What Is The Asian Himbo And Why Is This Character So Popular?

[@pbsorigins]

We find the rise of the Asian "Himbo" to be a fascinating phenomenon in the move towards more diverse on-screen representation. Are there other tropes you've noticed that you think we should explore? Discuss below 👇

[@liriodendronlasianthus]

The crazy Asian girl! (The "yandere") Knives Chau is one popular example! There's also the "sexy" brown girl in older Disney cartoons. Why were Jasmine, Pocahontas and Esmeralda so much more sexualised than the typical white princess?

[@Steveofthejungle8]

What about the black nerd?

[@flyvanguard24]

Iono about tropes, but I think there should be a discussion about the differences between Asian male vs Asian female roles / portrayal in media / movies. I feel like you see Asian females much more assimilated / normally portrayed commercials and/or movies, whereas Asian males are rarely highlighted / placed in an equal visual. For instance, if you look at just the initial image John Cho’s tv series “Selfie” - half of his face is covered in the promo even though he’s the romantic male lead. Dunno if you’d consider these micro aggressions or maybe I’m reading into things, but things like that have always bothered me as an Asian American male.

[@goddessblade]

Asian friend of a white main character

[@arcturionblade1077]

@@liriodendronlasianthus Oof, Knives. She also fits the manic pixie girl stereotype just as much as she is yandere bait for white male nerds.

[@ButterflySeraph612]

As a Filipino American man, you have no idea how much I love the literal hot mess that is Jason Mendoza. The fact that he is a Filipino himbo aside, he's just a great character.

[@visgrrl1]

He was the most reliably funny character on the show!

[@shebjess]

What killed me about Jason was that he was a totally hot mess but he was also the one with the healtiest relationship with his parents and who openly expressed how much he loved people. He's a great Character

[@Nightriser271828]

What I appreciated about him was that he defied the stereotype of the Asian nerd boy. As dumb as Jason was, he was caring, uncomplicated, and authentic. And at times, he served up some ambiguously sagacious words that left you wondering if he didn't have some stuff figured out better than the rest.

[@stillhere1425]

He was my favorite character. I never wanted him to go away. His criminal plots in life would have a police officer rotfl, they’re so believable.

[@domdomdominique]

Jason is my spirit animal. Love him.

[@ponyote]

Rise of the Asian Himbo would be a great band name.

[@poundlandvodka]

may I counter: Himbo Quadrant

[@ponyote]

@@poundlandvodka actually, that is a solid one. Sounds like they would do some serious electronica.

[@KerryLuckett]

May I counter both? Band name, Himbo Quandrant; debut album, Rise of the Asian Himbo. Thoughts?

[@Royalty_girlie]

I'm taking this

[@Royalty_girlie]

@@KerryLuckett absolutely awesome. I'm not Asian but I'm black and I would love to be apart of this project PLZ

[@DeepFriedSpaceChicken]

I'm really surprised that Steven Yeun (Glenn from The Walking Dead) wasn't in the positive list He was portrayed as highly intelligent, with great leadership skills and very desirable/romantic. In the end he was one of the most beloved characters of the whole franchise. Great representation :D Edit: No I'm not calling Glenn a Himbo. I mean that he is belongs in the smart and attractive quadrant

[@arcturionblade1077]

True, but I don't think he fits the Himbo trope. Glenn was kind, yes. Handsome, sure. But he was smart (academically incompetence, I'm not so sure; Glenn was a humble pizza delivery guy before the dead started walking). And he did get the hot girl (Maggie) and ended up getting married and having a kid with her (his premature murder/death at the hands of Negan, notwithstanding).

[@swtlikecndy4119]

@@arcturionblade1077 i think OP means the producers of the video should've included him but they didn't. i would agree that he belongs in the first quadrant

[@martinvanburen4578]

the guy was weak and nerdy

[@DeepFriedSpaceChicken]

@@arcturionblade1077 I wasnt calling him a Himbo. I said he deserved to be in the positive list.

[@AndrewLinArchives]

True, that really was a turning point in Asian male representation. Great to see that in such a widely watched show

[@TheJadedJames]

I feel like what has really happened is that we’ve become so self-aware about specific stereotypes surrounding the depiction of Asian men, that it has probably forced some writers to basically swing in the opposite direction, which has created the recent Asian Himbo archetype. But meanwhile, John Cho is still out there … playing regular dudes

[@chukwumaolisehemekaouwarre3236]

History kzbin.info/www/bejne/m5uspaebp56kfbM..

[@LKxxROXSTAR15]

and this is why John Cho is doing God's work

[@TheJadedJames]

@@LKxxROXSTAR15 I saw John Cho in that movie "Searching" recently. No Asian stereotypes, no self-aware responses to them. It was just a movie about a regular dad looking for his daughter

[@i8mju7aq1w2e3sw2o9mj]

Lol

[@rumblefish9]

@@TheJadedJames John Cho did have an interesting character but snobby anime fans wont give the series a break. Cowboy Bebop was not perfect, but there was room to grow.

[@blackchang1981]

I'm not an Asian male but I can't shake the feeling that there isn't any progress being made from this troupe, more like a transition from an overt insult to a veiled one. It seems like the two troupes are just diametrically opposed but (at least in my opinion) equally offensive. It seems like as an Asian male you have to chose between being either emasculated or objectified in order to be casted in Hollywood projects. Given the variety of different ethnic groups and cultures that make up the Asian community to polarize the men as either seems limiting and (deliberately) repressive. As a Black man who has been fortunate to have friends from a variety of backgrounds I hope that Hollywood will one day show minorities in more "fleshed out/ developed" characters than simple racial troupes. Keeping my fingers crossed but not holding my breath. Thanks for sharing. 🤞

[@SteveWKk]

It’s Trope, not troupe……

[@blackchang1981]

@@SteveWKk Thanks. Appreciate the correction

[@arcturionblade1077]

You do bring up a good point. The Himbo trope is just the classic Asian nerd stereotype turned on its head. It's not clever or subtle at all, but at the same time, we can conclude that Hollywood loves to sexually objectify anyone if a character is to have any self worth much less agency in the plot. It's still progress but we do admittedly have a lot of work to do to achieve equality as well as nuance in characterization and story telling.

