CGI. I thinkSomeone is still going to believe it's some type of conspiracy against
29:09I totally agree with youAnd you're never going to convince everybody like look at the coming of Jesus, right?Those who are Christians believe that Jesus is coming backAnd there will be is and and so but there will be non-believersSo even the coming of Jesus will be a controversial topic and there'll be people who believe that he's not the he's not the guyHe's not a savior. Yeah, so it's built into our society. It's built into our nature. I think and so I don't think we can hope to convince everybodyBut just the majority of people. Yeah, wowum, your take on the spy balloons. What's is that like
29:45China or is it aliens?Well, I don't know much about the spy balloons. They shot one down in Canada and Alaska, right? Yeah, right?Do we know what they look like?Well, we know that the one that was drifting over South Carolina and all over the u.s. Was a spy balloonBut we don't know what these other things were. Yeah, you knowBecause they weren't shaped like the first one. WowYou know and and the government was strangely silent for a long timeYeah, but why would aliens send down shit that they could you we just yeah, I don't even gun down. You know, I mean
30:13It's like it's like they're gonna high-tech. It's not high-tech enough for me. You know, manYeah, I don't think I don't think it's aliens. Yeah, you know, manDo you or anybody? I don't know. I just hope you get to do the stop human hateOr it's just Daniel and everyoneOr stop aliens. Yeah, but you know, I learned let me say thisI learned a value of your lesson today. Yeah, and I honestly and you're gonna not believe meBut I'm saying right now it I think I'm gonna do somethingI don't know what it is yet, but I I want it because now I feel like
30:44I do have a voice and I do have my opinion about itYou know, man, and um, and I do love my people that look like me. Are you kidding? Bobby? You have a huge voiceI mean, I don't look at the people who you've had on your podcast. Look at the number of listeners and watchers you haveI do I'm not just pumping you up. It's it's true. It is true. Yeah, you're right and um, we all have fearI mean, that's a that's a veryThat's a very real thing. Yeah, every one of us who's spoken out about this issue has gotten the worst threats onlineYeah, all of us and it sucks to read that stuff and go on to your feet and and hear hate coming from the leftAnd the right by the way, right? It's both because you're you're standing up for something that you know
31:2523 million of usExperience, but we're only 10% of the populationSo 90% of the population goes I could give a fuck about that, you know, or I don't know about thatSo you've got to expect it, but you know when I think about that I think about people like martin luther king jrLike what must he have experienced when he was going through what was happening in America in the 50s and 60s?I can imagine and he ultimately gave his life for the cause. Yeah, now. I'm not recommending that everyone go out thereI'm not doing that. But anyway, yeah, I want to live but at my pointBut the thing about evolution I think is a really important one because you think about all the
32:03The people who have really made positive change in our cultures and our societiesgondikingmacklin maxjesus christWhat's the what's the thing that they all have in common?They were all they all died sacrifice. They all gave their lives in support of this cause. YeahSo that says take that how you will you can look at that as a positive and or a negative
32:26But it's a fact. It is a fact. YeahWowLet's switch gearsWait, I'm curious. Yeah, uh, what was the first time you guys met? Do you remember that interaction? Was that an event?Uh, just in passingDo you have an idea? I don't remember the first time. I just remember a general sense of going. Oh, I like that guyYou know what I mean? Yeah, like he him. I've had that with grace to parkUm, I have had that with a lot of them. It's Sandra Ove had, you know
32:55There's only one guy thatAnd I've mentioned before that I had a problem with that says that was a fucking assholeYeah, who's absent to be Korean, you know what I mean?But other than that, you know, but he's always been like a winner for me, you know, I'm in there's twoThere's another oneYeahYeah, but he's not really Korean. He's adoptedKalaile knows all Kalaile knows everything. Yeah, he's basically white. Yeah, he is
33:24Is he a comic? Yeah, one of them's a comic and then the other one is an actor. What's the third one?Oh, yeah, but he's he's not Korean. OhHe's Latina. Yeah, it's if it's aYou know, for me, I'm Korean, right? And it's like when I see other Korean stars, you know, I meanI just want to have that connection. I mean justI connect with everyone, you know, I mean, you know, but my point is it's just a special thing when I see dudesThat are my, you knowAfter this, I don't know what it is. I think they really brothers. Yeah, we relate to each other because you probably
33:58Grew up the way I did all these mini little micro aggressions. They're the racism that's built upAnd you know, when I went to rehab last year and you know, they saidMan, you have a lot of rage toward white people. You know, I mean, and I go, yeah, I do butIf they understand I grew up in the, you know, I was born in the early 70s and IWitness these little mini events and now I have likeThis chip on my shoulder, you know, I mean, so it's likeIn general, you know, I haven't had any conversations with whites, but I feel like if I didRight, I would go off. You know what I mean? Because it's like I'm picked up. You know, I mean, we are
34:34I mean him and I got into this thing with a member in SeattleWhen we were at a movie theater. Oh god, we were watching a really scary movie called hereditary with Tony ColletteYeah, how scary right and basically during the jump scares Bobby and I wouldScream and scream and we were toldLike basically to shut the fuck upThat if we knew that we were the type of people who would scream in a horror film that we should just watch it at homeand her and ILost her mind. So the credits are going down
35:08They did this during the movie. So once they said that we couldn't watch the movieHer and I were justSitting back at the back looking at the back of their heads waiting for the credits to go down because we're gonna go offRight and you're just you're just heating up. Oh, I'm and this is 45 minutes. We had to sit there45 minutesAnd then they you know when the credits go people get up and leave they didn't and we didn'tYeah, then the lights come out in the theater and then they turn around to turn this out even more because and we justOh my god, good job. You know, I mean we ripped into them, man. What'd you say? I want to hear more
