Actor brings the South-east Asian experience to his Hollywood debut Sinners

In the horror thriller Sinners, in a dream-like musical sequence set in a 1930s music hall, the cultures of the American South, both past and present, swirl about on the dance floor, moving to the same beat.

- John Lui

Among the African musicians, dancers and blues players of the 1930s, moviegoers will see figures from Chinese opera. In the troupe is a dancer in costume as Sun Wukong, the mythological Monkey King.

Malaysian actor Yao, who plays grocer Bo Chow in his Hollywood movie debut, was asked by the creative team to propose iconic figures that the Asian diaspora would recognise.

"I wanted to name someone who would be known by people from Vietnam and the Philippines, the whole region, not just China. So it had to be Sun Wukong," says Yao, speaking to The Straits Times on a Zoom call from his home in Brooklyn, New York.

It was set up quickly. The team found a martial arts performer familiar with the opera dance movements of the Monkey King. Not only was the make-up artist familiar with the design, but the team was also eager to do it.

"I grew up watching the mythical epics on TV, so it was really cool to see a bit of home in the movie," adds the 34-year-old, whose mother is Filipino and father Chinese.

He also suggested that his character, as someone with Chinese roots, could wear a gold Taoist amulet for good luck. Bo wears the necklace in the film, though it can be seen only partially.

Set in the segregated American South in 1932, Sinners features a Chinese family running two grocery stores—one in the black part of town and another in the white zone, a few steps away.