[@SM-yz4hi]

I think this is the first awkward step into broadening the palette of what’s “allowed” for asian male characters

[@mynameisreallycool1]

I agree. I'm not an Asian man, but I'm a minority and a woman, so I understand what you mean. Why can't Hollywood just write minorities as people? Why does it have to be "either you're smart and ugly or you're dumb and sexy"? Can't Asian characters just exist? Why do all minorities have to either be undesirable or hypersexualized? Why do they have to either be geniuses or complete idiots? I'm fine with just an average looking Asian character who was mostly a B student in school and has intellectual strengths and weaknesses, like most people. We also don't need to put them in boxes. Sometimes I feel like "Asian himbo" is used for any Asian male character who isn't a genius. Saying, "If you're Asian and not a mathematical genius and you don't look like a stereotypical 'ugly' nerd, then you're a himbo!" It feels a bit problematic. And quite frankly, the "himbo/bimbo" trope being considered "progressive" bothers me so much in general, regardless of their race or gender.

[@matthewneubeck4421]

Isn’t it just a backlash to the normal western stereotypes of Asians being intelligent, conniving and unattractive, by subverting that and making the character stupid, overall good natured, and unrealistically attractive?

[@zoeotaku5608]

This is gonna be long, im so sorry;; Yeah there's is a sort of subtle difference i guess in intentionality. As from the vid, it's not much of nor does it feel like an intentional unrealistic portrayal against the pasts' unrealistic portrayals like unrealistic extremes against unrealistic extremes for meta mockery,, it's more of a "avoiding the older stereotypes" cuz of the complaints or like it's done and it's old clichés/tropes. And like, if u go by the order they placed up the characters, which is also the general chronological order of when those characters appear, it's a trend that asians are undesirable at first (undesirable but incompetent and competent but undesirable) before going on to desirable but incapable - in a way, that makes it so asians arent just ugly, so there visual diversity and maybe pretty-up the overall visuals of the film, and ok yeah maybe increase acceptance of asians, but that's all. Keep them dumb so theyre still lesser than our white main casts (and perhaps, less threatening too bc theyre dumb)(always with that xenophobia). - only then it finally gets to just asians who can be humans, both desired on at least an extent as well as capable also at least to an extent The progression itself was a slow one, it had to take steps first with [himbo asian] that's still lesser than other white characters before it could reach to the [competent and at least decent-looking] stage that's equal to the white characters; it wasnt one that was some big brain move and done intentionally with, there wasnt such self-awareness - at least that's what the studies and many asians including me say and feel ((especially with all that political status and images of asians that we could see from like 1960s model minority but 1980s japan economic success but also tension with communism, and then "climate change chinese hoax" and "chinese virus" and asian hate crimes and shootings, and even now like sexualisation of asians through kpop and anime, even the general stereotype of asians being chinese korean japanese and absolutely forgetting south, northwest, southeast etc asians, and still many asian-equality advocates themselves put in "if u love kpop/anime/sushi/"idk, chinese takeout or sth rather than just some nice reasoning out of humanity,, we asians havent rlly felt genuine care for us, not just the western/american films but the west in general? So yeah, id agree more with the vid, idt the hot but unrealistically-incompetent asian himbo is some intentional self-aware good-willed mockery :/ ------Except London Tipton. I can accept that case, especially being foils with Maddie + she felt human (and even then again, that's just one out of a whole movement of hot but dumb unrealistic asian lesser characters; even disney that had London put that actress in the another movie, where she meets a kungfu guy from china who's hot but not socially/academically competent and in a way really mocks his culture throughout the film

[@rightweaponry908]

This is exactly what i was thinking, i don't think Hollywood has changed in any genuine way, they are just doing what they have always done and that is to co-opt social demands for monetary gain. They say "oh you don't like this stereotype? Ok well we'll do the exact opposite (yet what is implied will not change) happy now?" And it takes people a while to realize it isn't Hollywood changing, it is Hollywood being passive aggressively contrarian. Instead of not being harmful, they just create a new harm.

[@wideawake4350]

Yea just like those older stereotypes and even current ones racism and bigotry still exist. In my eyes although the rep is better it’s almost as if Asians can’t be “too good”. As if it’s too much for them to be desirable and competent. They still have to collectively have a high negative to counteract their positive to keep them in a stereotypical box that their white counterparts don’t always have to be in.

[@moniqueloomis9772]

@@zoeotaku5608 Thank you for sharing this. 👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾

[@martinvanburen4578]

and bad accents.... but it might be more to do with appealing to Chinese audiences and Asian populations outside of America where studious often make the bulk of their money. After World War II, the Asian countries were destroyed and weak. Now, after the rise of China...things have changed unlike the rise of Japan which was historic and worthy of discussion but still not the same as China

[@aoi_18]

I'd like to see a more detailed timeline in regards to the evolution of the Asian Himbo in relation to the influx of martial arts movies, Japanese anime and Kpop into American mass media.