35:41You fucking talk to me like that you fucking, you know, I mean, I don't know what the fuckWe're you know, I mean, yeah, and I didn't go I didn't go who do you know who I amWhich I wanted to check my IMDBCheck my google my name bitchOne suspicious thing because the movie theater was directly across from the club. He was playing that nightso he wanted to kind ofMake sureThat you're right, you're right the fight took place where they could possibly
36:11Walk by the comedy to see my headshotsAnd my name, you know on the billboard low-key flex. Yeah, I wanted to do that, right?So I'm kind of directing them toward the club, you know, I mean like no go this way, bitchYou know I mean, but um, yeahYeah, when it comes out it comes outBut I've had like these mini and then being an when I moved to LA in the 90sAnd auditioning and just you know, I had age an agent from ICM look at me and goLike I and he goes um, you're never gonna make it. There's no artwork out there. I can't sign you
36:44There's it's just I your nice kid, you know, you're a funny guy, butIt's not gonna work and I and I remember just feeling so sadThat's a ship. That's the pride of america. I was gonna say is this like the outro are weIt's the Oscars wrap it up guysNo, but so I do have this, you know this rage and it's likeBut it'sIt's just it's the pride of america that is yeahDid you feel that though microaggressions going up 100% and I think that's one of the reasons why you know anytime
37:14I see someone especially of our generation in this business, but let's forget that any generation who's asian americanI've I go out of my way to kind ofSay hello kind of make sure they're we all know that we're a part of a community because you knowI don't want to make an exaggerated analogy here, but people who have gone through war together are friends for lifeAnd and I feel that way about people like you and people like ken and people like willion leeUh, you know people like ron yuan joel de la fuente who all went through the same thingWe all saw the same auditions. We were all told the same things. I wasIn an agent's office an agent that I was with for several years. I'd just done a tv series that was cancelled
38:01And then the following pilot season I got zero auditionsSo I went into the office and I said what's happening and the agent said to me daniel you just have to you knowUh reconcile yourself to the fact that you're never going to be a starYou're just going to be a utility player. You're luck. You should be lucky that you're working and that's all you can considerand then he pointed toA poster of this movie that was really popular at the timeAnd the movie was a b-movie at best and it was led byUh, very chiseled white young male lead and he was like, yeah, this guy is a star
38:35This guy is going places you you're just lucky to workAnd then what was the feeling did the hon come out? Did you have some inner hon?But see this is the thing about hon. It's always there, butWeYou guys are the whole you're the thing, but we have to we have to cover it with a fucking smileThis is the part like we have to be like, yes, I understand because I don't know where where that comes in our upbringing thatWe're not the ones to say likeFuck you. I'm gonna tell you you're wrong. Yeah, I feel that inside
39:09But I think my response outwardly was like, thank you for your timeOh, yeah, but but when you're saying that though, we're different than other people at least for me. I can speak for myself, right?In my I'm like, okay. Thank you, right? But insideIt's my fucking goal now to prove you wrong. Well, this is the key, right?Like and this is why I don't like to talk about race politics too much becauseYes, these are the obstacles that we have but they are not an excuse and they are not the reason for failureThey have to be fuel for our success and so we can look back and be on a podcast like Bobby Lee's and and and laugh about these storiesI'm not laughing
39:49Yeah, but that's why that's why they're important to remember not because they're the thingThe point of those stories is not to say look at all these fucking people who like tried to keep us downThe point is these are the challenges that made me appreciate where I am today. Yeah, I had a fucking audition for a ninjaRecently, it was a commercial no line. And I remember Lawrence Har who was a Korean agent that I had Lawrence. Yeah, I love LawrenceLawrence says hey, you got to go get a ninja outfitYou got to go and I go I go I know but the thing is is that can't they envision me in a ninja?I'm not gonna go. No, I don't know where to go the ninja. I don't know where to go, right?Hardy city. I didn't oh no, no, no. I thank you. The next time I have but
40:28So I showed up and everyone was wearing one and I just I was wearing what are I wearing?It was our one chance to work all year. You're gonna go, you know to the mat to do it, right?No, I didn't I didn't wear one a ninja and did you get the job? No, I remember he had them goingWhy didn't you wear the thing and I and I went all right?All right, and I left and I remember going I refuseThat was my line. I got there's no I can't there's another one where we just want you to screamIs the Godzilla one? Yeah. Yeah, King Kong King Kong, right? I go screamThere's no line. No, just run in a circle and scream
41:05So I was in a room goingIn a circle, you know, it's like the worstSituations, you know mean and that's what that was my audition for the year. Yeah, no, I get it totally get itI went to an audition once for a commercial whereIt called for a bunch of aliens like people from another planetIt's not people from beings for entities from another planetYeah, and everyone in the audition waiting room was AsianNot not an exaggeration, I love everyone
41:38Even though the commercial in the commercial everyone was covered with makeup so that you could not tell the raceEveryone was fucking Asian. I'll never forget that. Did you go in?Uh, I don't remember. I don't remember whether I went into that audition or notBecause I can't see you I can't see you going in a goNo, see that's the thing like yeah, we've all had those lines that we've had to draw and say like I am not doing thisAll right. Yeah, you know and and it's good for all of us to know because as we get older nowIt's not so conflicting. You're like when you're when you're younger and you're trying to make itYou're like, well, what if this is my big break? You know, like, what if I say no and my agent yells at me for not going to an audition?