[@LadsTalkTime]

Exactly! As I kept watching the video, BTS just kept popping up in my head. Their current fame in the U.S. has definitely changed the way Asians are viewed. People stay simping over those men so I’d definitely say Asians are thought to be more sexy these days. .... *Edit:* Lol, didn’t even know people were liking this comment. Don’t comment much on social media so in commenting this, wasn’t actually thinking of others interacting with my comment. Was just putting my candid thoughts into words. Lots of peeps have been responding to my comment saying “not only BTS,” to which of course, I agree completely (Exo-K, Anime, etc...trust me, I know 😆). I see how my comment seems like it’s giving only BTS the credit, but that was totally not my intention. Was just typing out an un-curated thought y’all 😊. Though, I’m curious. Can BTS be credited for the “mainstreamness” of East-Asian entertainment? Back in my high school days (in the late 2000’s and early early 2010’s) and even till just recently, I (and “my kind” lool 😂) was considered “weird” for watching (more like obsessing over) Anime and having some “slight interest” in k-pop and k-drama (Girls Generation, Exo-K, Boys Over Flowers, etc - had a friend who was obsessed and always brought them to class and got a bunch of us watching). Now, it’s more acceptable by the masses to consume East-Asian entertainment and even sometimes, considered “cool.” I think that’s what my initial comment was trying to capture - that I can’t seem to pinpoint the shift in social acceptance of East-Asian content (from “nerd” or “niche” or “weird” to “plain-old simpling from the masses”) in the States to anywhere else but BTS. Meaning if you were like me already consuming East-Asian media before BTS finding East-Asians cool, attractive, etc etc, yeah you existed but you were probably the outlier in your social group. Now more people find East-Asians and their content attractive and cool. It seems like BTS was like the gateway to making MORE people see just how cool East-Asian content is. I can’t think of any other more mainstream than them (even though, I think more East-Asian content deserves just as much recognition). Am I wrong in this assessment?

[@whathell6t]

@@LadsTalkTime Not me. I’m a dude, but I got exposed to Asian HIMBO characters through tokusatsu, and it’s the medium that arrived in the USA way before manga, anime, and K-Pop.

[@elaGuillen]

@@LondonBlue for real tho😳

[@abaez7484]

I think K-drama is also helping!

[@tash_g]

This is what I thought this video was about when I clicked. I wanna see this too.

[@jujugarcianyc]

Sessue Hayakawa not being discussed here is a shame. He originated the heartthrob role in American cinema during the silent era, and was Japanese. Both desirable and competent but highly evil. I hope his legacy isn’t forgotten.

[@boudicaastorm4540]

I saw a video on him recently! I was surprised he wasn't mentioned here too, he was a very nice-looking man but was always denied the role of leading man/hero/happily-ever-after love interest because of his ethnicity. There was a quote somewhere of him saying that he always wanted to play a hero, but was never given the chance, it's a shame :(

[@purplepotato8849]

That's who I thought was missing as well! Very masculine, very attractive, but typecast into the sexually dominant (almost in a villanous sort of way) / forbidden lover roles.

[@bigheadrhino]

Pearl Harbor set things back. Who knows what trajectory asian in american cinema would have taken if not for that.

[@TheBeautifulDisaster]

_Yes!_ Hayakawa was a precursor to Rudolph Valentino, paving the way for the exoticised, forbidden, sex symbol. It's such a shame that so much of his filmography is "lost".

[@diananurtlessova9388]

Where did he play? Any movie recommendations?

[@kandigirl10]

I would definitely add Paolo Montalban to the very competent, very desirable quadrant. He was THE PRINCE in Rodgers & Hammerstein's version of Cinderella starring Brandy and Whitney Houston!

[@missybarbour6885]

YES

[@isaidwhatIsaid86]

Of course they wouldn’t include the few exceptions because that would throw off their entire video 🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@anawkwardsweetpotato4728]

I'm so shocked at how little he got casted cuz gorl he was and still is _foooiiineee_ 😍

[@Hayri2011]

Yes! My first Asian crush, at the ripe old age of 7

[@Kathywake23]

The first man I ever had a crush on.

[@tecpaocelotl]

Mickey Rooney's character is probably the only negative thing in Breakfast at Tiffany's. Bruce Lee should have been discussed. A positive Asian male character. This is coming from a Mexican seeing Mexicans in media as being lazy, criminals or the hard working gardener/maid. I would have loved a Mexican who can kick ass growing up like Bruce. Lol.

[@mk-oc7mt]

Agree Bruce Lee should def have been discussed

[@pbsorigins]

You're in for a treat with our episode on the history of Black kung fu films: kzbin.info/www/bejne/eojVpqZresmSZrc

[@galaxylucia1898]

They literally edited out the discussion about the top Right quadrant (hot AND competent), which had some pictures in that area. That’s probably where they put Bruce Lee because how could they forget a legend like him?!?!😲😤😤😤

[@tecpaocelotl]

@@pbsorigins we seen that episode, but we want to know where he fits in the scale. Lol.

[@martinvanburen4578]

I don't see how Bruce Lee would make sense when considering....he was in niche movies and an anomaly.

[@amandapearson8922]

I really liked this video, however, I'm curious about why Bruce Lee was noticeably absent from this discussion. For me, he marks a major shift in Hollywood's portrayal of Asian men as he purposefully only pursued roles that empowered his ethnic community. I also noticed some mention Steven Yeun and how his portrayals in TV and film have done likewise. Just throwing that out there!

[@viet3211]

I assume because he doesn't fit the Asian himbo trope perfectly, since he is physically handsome, but the actor himself and the characters he acts as are not mentally/academically incompetent since Bruce lee developed his own martial art, was highly educated and deeply spiritual and studied philosophy on his personal time.

[@kahahabahaha]

@@viet3211 It would've been nice for completion to fill out the other quadrants of the graph a bit more. And the video was interesting anyway, wouldn't have minded a more thorough treatment of the subject with more examples anyway

[@hittkid6312]

I think they are focusing on asian characters that was produced and written by non-asians, hence the discussion about how non-asians view and create asian characters. With Steven Yeun though I agree they missed the opportunity to discuss his roles.

[@thunderbird1921]

Seriously, there are some stereotypes that are STILL going on in Hollywood, one of the worst being the "weird laughing" Asian. Even Marvel seemed to feature it in one of their films, I'm not a woke or super PC guy at all, but I cringed when I saw them appear to show it. There's no good reason to keep using that stuff today.

[@marmar90000]

I'm also surprised they completely ignored Jackie Chan, who became one of Hollywood's most beloved Asian actors 🤔🤔🤔 These are bad historians lol

[@maggpiprime954]

I live in a very multicultural city, so I don't quite notice when when a cast has broad representation, as it feels natural and relatable to my own life. But I _do_ notice when a cast is mostly white, in a very uncanny valley sort of way.

[@qwertyuiopaaaaaaa7]

I also grew up in a diverse city, but your comment just made me realize that White Americans that grew up in homogenously White regions might feel that same uncanny sense when they see a diverse cast. That might partly explain why those communities really complain about "diversity casting." But there may also be a hope that a generation of children growing up in a White-dominant community might start feeling that uncanny sense about their real-world environment when it doesn't correspond to the diversity of their media. That's where intergenerational change comes from.

[@h0eera.115]

@@qwertyuiopaaaaaaa7 true that...

[@KM-cs1dy]

Have you guys ever notice. Dating show never really cast any Asian male?

[@maggpiprime954]

@Zombies In Pjs Yes exactly! Grew up in Toronto, did highschool in Scarborough, then moved back to more central area. Sure there are neighbourhoods where the mosaic is slightly less diverse, like Little Portugal, but those are more of a cultural hub.

[@SM-yz4hi]

I grew up in a pretty diverse area and I remember being maybe 9 or 10 when I realized commercials were almost exclusively white people. Toys, medicine, cars, PSAs, it didn’t matter the type. All white. It was impossible to un-notice it. In recent years I’ve noticed a huge change in the diversity in commercials, which is cool

[@blackholesun3152]

Can't believe you forgot the two hot n competent ones from the TV show, "Lost"! There was Naveen Andrews that played Sayid n Daniel Day Kim as Jin-Soo. They were a big reason for me in watching that show.

[@sharstarg2414]

They were my favssssss😍😍😍😍

[@Rickiizthe1]

I think you just experienced the phenomena of how dark skin Asians get discriminated against when it comes to light skin Asians.

[@ZJtheLegend]

Oh gosh! So hot! Very complex characters, too! They deserved a shout out, for sure.

[@lq8242]

Yessssssss

[@nordette]

I looooved me some Jin-Soo he is so fine

[@SmileKidOFMusic]

Appreciate the accurate himbo definition. Too many think its just a hot and dumb man but KINDNESS is so necessary and adds to the fantasy

[@stillhere1425]

I think Josh in Crazy Ex-GF is THE turning point because Rebecca makes no mention of Josh being Asian in the narration. My favorite thing about the introduction to the story is White Josh, because we’re so used to the non-white member of a group being designated “Blacky” or whatever, this is a real twist. “We call him White Josh, because he’s white, and also his name is Josh.” 😆

[@tanadarko6991]

I don't think you can say she makes NO mention... She talks about his cultural heritage a lot, and she and and Paula spend a bunch of time googling "mixed race babies" for if Rebecca and Josh were to have kids...

[@celestialdusk]

Something not mentioned in this video that I think is critically important for understanding the shift is the rapid rise and consumption of Asian media by the West. Especially kpop. You can only go so many years of seeing flower boys and b-boy hunks before wanting to incorporate such representation into your media.

[@shebjess]

The rise of the Himbo movement is also interesting because it's tackling toxic masculinity by showing a variety of what a desirable masc person looks like and I adore it. BRING IT ON

[@frutcakes6370]

I have a genuine question but how is the himbo movement tackling toxic masculinity? Where can I learn more about this? 😅

[@shebjess]

@@frutcakes6370 The KZbin channel The Take has a good video on it. It discusses how the Himbo is often gentle, aware of his failings and wiling to listen to others and how people are drawing to that to rather than the Alpha Male ideal of masculinity

[@frutcakes6370]

@@shebjess sweet thanks

[@mojomike]

Bolin (melts)

[@DrakeBarrow]

And it does it by stating that a (almost always cis) man must be 'lesser than' to be acceptable. It's disgusting, and it should die in a fire.

[@bynahelemaal]

as a brown man, I'm so tired of customer service/cab driver/dr. Patel/nerdy friend who can't talk to girls/grocery store owner talking like durdurdur... I'm here for the himbo making brown men more attractive/desirable, bc I've had to battle through a lot of stereotypes in my romantic life for girls to realize we're not all like that ffs! movies have such a giant effect on the narrative and way people perceive you, in this case, mostly as unattractive!

[@TDG1999]

You just gotta go against the grain man and carry yourself differently from the stereotypes

[@quietcell]

@@TDG1999 and maybe pick women with whom there's no need to battle through stereotypes :)

[@TDG1999]

@@quietcell lol that sounds good to say but doesn’t work well in practice. Majority of people view things through stereotypes it’s just a few who are unbiased. You will always do better when you cater to the majority (who happen to stereotype) than the minority (who are unbiased). What you said is the politically correct thing though👍🏾

[@octoberboiy]

I agree with that. I feel like Indian men are not positively portrayed at all in western media.

[@Hallows4]

This got me thinking about representation in children’s media, and how it can actually have advantages over things made for adults. The media I was exposed to growing up usually had pretty diverse casts, and because race was rarely the primary focus of most plots, every character was free to be fully fleshed out and complex without that ever being a barrier. While the latter is arguably less true for contemporary children’s media, you can still have a mostly colorblind franchise that explores individual aspects of characters' backgrounds without making those aspects tower over everything else.