42:18YeahAll these things swirl in your head. Yeah now it's so I say noTo 95 of it. I really doNo, no, and it's likeIt feels like so good because I feel like a human being I feel like somebody like, you know, I feel like an artistI feel like somebody that's like a crediblePerformer right that I can look at a project and goYes, not for me, you know, I mean whereas 20 years ago. I would have sucked somebody's dick
42:46Just to even get in the room, right?It's so so let me ask you something. Do you and because I feel itDo you feel the change? I feel a change in the last10 years in Hollywood, right in terms ofThey're far more open and I feel more, you know, I mean a part of itYeah, 100% and good and you are a part of that the fact that youtube came around and podcast came aroundPut more power in the hands of creators. And so there weren't gatekeepers, you know, the way that there were, you know20 years ago and I think there can be an overcorrection when it comes to that because there's always, you know
43:22The people who cry wolf and things like that that turns into like the crucible, you know, butYeah, but yeah, the point is that like there is a like-mindedness that is taking over more of the population nowSo we can say names and we can prosecute and we can write articles about them. YeahI do feel that man. And I'm so glad I'm so glad that I was around enough old enough and also kind of stillRelevant enough to like at least get some of it, you know, I mean because if it happened 30 years from now, you knowI mean then it would have been fucked, right? So I was able to get some of it, you know, I mean and it feelsI just feel so great. I feel grateful about it mainly, you know, I mean, I really doI love that. I mean, I'm sure you do you do too, right that a feeling of like finally, you know, I mean
44:08Yeah, no 100% like when you see like even when I saw I remember Joy Luck Club when I saw that movieI was bawling in the theater not just like tearing up like ugly crying because I'd never seen Asian AmericansThey weren't even men all the men were assholes in that movie, butYeah, just to see even, you know, all of us presented up there. It wasMonumental and then Crazy Rich Asians the same way, you know and seeing your hearing and seeing your podcast the same wayAll of these things are a groundswell. YeahYeah, it's interesting because you know, I'm now, you know, we're occurring on a bunch of shows and this and that and I feel like, you knowWhen I show up before this is something that happened. I don't know what happened
44:49But 20 years ago, I would show up on a set and I wouldn't talk to the producersToo scared. Didn't talk to the director, you know, I meanAnd I don't know if it's the culture that changed or if I changedBut now when I'm on a show, I I am so comfortable with havingDeveloping friendships with the producers and the directors and we have dinner and this and thatBefore I was so petrified of it all. Yeah, it's both. Yeah, I totally agree. You think so? OkayI think it's also not outside of you. Just, you know, your own personal growth. I think the culture changing also changed youRight. It sort of made you less, you know, apprehensive and well, they're asking Nina how I feel about it
45:33So I'll be on set now and a director or a producer will go. So how do you feel about this line or this, you know, the direction thisYou know character is going whereas before I wouldn't have an option. Do it like thisAnd then you're just like, you know, I mean like freaking the fuck out. You know, I mean, because you knowInstinctually you have ideas and things like what about this or what about that?But you wouldn't ever fucking say it because you're just you don't have the power. YeahTake race and culture out of it. It's about power, right? Any young actor who's on set for the first timeIs not going to be like I got a problem with this line right hereYou know, you're just happy to be there and you're just going to do whatever they say so that you stay there
46:12Yeah, yeah, soThere's something to be said for success right and experience nowYou've been on enough sets where you know that you can be yourself and there's not that terrifying moment of like, holy shitHere comes the close-up on me. What am I what am I supposed to say?Because your sonYou went to your son's first acting thing, right? Yeah, and was he terrified? He wasn't terrifiedBut when he was when he was buggy, this was funny. This was a funny partWe were doing an interview about
46:42His experience and during the interview. He was sweating bullets. Oh, yeah scareNo, he he was like answering the questionsBut if you so if it was radio, you'd be like, oh, this dude's pretty calm cool and collectedBut if you saw when you see him, yeah, he's dripping in sweat because he's so nervousThat's like me. That's like her. Oh, really?I can I can fake the funk on an audioI but if you see me, I am visibly dyingAnd it's beads of sweat and a must like the sweat mustache under on my eyebrows. It's really bad
47:14Yeah, I did that once I played conny chung. Remember when I played conny chung. Oh, that's what you say yourselfand I shit myself becauseI was detoxing of a Vicodin because I was a drug addictAnd then fox was like you gotta quit doing drugs. So they wrote me this conny chung sketchAnd I was day two or three of like detoxing and I was just sickAnd they put me in the makeup and I remember being in front of a live audienceAnd just knowing there's no way I'm going to be able to say these linesI'm fucked. Yeah
47:44And just one then you went to think that you're defeated the sweat and my knees shaking and I was shittingAnd I remember Dick LaSouche walking the executive producer walking up to theSet while the front of the audience and goes all right. We're doneAnd they just grabbed me and put me in the oh, it was the most humiliating walkOf my life and I got sober the next day, babyWell, that's there you goHey, baby, right. Yeah, I learned my lesson, baby. I really like when shit goes down because literallyBut yeah, actual shit goes down because it's like this just it's
48:22All the things that go wrong are always like the big highlightIt makes for the highlight reel of our lifeLike when things just go right or swimmingly or how they should without a hitchYou kind of just don't remember them. So when like really really, I mean, obviously shitty things happen to youLike they have such a big impact, but I wouldn't change it for the world. Exactly. That's what I'm sayingBecause here you are you are that some of all of your choicesYeah, but it's also it it makes it, you know, I learned lessons from themUm, I've failed a lot in this business. I've fallen my ass, you know, I've done so many weird things and it's a lot
48:59A lot of it's my fault, but it's like I I wouldn't get like it's like when I say talk about my childhoodIt's like I had a terrible childhood and I tell people I wouldn't change any of it because it made meWho I am todayEverything that led up to today because I love my life today. I wouldn't change. I have a question unrelatedIf you had one day to inhabit daniel's body and have his looksWhat would you do what do you mean? What would I do?Am I am I still my personality? I mean, do I look like him or do it? Can I change some things? It's a freaky fridayOh, oh friday friday because you've you've been in a lot of sexiest men alive lists, right?
49:43Bobby's been in have you how many sexiest men alive have you been on?Uh, three or fourNow you and now same question to youHow many no, no, no, let me just ask him some questions about the sexiest man aliveNo, just I said that answer quicklyNo, what I'm asking though what I'm asking is is thatThe first time you were do they call you and go you made the list or does it just come out on the stands?And then you go, oh, I'm on the list. No, no, they they call I was doing loss at the time
50:13Right, so they called our publicist because I didn't have a publicist becauseEven during loss they were like, well, I don't I don't know what we would do with an asian manLike without you don't there's no publicity for you and that's a whole other thing. WowYeah, publicity was one of the hardest things about loss for meBut uh, they called so they called the the publicist of this for the show and said I was on the I was going to make the listAnd they scheduled the photo shoot so that's how it happenedAnd then how did you feel though? Was it um, were you you bashful about it or?Honestly, I I and this is going to sound really insincere, but it's the truth. I promise it's the truth
50:48I was like it didn't feel like that big a deal for meBut it did feel like a big deal because I don't remember seeing asian men in that issue before exactlySo I when I thought about that I was like, yeah, this is a fucking big dealIt's a big deal a fucking big deal dude, but it wasn't like oh wellThis is going to change my life because it didn't you know, I was still going home and taking out the garbage every nightYou know and yeah, yeah, yeah, literally my mom was saw the issue. My mom saw the issueThey were like really?You yes, you dude
51:18Yes, you manSo what are the chances you think in this lifetime that you're going to be on that list because I think we should vote you inYou can I think so I think that well then if I'm on it then who else will be on itHey, Paul Rudd. Paul Rudd is not like, uh, you know the rock. He's not, you know, no, but he is cuteHe is very cute and I'm just saying that I haveMythological elements to my face. That's why it's like, you knowYeah, yeah, yeah, so if they if they did something like, you knowA shire like the shire had you know, I mean the sexiest, you know, mihabit or whatever I could pump it
51:52But you're shire. Yeah, yeah, I mean though is the definition of beauty is changing. That's what I'm sayingYeah, that's why Paul Rudd is a handsome sexy man and he is you know, but why couldn't it be someone like you?Jimmy oh yang you just had on the podcast a while ago andHe was in a romantic comedy and I've never done a romantic comedyYou haven't wow never and so that tells youYou know what people are looking for now and what people considerUm, did they have I didn't watch that movie. Um, I haven't watched it yetBut did they have actual like kissing scenes and sex scenes with his co-stars?
52:30He was definitely romantic. They did. Okay. I love that because I just watched the jona hill oneWith eddie murphy. Yes with eddie murphyAnd what I found like the most disappointing is that I all I really wanted to see was him get down with the girlLike just like they were in bed and then they just cut to the next day, right? YeahWell, they could have shot it and didn't work out wellin editingThis looks like shitLet's cut it. I don't know enough about that project, but I hear what you're saying
53:00I saw that film and it just reminds you of Romeo must die. You guys remember Romeo must dieYou're you maybe you're too young gently not kiss gently and I'll you never kissed. Oh, manIt's a Romeo and Juliet story. Yeah, and it was all about those things friendsWho is going to want to see an asian man kiss a black woman?Yeah, that was the thinking I was like I pitched a show with bobby and mine as one of the characters and umDave batista as the other and them being like gay lovers because that's all I wanted to seeI was like, how great would it be to see a Dave batista and a bobby leeches full on like making aOh, I would I would I don't look to know. I would love that. Would you do a gay like comedy like that? Yes
53:41Would you have been in fire island? Yes, I know you would I would literally likeCome this close to penisI'm not kidding for the craft. They'd be like open your mouth and not completely inAnd I was like, oh, is this good? But I would keep it. This is I would do thisI might I do it. Maybe tip kiss the tip or something. Yeah. Yeah, I'm willing to do anythingYou know me, right? Yeah. Yeah for a movie because I could just go to some movie except an arc except a ninja costume. That's ridiculousDon't put a penis close to your mouth, but don't put a wear a ninja costumeSo when you got lost though, because I'm gonna so were you
54:17So you obviously audition how many times did you audition?Twice twice and you tested the audition twice and then the third was the was the testNo, there were so few of us that it was one audition and a test. WowSo you tested and then did they tell you right away that you got it?There was a lot of drama around the decision because I had another project that my agentWould not support me taking lost for so that's a whole other story that but um, so but they told me and uhThey told me I guess a week later and instead of being happy. I was reallyTorn about it because my agent had already drawn her line in the sand and said you cannot do this job
54:55And and she literally said to me if you do this job, I will no longer be your agentSo I actually wrote JJ Abrams myself and I said JJ you don't know me you just hired meBut uh, I would love to do this show, but I have this other jobDo you think you could adjust your schedule for me all the stuff an agent is supposed to do for youShe didn't she did not lift a finger, but I'll tell you what why when I got lost. She took every commission checkThese are all two stories. Oh my you have a similar one right? So, so when I before I got mad tvNo one would sign me as an agent. So I had my manager get meUm an audition for mad tv because she she represented one of the producers on the show
55:43And they like he's not gonna get it but well as a favor so we can learn the auditionAnyway, I get it. I get to the final right? It's between me and taren killisAnd I remember is it really? Yeah, wow. I didn't mean taren. Wow, and he was 17 years old at the time. Oh my and I remember being thereSitting in their lobby about to go in and I remember my somebody called me and I go he goes. Hey, and I goWho is this? He's like, I'm your agentAnd I go, I don't have an agentNow you do I negotiate a dealAnd so they and then ever since then they got 10 percent of
56:19Everything so they only came after you got the job. Yeah, I had to get the job before they would sign me right? WellSpeaking of jimmy oh yang I was watching the podcast. He was talking about his role on silicon valley. Yeah same same kind of thingYeah, yeah, yeah, this is a very common story among all of usWhich is why I feel this brotherhood and sisterhood with people who are like us because we have very common experiencesAnd by the way, yeah shout out to JJ Abrams. I'd never would have been on lost had he not changed the shooting scheduleFor me I can't say anyone else that would do that, but you killed it on that show. Oh, that's very nice killed itThank you. Yeah, but there's there's very there was a very real chanceI never would have done that show but did you because I'm curious when you're shooting the pilot and whatnot
57:01Did you in your head go? This is going to be a hit. No, I didn't because it was soUnlike anything I'd seen on TV. We were speaking KoreanHad you ever seen that before no neverAnd like it was truly a multiracial cast in a way that wasn't just lip service, you knowYeah, it was real. Yeah, and and you know, you're talking aboutIf you listen if you read the log line, you could be reading Gilligan's island like people get trapped on an islandYeah, end of story. Where does it go from there? You would have no idea. It's really about the genius of those writersSo so you didn't know any of about the supernatural elements in it
57:37It was just basically an island crash in the firstPilot and then that's all you knew when we were shooting the pilotThere was this big scene where we're supposed to hear this like roar coming. Yeah, I remember you. YeahAnd we're supposed we're at the plane and we're supposed to look out thereJJ literally said, okayYou're gonna hear something you hear you got to imagine you hear something super loud out there. And we're like, what is it?Just listen just listen for it. Just listen for it. It's huge. It's massive. It's scary actionAnd he played it
58:06NoOh, so you have to re-react to a noise. You're not even gonna fucking know what it is. I think there might have been like a andThere's the noise kind of oh, wow. And you goWowYeah, so it was a surprise to you too as well then yeah, so and none of us knew what was happening week to weekNone of us knew who who was going to die in the next episode. We were it was literally a day by dayWowYeah, I mean number one that show made him right do he is now
58:33And that that was like the first time where I saw TV shows like it's like a movieYou know, I mean like the first time where I watched a network show and I was like, no, this is something like, you know, I mean the firstAddicted show that I ever saw where I was like, I'm gonna watch like, you know meI don't watch anything. Yeah, but that fucking show man was so awesome if that were on todayYou'd be binging it from beginning to end. Yeah, you know, and so, you know, you could you could make the point that it kind of ushered inThe binging era because remember people used to not watch our show because they wanted to wait for the DVD set to come outRight, and then they just wanted to watch it all together. Wow, but toward the end. Did you think it was getting a little silly orIt was it was tough for me. It was getting a little silly because you know when the island moved