[@CedricYoyoMan]

I got one, Power Rangers Time Force the blue Ranger

[@rakhmanoshakbayev2419]

Yeah I’ve thought about that too, I once realized/remembered that there was this childrens show on Nickelodeon I don’t remember the name but the main character was a black kid and I never noticed or thought about it, I should also mention I live in a country without almost any black people, so this might have been my earliest representation/exposure. So yeah it was interesting to remember that after the years of representation of black people in adult media i consumed/was exposed to growing up and I wonder if and how my perception of them has changed because of this. I think it’s probably exactly the fact that now I have some sort of ‘perception’ of them, which I didn’t before bc I literally didn’t think to group them into one thing, which if you think about it is ofc kind of ridiculous to do if you’re not taught to. Races don’t have characteristics or traits, negative or positive, people do. Edit: I looked it up the show was little bill but we’ll ignore that☠️

[@macysboringchannel]

@@rakhmanoshakbayev2419 Little bill was great. We also had dora and kai lan. And the backyardigans had a very diverse voice cast on purpose.

There’s a really good book that I would recommend to anyone interested, Interior Chinatown by Charles Yu - it’s about an Asian American actor struggling to move from “Generic Asian Man” roles past all the stereotypes to the final goal of becoming a romantic lead. It’s excellently written.

[@user-insight]

they started to see that asian hunks were profitable because of kpop as well. I think its important to acknowledge global factors when discussing entertainment.

[@liriodendronlasianthus]

I strive to be an Asian himbo

[@moniqueloomis9772]

You naughty boy. 🙃

[@mcgibs]

Way ahead of you. I'm dumb as shit while also trying to beat my bench high score. And women should have the right to chose.

[@BigDaddyCola]

Just starting video...hope it addresses sessue hayakawa. A japanese man who was one of hollywood's first sex symbols..before valentino even. From the 1910s and 20s.

[@thwb4661]

Well, as an Asian from Asia, I totally wouldn't mind seeing more Asian Himbos. It's a refreshing trope that Hollywood started to use. I mean we've seen himbos like these in Asian dramas and movies, but we've never seen them in Hollywood until recently. Asians can also be bitchy and dumb and all sorts of characters and personalities, not just "nerdy student/business owner" type of shit.

[@mt0881]

I wonder if other forms of asian pop culture like anime or kpop are changing how Asians in real life are portrayed on the big screen

[@NayvieNoir]

All I’m saying is, considering how Black women and Asian men have been similarly branded undesirable by the media, we should really just start dating each other en masse.

[@thezu9250]

Blck women are over-sexualized. They make them sexually desirable but not serious relationship worthy.

[@adixon4824]

Bw should date men they are compatible with, not who is also deemed u desirable SMH.

[@dlam2864]

ew

[@thezu9250]

@@dlam2864 Arent yall always crying about your women preferring white men? Not sure why youre saying eww like youre at the top or something.

[@iTheDoodle]

Weird. BW will date who they want.

[@derekbrou]

It's crazy that this emerging stereotype was identified so early in it's evolution, I wonder if it'll grow into more diverse portrayals of Asian men now that we're conscious of it, or if it'll just be the same himbo over and over for the next 30 years 😔

[@danielland3767]

Can we go over on how America & subsequently the U.S. became hostile to immigrants all throughout it's history while at the same time exploiting all the labor that came with it. Also can you cover how Mexico & and other countries/people could still possibly see the annex land as their land?

[@kayv5840]

Yes! Spot on. When it comes to undocumented people or people overseas, this country as a whole is obsessed with the “cheaper labor” but disregards people’s life outside of work or safety at the workplace, or don’t even offer many sponsorships. Also, when it comes to work we (1st gen +) are expected to take on extra roles (translating/interpreting) though it isn’t in the job description & without compensation.

[@plzleavemealone9660]

Sadly. So does every country... An example would be Japan. It's just not talked about.

[@davehan241]

Glad us Asian guys can now make use of all that Asian fetishization. That's the true sign of success of any minority...how much white people wanna get in your pants. In all seriousness, it's great that there's more representation, but it's still just another stereotyping. It's small progress that I hope is on the path to real inclusion diversity. In the end though, all minorities are going to be reduced to tropes in the media, but it's way more important to deal with Black female representation vs Asian male representation because addressing the former will naturally improve the latter...while the reverse is not true.

[@moniqueloomis9772]

Speaking as a Black *woman, I appreciate your wry sense of humor and sharing your insight regarding both of our marginalized groups.

[@ahhwe-any7434]

I'm sorry but I lowkey get off on literally sitting on my ass anywhere. Even sitting on my ass, in my own closet. And world: heyyyyy girl, hey 😉. _Molly Shannon moves_ yes but no. Honestly, didn't know I had that much appeal. I mean, I do. But I dont 😅. But ok, take it away. I was just honestly looking for a summary on this definition. I'd say cover the Asian misfits but they got that covered tho. Also, honestly at 39 y does it still shock me that asians use substances. I know there's a whole lotta irony going on ___ but sometimes I think I never left the white suburbs... not that they were innocent either but still

[@justinwatson1510]

Please join a communist or socialist party and help us make sure white supremacists never take power in the US again.

[@1bwash]

I don't think you can equate the stereotyping from Breakfast at Tiffany's/16 Candles to asian males becoming leads in some movies though?

[@worldsbiggestholdthegirlfan]

Thanks for including Crazy Ex Girlfriend, it's a phenomenal show that rarely gets the hype it deserves

[@goddessblade]

But I want more complex Asian characters. Asian himbo might be a positive stereotype, but it's a stereotype. It's no better than Bruce Lee-esque kung-fu hero who is known mainly for, well, kung-fu

[@wheresmyeyebrow1608]

I mean the individual characters in those shows themselves can be complex sometimes, even if some of them *are* sitcoms

[@1bwash]

the characters in the more recent examples are complex though.