59:20That's it. That's all you have to sayYeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, okay. When you read that the island moves. What did you I've read it twice?What do they mean by this? Yeah, what about the time travel? Yeah, so did that weird you out? No, that didn't workbecause you knowLost was one of the first shows to really use flashbacks as a storytelling mechanismYeah, yeah, and ever since then you've seen it like used over and over again, rightBut the idea of like flashbacks and then flash forwards seemed a natural extension of how they were telling the storyAnd I think even at that time there was a show that tried to copy loss called like flash forward or something
01:00:04on abcBut you know success you can measure success by the number of people who want to imitate it, right?There were so many lost copycats at that time. Oh, yeah, yeah, yeahUm, so, you know, I just was along for the ride whatever the writers wanted to do. I was game becauseThey created the show and I had a lot of faith in them. YeahsoEven the ending people were you know, busting on the ending and stuffBut I just I knew my personal feelings were you're never going to satisfy everybody like we were talking about before
01:00:35So I just cared about the characters. I wanted to know that the characters were in a good placeYeah, and I felt like the ending took care of that people ripped on the game of thrones ending. I liked itIt's hard to end shows. Yeah, it's so hard to end the like a multi chapter bookYou know, and you know most of the time the writers aren't even prepared to end it properlySo, you know, sometimes shows don't get endings. They just get cancelled. SoYeah, I've been on those. YeahThat's how much it's hard to please everyone. Do you watch a lot of k-dramas? UhUh, I don't know what a lot means, but I watch my share. I fair my fair share, you know, I think
01:01:13Korean dramas have been doing some things like really in a very different way from American dramas for a long timeAnd it's great to see the influences of k-drama now on American drama and especially movie movie makingAnd I feel like Netflix is really like catching on to the fact that like just on a viewership levelLike everyone's obsessed with k-dramas. Let me I know I've never seen oneYou've never seen one. Yeah, I've never seen one. So I want to you just sold me. Okay, okaySo I'm a layman. Okay. No, I saw kingdom. Is that the one with the zombies? Yes. Love that showThat's a k-drama. Yeah, that's a k-drama. Oh, yeah, but it's got a new style k-dramaRight. Yeah, but I loved it. Oh, that was amazing. What else have I seen? That's it squid games, but that's not k-drama
01:01:58Okay, it is that's a kid. Yeah, yeah, but like the the classic k-drama is the love storyLike the boy meets girl. That's why I don't have the love extraordinaryAttorney woo. All right. So give me the top three that I must watch and I will watch it. Okay, so give me the top threeUh, wow, that's a hard question. I will get I will give you the three that come to mind. I don't know if that's the bestNo, no Daniel Daniel check it out. OkayOkay, give me the ones where you think I'm gonna like it check out itaewon classI love itaewon. Write it down itaewon class. Is it about classes?It is it's a it's a revenge story. Yeah, it is. Oh, you'll love that. It's a one. Okay. So that's one
01:02:39I'm gonna definitely watch it. It's like count of montecristo. Oh, I love I love the count of montecristoYeah, so, you know, I love it. It's a great underdog. YeahvibeIs this true in this room? I'm gonna get that other two but in the montecristo the guyGoes to prison, right?Leaps prison and he reinvents himself, right?But is there a love interest that like went with somebody else's enemy or something? Is that in the count of montecristo?I don't remember that. Okay. Yeah. So the second one. What's the second one? So itaewon class
01:03:09Um, I think that the the mother of all romantic k-dramas is a really old one, but there's one called winter sonataAnd I think it's even going to be hard to find but itHe could deep cuts already. I mean the second. Yeah. Yeah, but what winter sonata. I'm gonna like itI don't know. See, I don't know if that's your jam, but if you want to know like no, no, listen, okayI'm sorry talking like that, but you know, I've seen every carousel a movie. I've seen every sergio leone movieI mean, I'm I loveDr. Javago like at least long sweeping romanticI have a long sleeping romantic. So I can so winter soldier
01:03:49Winter sonata. OhThat's marvelous. Oh, that's a good though. Is that a romance? I like that. That was the one the firstUh drama that I saw and this was in my like, I don't want to say like 20s and I was likeWhat is this? I don't know why what this is, but I want to watch all of it right nowOh, really and I stayed up like and you criedDamn straight. I cried like multiple times multiple timesWinter soldier third one. What is it? What's your sonata?Kalala, what's yours? I've tried to pitch it to landing for you. Crash landing. That one. Yeah, my wife loves crash landing
01:04:22Do you like crash landing? I did not see that one. I have to admit like yeah, because there was a littleIt's heavy on the romance though. It is super heavy on the romance. There's another one thatWait, wait, you were gonna say something that you could just cut out, right?And we can cut that out for real life, right? If you want, but I need to know what you were cutting outYou know, there's certain there's certain things that we all watch and there's certain lines that we have where we sayWell, I just wouldn't believe that right that's right things. Oh, I see. So let me guess rightShe crashes her plane on the other side of the dmz line. She falls in love with a north korean soldierHe's heard it
01:04:55And I you don't believe that I'm a little bit like could that really happenIt could never happen. It was just a wind a gust of wind that kind of took her overYeah, you've never been there in north korea, have you?I actually did step foot in north korea because I was at the dmz and so technically there's that area that isYou're in north korea. And is it a special pass you have to get in or like a fast pass like at disneyland or something universal?You don't you don't just say you don't just say hey, let's go to north korea todayYeah, it is it is a heavily fortified areaYou need to get through lots of guards and you need to have arranged this with
01:05:28Either the government or some tour special tour group, but you can go what I'm saying is is that this is what I want to ask youRight, is there any world that daniel d kim and bobby lee gets to go and just go to north korea and visit the sitesI think you're a liabilityYeah, I don't know. I'm a liability. Yeah, why why me you're just general behaviorI'm not gonna spin on a statueYou're a little wildI would be I wouldn't go with you like I would go with some although I did do this in thailandYou know when you see so in thailand they say don't make fun of the king, right?
01:06:02Oh, that's a big dealRight, so I we I saw the very first avengers. I was by myself was doing a movie out there andSo during a movie they do a 10 minuteYou know I meanMontage of the kingSo everyone has to stand right?And I didn't stand is that badWell in thailand it is bad. I know but I didn't stand I refuse to stand and then at the park
01:06:25You're supposed to stand still during the music and I stood in a really weird way, but anyway, umSo I you're right. I asked youSo what's the third movie?One going back to the love themeMy love from the stars was a really popular oneAnd that was maybe I want to say like 10 years ago, but that broke a lot of records at the time as wellAnd it's about love my love from the stars. Is it aliens? It literally is an alien who comes down toEarth, so you've got to suspend a lot of disbelief. I don't care. I get suspended
01:06:58Hey, but the alien is korean, man. Everyone's koreanBut that's you know, that's one thing that I really think that you know growing up in americaWe lost out on like when people were doing hong kong movies in the 80sYou had people kicking ass jet lee jackie chan a chayeon fatBut we were watching in terms of images of ourselvesWas the exact opposite well when I met him he had never watched a single wangar why movie like everBut now hbo has all of them. They have chunking expressThey have in the mood for love fallen angels like all of it. I just think you should use a fucking genius wangar why like
01:07:43You know and some of the best movies of this era if not all time are from himAnd so like there's great cinema everywhere. I can't wait to see like where else we're gonna find amazing movie making and tvcontent, you know, becauseAmerica does not have a stranglehold on all of it and that's one of the best things aboutNetflix and the international globalization of entertainmentYeah, it's it's we got fucked manGrowing up like there was nothing that I could watch and and relate to the only thing was martial artsShit, really, you know, I mean, especially bruce lee. It was bruce lee. Especially the access that I had, you know
01:08:18You have blockbusterThat's the only reason why I would because I would they would they would have a criterion collectionSo I would always go watch, you know, I mean a carousel movie like seven samurai or whatever I might beSo I could have that feeling of like some sort of relation, you know, I mean, but weGrowing up that's why like in high school. I never was asked to satay hawkins danceYou know, I mean, and then when I I remember there was this one girl asked for prom and when I asked herWill you like go to prom with me? She cried but in a real sad way, you know, I mean goodThis is the best I could get. Yeah. Yeah. It was like one of those like she had a single tear, you know, I mean, she's like, all right
01:08:52You know, I mean and I remember going to and she left when we had to prom. She took offWe what was your prom night likeI went with a friend, you know, and uhIt's the best way to do it, you know, and she was a senior when I was a junior. Oh, there it is. Um, but it was there was nothingRomantic about it, but that wasn't that was okay because of a lot of the things that you were talking about. Yeah, andUm, there's always drama around prom, you know, take race out of itLike who you're gonna who you're gonna ask and who's gonna ask you to prom is a big dealYeah, yeah, you know for me. It was just easier to say. Hey, we can have a great time
01:09:28Oh, yeah, you had that confidence. I had his friends. Yeah. No, no policyI I told myself because by the time I was a junior, I was like, I'm not gonna say noTo any boy. So the first person who asked I said, yes, too. I'm like, yeah, of course. Sure. I'll goReally? That's cool. And he was a very good girl though. Yeah, I was he was a very shy boyI know it took a lot out of him to ask me, but I was like, uh-huhI'll go it's hard for girls too. Like because you have to be asked. I don't know if it's that way as much anymoreBut you're not doing the asking so right you you're like, well, do I hold out for something better?Am I gonna get asked at all these are these are real questions. I'm sure did you feel any of that?
01:10:13No, uh-uhI think that I love the idea of justJust going alone or going with like just meeting friends there. I never but that's because I didn't grow up with the ideaOf prom because I grew up in a different countrySo it wasn't like a big thing in my mind of like, oh my god. It's prom night. I didn't know what the fuck prom night meantYeah, well, I grew up in pennsylvania right here. There's uh, you know, the football town and prom was everythingWhy did you grow up in pennsylvania? Was there?Well, because I because I grew up in San Diego. So I was just wondering the degree of racism that you encountered
01:10:50Was it like blatant where like people would like do this in front of you? I mean, what would yeahThat was that was commonplace for me. Really? Yeah commonplace. Yeah. Yeah, but like I had aAn alternative kind of a journey because when I there were two towns I lived in one was called eastern and when I lived thereEveryone was becoming friends and they were young enough not to be thinking about what color or what your eyes look likeEveryone was just like let's go ride bikes. Let's go skateboard and that town had, you knowPeople of every race and every religion and we were all friendsAnd then I moved in sixth grade and when I moved I became the other no one knew who I wasAnd I was just this oriental kid who was moving into this new school in the middle of the fucking school year
01:11:38And so everything changed for me then then it was likeHey chink. I'm sitting thereYou know and then and then like, you know, I was always an athletic kid always getting picked last always getting picked lastWow, even a ping pongI'll pick you first Daniel firstYou know and so I think that shaped a lot of my personality like I always wanted to prove to everybody else that you knowI I I could compete on every level for everything, you know, and soUm, yeah, so my that was my upbringing. So when I moved to Bethlehem, you know, I found my tight circle of friends
01:12:14But it was a long time before I felt likeLike I was even equal to anybodyAnd that's when you're taught. I think like yourself images taught in those years. It was puberty, right?Yeah, you know hormones are starting to rage and you're being told you're uglyYou're being actively told you're ugly that shapes a lot of how you feel about yourself. Yeah. YeahBut you know what look at you nowWell, that's what I'm saying. Yeah, that's it's we're the sum of all of our choices of all of our experiencesDo we survive? Yeah, it didn't kill us. So it made us stronger. We're the winners, right?