[@kguerr197]

Steven Yuen, John Cho, and Sandra Oh are a few actors who's had roles with no reliance on their race to make complex characters.

[@purplel0vely]

Not talking about Asian male representation in Martial Arts film is a serious oversight. Literally that stereotype is so strong and remains one of the dominant representations of East Asian men in film although it is slowly changing. I'm looking forward to the black Kung-fu special but this discussion would have been better if you mentioned it here because for better or worse it is a dominant trope that influences the others too.

[@Salemguy83]

I think Simu Liu in Kim's Convenience, while a Canadian show, seems like he would fit in here too

[@XanStephP]

Yeah. His character Jung is the ultimate Himbo.

[@imjustlucy_29]

I’m surprised there was no mention of Paolo Montalban. The guy who played Prince Christopher in the 1997 Cinderella movie. That man really made every 90s and early 2000s children have an Asian crush awakening.

[@ReemTahir]

First off, I wish they separated East and South Asian men since they aren't that comparable. They also missed a lot of characters/actors and mostly focused on the more recent shows. Would have been cool if they went more in depth about the history of cinema and talked about icons... like Bruce Lee, Jackie Chan, Sessue Hayakawa, George Takei, Noriyuki "Pat" Morita. While they were still problematic, there were so many tropes throughout Hollywood's history about Asian men they didn't touch on: action man, nerd, villain, wise man, seducer, etc. In fact the first Asian man to star in a Hollywood movie was in the 1910s, Sessue Hayakawa. He played sexy villains who would seduce White women into doing his bidding. Like I said, problematic but interesting but the history of representation is a lot more complex than this video made it seem to be. Sorry this video was a bit of a disappointment.

[@egg_bun_]

I agree. Yes, both East Asians and South Asians are Asian, but I feel like they are treated differently. There's similarities, yes, but there's a difference.

[@ironheart5830]

How about James Shigeta ??

[@ReemTahir]

@@ironheart5830 exactly! and many, many others

[@ironheart5830]

@@ReemTahir 👍

[@jovimathews]

How come South Asian men aren’t comparable? Also they should include West Asian men, many are cast as villains although some as heroes in Hollywood in the 60s. But I must say SE Asian men are cast as big Hollywood heroes in the recent 20 years. I would love to the see Dwayne Johnson aka The Rock in another blockbuster

[@bleepbloop8081]

Filipina here. Just putting my two cents on the matter. In the 1910s and 1920s, Sessue Hayakawa/Kintaro Hayakawa (a Japanese actor) was a popular silent film celebrity in the United States. He was so popular that he was considered to be a leading man/ sex symbol at the time. Unfortunately, he was typecast as an "exotic villain" before establishing his own production company. He left Hollywood in the 1920s due to the rise of discrimination against the Japanese. Asian racism was rampant during the 1800s and 1900s, yes, but that does not mean it was devoid of Asian representation in the film industry.

[@wheresmyeyebrow1608]

True this He was actually in 'Bridge On the River Kwai' later in life : D

[@fahminazaman9447]

Amazing video! wish you maybe briefly prefaced that South Asians are often invisible from the Asian American race as it is...but glad you put up Kal Penn there from Harold and Kumar since his character WAS a pivotal character! great video :)

[@SY-ok2dq]

That's because South Asians represent a very small community in terms of numbers, compared to Americans of East Asian descent. And they're very recent immigrants. Keep in mind that there were Chinese and Japanese immigrants in the U.S. in large numbers, in the 19th century. There are Japanese and Chinese Americans who can trace their family roots back over generations in the U.S., to the late or mid 1800s. Can South Asians do the same? Japanese Americans, born in the U.S., some of them to parents born in the U.S., were forced into internment camps during WW2. So the Chinese and Japanese have a very long history, and large numbers, in the U.S. Koreans are East Asian, but they didn't migrate to the U.S. in large numbers until after the Korean War, and mostly in the 60s, 70s, and early 80s - before the real improvements brought about by the "economic miracle" of South Korea. The story of the Southeast Asians, the Vietnamese, is rather similar, with migration coming due to the Vietnam War. But in their case, the immigrants came quite soon after the war. In the more recent decades migration from Vietnam has been difficult, due to having a Communist governmen opposed to the U.S., whereas South Korea has been a close ally to the U.S. and has hosted large U.S. military bases to this day.

[@seewhydoubleu]

Keanu Reeves definitely belongs to the Himbo category when he first appeared in Bill and Ted, Point Break, Speed. Hollywood did downplay his half-Asian / Hawaiian ancestry to make him more marketable as a mainstream actor.

[@riannebanzuela7099]

I think we can also mention here the rise of K-pop as a genre and its implications on how we see the attractiveness level of asians go up in the past few years. Although, not really at the same narrative as the Asian himbo, I think that it has contributed on how we are seen in media as "desirable characters." Hope to see competent desirable Asians in the future though since they will be like great role models and representation for the upcoming generation.

[@Jsarmy87124]

kdrama too no ?

[@insulaarachnid]

Just in terms of desirability, did Bruce Lee change Western media perception about Asian men's attractiveness? His son Brandon Lee was definitely considered a hunk. I am also reminded of Lou Diamond Phillips in the 80's/early 90's.

[@percymiller8775]

Asians are considered hot aslong as their mixed according to Hollywood

[@mojomike]

I had no idea Lou Diamond Phillips was Asian background till just now - I think for most of Gen X he read as Latino or spicy white.

[@insulaarachnid]

@@mojomike I'm at the end of Gen X and I also only found out recently that he wasn't Latino, he was frequently cast as Latino throughout his career.

[@Araceli_Espinoza9585]

Lou diamond Phillips is a honorary Latino.

[@SY-ok2dq]

@@insulaarachnid Well it's because of his casting as a Latino in "La Bamba" which was his breakout role. That started the ball rolling, and convinced most of the audience that Phillips was Latino. The thing with acting is they cast you for what you look like. Or what they think the audience will see you as, or accept you as. I knew Phillips was of mixed background with Filipino ancestry from way back in the 90s. But he doesn't look as "Asian" as some Filipinos do, and I suppose casting agents thought he looked, or could pass for, Latino. Phillips obviously auditioned for, and accepted a role that he knew represented a different ethnic group. But how many roles were there for Filipinos in American films of the 1990s? Phillips went for the roles he could, and was cast because he was a better/more suitable actor for those roles than whoever else auditioned, which probably included some Latino actors. Phillips managed to make a name for himself, in a time when it was difficult for non-white actors. There's a British actor by the name of Christopher Simpson. Throughout his career he's played mostly South Asian and Middle Eastern roles. In the U.K. there's a lot more call for such roles as they have a long history with South Asia (the British Raj in India) and lots of immigrants in the U.K. from their former colonies. Simpson "looked the part". But surprisingly, he's actually of white British and Greek-Rwandan (Mediterranean + African) heritage. But I'm sure in the U.K. he's seen by most people as looking South Asian or something like that. John Turturro is Italian-American. He's played Italian-Americans e.g. "Do The Right Thing" but he's also often been cast as Jewish characters - even by Jewish people. The Coen brothers are probably the ones who got the ball rolling by casting Turturro more than once, as a Jewish person (Turturro actually kind of has some physical similarities to the Coen brothers, lookswise). Turturro has been married to a Jewish actress for a very long time, so at least he knows something about it. Other Italian-American actors like Sylvester Stallone, Al Pacino etc. have rarely or never played Jewish characters, probably because they're too well known for Italian-American roles. Winona Ryder (Horowitz) played Cher's daughter onscreen. Cher is of Armenian-American background. Ryder is of Jewish background. Both have white mothers of Anglo or Anglo/Celtic background (as opposed to Eastern Europe or Southern Europe or Northern Europe). Cher didn't want British actress Emily Lloyd for the role as she deemed Lloyd to look nothing like her (Lloyd had blonde, curly hair and very bright blue eyes so Cher was right).

[@mk-oc7mt]

Kal Penn has described these stereotyping dynamics in his career as an actor in his own words

[@lolbored801]

I'm just disappointed that Revenge of the Nerds wasn't mentioned and the character Takashi played by Brian Tochi. One of my favorite movies as a kid and one of the best college comedies ever.

[@platinumtp]

You should do a story on Asians who have found Hollywood success passing as whites (ie. Rob Schneider, Mark-Paul Gosselaar, Keanu Reeves, etc.).

[@4everArtista]

Yeah, then do one with Vin Diesel and The Rock

[@SteveWKk]

Marc Paul Gosselar is Asian??

[@platinumtp]

@@SteveWKk YEAP!

[@platinumtp]

@@SteveWKk I once saw an interview where he explained that in order the guarantee the “Saved By The Bell” acting roll he had to go through a make over.

[@minhtran2160]

@@SteveWKk yup, he is a quarter Indonesian. Also saw a pix of him from a few years ago of him in full Indo attire.

[@darigamedelkanova3712]

I consider Zack from 13 reason why fitting to this category while being quite competent he is still big himbo Even though 13 reason why was a mess and ruined his character he was still likeable to me

[@christine_notchristina]

I agree. John Cho really plays this characters that are meaningful in terms of Asian representation. Did you mention that he played Henry, a competent male, in the comedy series "Selfie" (2014)? The female, Eliza Dooley was played by Karen Gillian, a very pretty, popular, successful but narcissistic person. In the end, Henry transforms from competent but undesirable to competent and desirable? He even rejected Eliza in the end.

[@harmonyharris8441]

I’m just soooo glad you’re back! 💕

[@pbsorigins]

Thanks for sticking with us!

[@richardparadox163]

One aspect that I wished they’d touched on is a trend I’ve noticed where the hot himbo character (if they’re meant to be physically attractive instead of the lovable idiot like Jason) and especially if they’re the lead character or main love interest is almost always played by a mixed race, half (or more) white actor like Darren Barnet or Henry Golding, who then benefit from white features like muscle mass, height, and facial structure that are regarded as conventionally attractive, but their eyes and skin tone make them just “exotic” enough to be interesting and count as Asian for diversity purposes. I feel this in some ways sets unrealistic expectations for other Asian men, even among Asian women who may not realize the actor is mixed, who lack those white traits. Tl;dr: Partially white actors are cast as desirable and attractive leads while fully Asian men continue to be relegated to nerdy undesirable comic relief roles, often alongside those same mixed race actors.

[@hynnow18]

I see Darren Barnet as kind of an exception to this argument. They did not know he was part Japanese until after he was cast as a love interest and on set. Someone (I think makeup artist? He says in some interviews) caught him practicing his Japanese with another crew member (audio-related I think) and got the ball rolling with Mindy Kaling. When Darren got called in to ask if he’d like his character to be part Asian, he thought he was in trouble haha!!

[@zookytar]

It will be interesting to see where Simu Liu's career takes him. He is so Asian looking that China commenters think he is ugly lol. But he's getting cast in a few "hunky" roles so maybe that will be a bridge for others to not have to look "white" to play the sexy male lead.