01:12:48We did it. Yeah, we fucking did it. But here's the other thing. Yeah, we're not entitledMe neither. And that's the thing that's all of those things that all of those things are what a little bitI'm entitled a little bit. Wait, let's talk about that. How you entitledI also just want to again. Well, what's that bit beeping? So it's phone is going nuts. That was bobby's ear. It's not mine.Mine's never on. It's gonna be crazy. I won't do not disturbI have no idea, but it's not mine. It's not mine right hereI heard over in this area. All right. Well, let's just hopefullyWhat are we at time? Oh, we're like hour 20. Oh god, what the fuck you didn't do a thing
01:13:29We'll just keep going. Well, no, I'm gonna keep going. I'm not done. But I'm just saying I have aWhat's that? Nothing. It's just what I do to stemWell, that's just okay. George. We'll just finish it. We're wrong. George come backSo what do you mean entitlement? What are you saying? How are you entitled?I'll tell you how. Well, I because I'm not saying it fromStrictly an actor, right? I'm saying it more as a comedian, right? I feel like my pathwas so much harder than other people'sand I feel like, um, you know
01:14:04Let's just say this when I go to a common clip in LA and I see my photo framed on the wall and this and thatI feel like I earned that. You know what I mean? And I feel like, um, that, um,There's just certain privileges that I getThat I earned. I think in therapy, um, I think your therapist called it destructive entitlement and I think that the way she explained itIt's a result of always being chosen last. So by the time you get to a place where you want it to beYou have this fear of losing it. So you kind of feel likeIt was healthyI'm not saying it's I think it's it makes sense like I get totally understandable why you feel like no
01:14:46I need to get what I wantIt's it's it doesn't come out unless like we're like one time I was likeHeadlining a club. I sold out the showsI'd already done a couple of showsI went to the hotel came back and I went when I was walking to the this comedy club with my name on it and my nameSomething the doorman comes to me goes just we're sold out get outRight and I go, what do you mean? He's like we're sold out. What the fuck man? Do you have a ticket?And he didn't even bother to memorize who was there
01:15:16You know what I mean? I'm there all week and that's when it comes out. And what did you do?I left and he just left didn't do the show didn't do the showsI don't know that that's unhealthy though. I mean you you you work I did the showsI came back they begged me to come back and I go wellYou're gonna have to yell at that guy because that was insane. That was fucking insane. It could have been a teachable moment for that guy, you knowFire that's the teacherThere are so many ways to approach a situation like that. What would you have done? What would you have done Daniel?I don't know I'm saying how hard was it to be like? Oh, you must have not checked the fucking marquee. That's me, dude
01:15:51It's not good enoughYou wanted revenge. Yeah, baby. Yes. Now. Here's that's unhealthy though. I feel bad about it. Here's path aGo ahead. No, I you know, I don't know what the right way is honestly becausethere'sThe variables about who that person is too, you know, like what are they going to react to?What are they going to respond to in a positive way or feel threatened by you know, soYou know, I've been in those situations as well where peopleThought that I you know, wasn't part of the talent or a cast or you know part of the team
01:16:21And so it depends on the day depends on what mood you're in that dayYeah, the circumstance is a pouring rain outside, you know, he caught me in a badWe're all we're all human is my okay, you know, and so but when that happens to you, right? It doesn't feel goodNo, it definitely that's that's true. That's a true thing, right? And it just depends howYeah, have a pineapple, you knowIt doesn't feel good and I've had that too where I've like shown up on a showAnd I'm a principal and they go oh the extras kids stable is over thereAnd I always go there that's happened to me several times. Yeah. Yeah, and if but you probably go no, I'm a principal, right?
01:16:59I don't do that. I go to the extras table and you become an extra in this showNo, I sit there until I did that once where I sat there until I got calls going where are you?I go well that lady sent me hereSo I'm just sitting here when I could have just said I'm a principal and you're proving a pointYou're just taking a longer pathIt's a very long path. I like that path. It's a good one. Yeah. Yeah, you've had that happen. Oh, yeah. Yeah for sureYeah, and what do you do? How do you respond to it?You know, there have been times where I've just said
01:17:28Sorry, you're uh, I'm actually one of the actors andAnd that's the healthier. Yeah, and they responded like in such a way that made me feelGood about handling it that way because they were so apologeticAnd they were like, I can't believe I made that mistake. I am so so sorryUh, you know, IYou know, I really wish that that hadn't happened. Um, you know, give me your name. I will make sure it never happens againSo, so Daniel Lee Kim starWhat I mean, come on man
01:18:01But then there have been other times what there have been other times where I made sure to put a little point on itYou know and because I was having a bad day or I was you know late or something like thatAnd so, you know, I'm sorry. Can I just say something right now, man? I just I'm sorry. Here's the deal. OkayGuy my friend. I mean, all right guy is I'm if I'm producing a tv showRight and I get you on my show and if any anybodyPut you in they're firedYou're Daniel. You can fuck that man. Well, thank you. No, fuck that shit, man. Thank you, Bobby LeeNo, I'll be great. You're a star dude. What the fuck you're talking about
01:18:39But this is the thing like this is a perception of people that is not often realityRight, like people look at you. I'm sure and say like you've got so much shit going onLook how successful you are. Look how many people watch your podcastBut you know what it's like to wake up in the morning and you know, I know, you know, likeHave to make breakfast and like take care of your phone calls and all that stuffIf it doesn't feel that way ever and nor should it we feel I feel like everyone else does but that's the pointThat's the point, right? And that's the thing about privilegeOh, you're right. Okay, you're right. You know, you're right. You know one time I you know after the Walking Dead
01:19:14We're with Steven YoonSo I was I had this two lines in a movie audition, right?And and you know at that time Steven Yoon was likeTo me the futureYeah, I loved him on that show. It's amazing. He's a great actor. Nice guy, you know, and I you knowI was beginning to have a friendship with himAnd um, I was sitting there and he sat next to me at this audition for this two linesAfter walking dead. Yeah, and I'd never been so angry in my life. I pulled him aside. Remember I said I said
01:19:45No, dude, your agents have this is notYou're a fucking star, dude. Yeah, this is insaneRight for me at that time. I needed this but that's the pointThat's the point like people don't know the day-to-day challenges that we faceAnd especially as Asian actors like it's you're never guaranteed a role and you're never guaranteed a jobSo, you know, I think it's helpful and healthy to just think of ourselves as working actors and never as a starYou're rightYou're absolutely right. You're up, you know, and I want to be honest with you
01:20:16And I'm gonna end with thisIs I've been a lot happier in my life when I didn't this is no longer my number one prioritySo variety is my number one priority. I'm really hitting that hardThere's other elements that are far more important to me and as soon as I did that this last yearI've just been so much happier. I just um, I'm blessedYou know, I mean that I get to get have a guy like this on my show to have you guys in myLife and we get to do this as I really am. I'm so blessed. I'm so lucky. Okay, and you know, um, I learned a lot from you, manI'm gonna do things differently, man
01:20:56I'm gonna speak my mind man. You know, I mean, I'm gonna see you know, I mean stop asian hate manYeah, don't you know adore man. Don't look I don't you know, I mean don't get people fired for you knowBecause yeah, I'm having a bad dayYou mean but anywayI have one more question for you. Um because I've been thinking about itSo never got to the freaky friday stuff. Forget the freaky friday. So let after lostDid was there a dip or did you just continue to work after that?Because I remember after mad tv
01:21:24There was a little bit of a dip where I had to wait a couple of years. Did you feel that or no? Uh, wellNo, because I made a concerted. I made a specific choice at that time hawaii 5o was casting right at right as lost was endingand so at the time where ITalked to my agent about it all my castmates from lost were thinking oh, I'm gonna go do movies or I'm gonna go take time offI'm gonna go do this, but to your earlier pointMy career stopped being my first priority once I had a familyand once I had a familyI knew that
01:22:00hawaii 5o which should be my priority for my career because it meant stability for my familyAnd so it was a very easy decision at the time. And so it was very seamlessLike in fact, I was shooting my death scene on loss when I was shooting the pilot of hawaii 5o at the same timeSo I went from one right into the other amazingBut it was never I didn't have a lot of angst about that decision people were telling me like oh, you're going back into tvWhy would you do that? Are you the lead of the show? You're not even the lead of the showbutI took what I could get because it was another show that's shot in hawaii
01:22:37Yeah to have two shows shoot back to back in hawaii. It's insaneHow rare is that going to be? So I I recognize that and I said wellI'm gonna hop on this train because it means both my kids grew up in hawaii. WowWell, you know me and thio van sold the show to fox and set in hawaiiSo, um, you know in a couple years if it gets picked up and stuff you better not say no to the offer where I'm goingHey, man, I would love to work with you something villain or something. We should do that. Would you guys never work together?No, we'll never work together. This is work. You're you're working longer in hawaii than I am you're more recentlyI should say yeah, it's been great. How many episodes you've done now 14 or something. That's amazing. Yeah
01:23:17I just flew in from new york. I did sex in the city tooOkay, man, and then I also I'm also on reservation dogs on fx. So that's the right on manRight on have a pineapple for thatI don't know why well really quick question. Go ahead. I gotta kind of goes with claus freaky fridayUh, everyone here is just asking like about you guys working together like will they ever make a korean version of twins?Will they ever make a remake a face a face off?So I like this question from young one ziki said if you two were in a buddy cop movieWhat would it be about and who would you guys play?
01:23:48Well, you know, I've always wanted to be an undeveloped sigmes twin to somebodyWell, there you go. Right. So like I'm underdeveloped. So, you know, they'll put green screen on your stomachBut like half my head and my arms come out like this, right?You know what I mean? And you have like a turban or something, right?Or are you people think you're a fat guy because you wear a fat suit, but you're really hiding my headBut you're also a buddy cop. You're also copsYeah, maybe likeHow about this maybe he's the brains of the operation exactly you're the you're the brawn
01:24:17Yeah, all right the face of it versus the brains of it or the like how would that work?Or what if one is the cop and what is the criminal?What about this? What if I'm the cop?He's the criminal. Yeah, you're the criminal, right, right?You're under arrestIt's a one act play in one roomAnd the movie and the movie yeah, it's a five minute movie, but it's a short yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Are you parasitic?So basically you would only be nourished if you ate so basically he would he would attempt to starve you out
01:24:52That's true. Yeah, maybe not a cop movie. Would that be a a movie?I'm like a like an alien type of movie with both of youLike I don't know if your brother brother is just something but you're stopping or subjectAn alien invasion. I don't I like that. How about this? How about this? I got a one more serious, right?Um, we were both aliens, right?But he left our planet, right? Because he because of oppression or he doesn't like it and you maybe you fell in love with the earthlingRight, and I'm like 20 years later. I'm like, I'm gonna find my brotherRight, so I had to come back to earth to find you because mom and dad are dying
01:25:26That's a sequel to my love from the stars. Yeah part two. I'm gonna watch that very goodI love from the stars part two, right? All right. So what's another question?Uh, that's it. That's it. Everyone's just really interested in like, how do they not work together? That's like, we will we willLife is life is like very magical in that way. Yeah. So dan, you is there anything you want to promote right now?No, no, I didn't come out here to promote anything. I just came out to promote and talk to you guys. I know, I knowBut there's just some people, you knowDo you about good doctor still on a good doctor still on watch it on what's a bc a bcGood doctor. Yeah. Yeah coming out in an animated series called mecca that you based on a boom comic
01:26:03Uh, and that's on netflix and then wow live-action avatar the last airbender comes out. Uh, no, wait, wait, wait with dallas luYeah, it's dallas. YeahWait, they did a live-action airbender like you thought the shamala was going to end that thing. Yeah, no, that's uh, it's the legit one nowThey did it again. They did it again, but with more asians in it all asianHow was your audition?Oh, okay, if you'd only spoken up about asian, that's what it is. That's right. Yeah. Yeah. Wow. I never got oneSo you're in that I am I play the Darth Vader characterOh my god, so um, they did you shot a seasonery? Yeah, and when does that come out?
01:26:44Uh, we don't know yet, but they're working on the vfx right now. Oh my god. That's excitingI love that fuck. You know who turned me under that was jordan peelOh, yeah when he when the animation was he got to check that out and I saw the whole thingI loved it. Do you know fire lord ozai? Yeah, that's you. That's meYou're the fire lord the fire fucking lord. Oh my god, dudeThat's insane, but we got to have you on season two for sure. You're never gonna do it. Are you kidding me?There's a soap. There's a lot of comedy in thisYeah, they're not gonna have it. Why?
01:27:14I'll tell you actually the first time man. I'm telling you right now. I don't want to be part two nowI'm happy to put in a word. Yeah, put in a word. YeahPut in a word. Please put in a wordYeah, but you know, but don't either, you know, whatever. I will definitely put in a word. Yeah, anyway, I don't promote anythingI was gonna upset me nowSo you're really open about this tooBut like in a lot of your podcasts you talk about jealousy and envy and you know, you know one, you knowYeah, I do
01:27:40You know, but I like that. I think it's healthy that you talk about itBut I you know, I tell people that I'm you know, but it's I know I'm doing wellI am I know I'm doing welland but you know, I also I like it thisIt's thisPlatform gives me a chance to kind of be myself and say things that how I feel about things andAnd people relate to it. You know, I mean, I'm not I'm not a shinyThing I have I'm damaged. That's what's great about the podcast. Yeah, you're human. I'm human
01:28:09You know and for so often like when people do pr toursThere's nothing human about those, you know, it's like 30 second sound bites that are given to you by a publicist, you knowSo, you know, this is this is much deeper than thatWell, you know, thank you so much for doing it. Um, I really do. I think you know, umYou're just one of those guys that I've really looked up to and I'm just so blessed that you did it and thank you so muchI'm super happy to give him a round of applause. Thanks guys. Daniel Daco. HeyPrime members, you can listen to tiger barely ad free on amazon musicDownload the amazon music app today or you can listen ad free with wendry plus in apple podcast
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