[@victoriedits]

i understand your point and it's definitely a conversation to be had (especially in filo telenovelas/celebrities in general) i just dont think henry golding is the best example you could use? like that man looks like a lot of southeast asian men, which are a very diverse group in itself, to the point that you could put him in a uniqlo airsoft tshirt, drop him in kuala lumpur and he'd just be taken as an attractive malay man who has an impressive amount of knowledge about his hometown sarawak. i also dont think height should be a factor to whiteness when many korean actors are in the 180cms. i hope you dont think this is an offence against you/your point, i just hope to have a nice discussion and maybe spread some enlightenment

[@keyne]

@@victoriedits are you Malaysian? The Malay/ Malaysian idea of what looks Malay has been distorted in recent decades. Henry Golding definitely looks mixed. Malays have come to internalize the mixed look as Malay when in fact the majority of Malays do not look like that. Through out history, there have been middle eastern, European and Indian settlers who have assimilated and eventually identified themselves as Malay contributing to some amount of diversity to the what is considered Malay, but at the end of the day, they remain a minority. Those physical attributes are worshipped by Malays and have become internalized as part of the Malay look.

[@TDG1999]

Being tall and muscular is a white trait?

[@GuliversTravelocity]

I wonder if the link between intelligence and being seen as a threat is apart of the reason why the sweet non-threatening Asian himbo character?

[@KerryLuckett]

Actually, there might be even more factors at play. Along with an increase in Asian representation, studios might see sexual desirability in Asian men, a demand for it, as a possible commodity and, therefore, profitable. As a result, we can look forward to see more Asian himbos. Also, the reason why the sexually desirable, sexualized Asian men you cite here might be scaled as physically attractive and incompetent is because, in American culture, you cannot be both unless you are white (exceptions: Daniel Dae Kim and Steven Yuen). So in order to not disrupt a mainstay of white culture-white male superiority-Asian men’s intellect must take a backseat, if they are to be “sold” as “good-looking”. For every gain, there is a loss.

[@mirandabee2323]

I think you're on point here.

[@golbinnom]

very accurate

[@JaxJayDoe]

This topic is so complex but so niche; honestly my peers and I have been exposed to this trope in modern tv for so long, it has become unnoticeable. Reading from the comments, it seems that there are opportunities to highlight more of these divergent roles for Asian and Asian-American roles in media. Hope PBS can make this a series and we can see more character types on that grid!

[@jazsimone26]

I have a filipino friend (hes also half Latino.~ Great job parents you made a master piece) I noticed people would be racist out of the blue and then gas light him and say it was just a joke. For ex your good at sports for an Asian. I once heard somebody make a comment like “hey don’t you eat dogs” and you better believe he was racist back and I really don’t blame him. No body wants to be the victim of racism and it makes a person mad. He came into class down one day and was reluctant to tell me that that once again people were being racist on the basketball court. 😔

[@Deoxys911]

I kept waiting for Kato to come up; that's the first character that comes to mind when I think "hunky Asian man from American media," and it certainly seems like a pretty culturally significant early example of positive Asian representation in Hollywood.

[@dysfunctionalisme]

I like how from the millennial generation onwards, we have completely shattered the stereotype of how Professors look like. Bring on the funky hair, multi-ethnic and non-generic white man Profs!

[@joegallegos9109]

I thought Gavin Leatherwood was part Asian and he's my current crush. 😍 He's apparently a mix of a bunch of ethnicities which makes him ambiguous. But I def thought he might be a HIMBO.

[@dswan1418]

Poor Jimmy O. Yang sitting in the bottom right quadrant without even a mention! Raise him up to the top! He's a cutie imo. Despite how he was portrayed in Silicon Valley, he was the love interest in Love Hard doesnt that count for something

[@bicky9333]

Yah he was the love interest in love hard, but he was still considered undesirable. Because in order to meet with the main girl he had to catfish, and upon finding out she was not happy because he was below her expectations not above. In fact they fall in love later because of their experience that together, but had they not met, and the girl saw him on the street, she would not approach him out of her attraction to him.

[@gaborjurina2839]

what about Tony Leung (in the mood for Love, 20046, Happy Together, Chung King Express) and Tony Leung Ka-fai (from The Lover) both beautiful actors with amazing range and depth, there are so many amazing movies out there with nuance, you just have to watch them. Hollywood is not the only place in the world.

[@bath-chebakohybayoro2368]

I AGREE.

[@michaelsindiong3153]

Although a small percentage of the Asian population, I'm tickled that the Asian Himbo is finally getting the recognition it truly deserves. 😊

[@LauraConnolly]

I grew up in south east Asia in a super multicultural country and I think a huge step involved in this increase and diversification of representation is the increased understanding about how diverse Asia is and how when someone is Asian it actually represents a much much wider number of places, cultures and ethnicities than Hollywood has traditionally shown or how westerns typically may think. I had never thought about the representation of Italian Americans compared with Asian Americans and Italy is only ONE country like damn why can’t a whole continent of immigrants even compare its media to *one *country’s immigrants.

[@parfum_d.etoiles]

It's kinda disappointing that Bruce Lee wasn't even briefly mentioned. Of course he wasn't really starring in any western produced movies, but his impact on the Hollywood and Asian representation is quite undeniably impressive

[@thunderbird1921]

He starred in The Green Hornet though.

[@corngreaterthanwheat]

Finally, acknowledgement that Harold and Kumar is one of the most important films of all time. And that CXG's Josh Chan slaps.

[@tonyyoung3985]

I've met Gedde Watanabe, and also rewatched his scenes. I noticed that Gedde added a lot of nuance to his character, the vulnerability, and hurt from being made fun of. But you can see in those same scenes, the director's hand in instructing all the white actors, "You need to all laugh at him. Make fun of him. Do NOT sympathize with him, esp. you leading lady Molly Ringwald." And that lack of anybody defending him cancels out whatever the actor tries to imbue his character with.

[@TruthNloV3]

Any content discussing hot Asian men that doesn’t include Stephen Yeun is INCOMPLETE!!!

[@rih2941]

I’m surprised they didn’t use any earlier examples of Asian characters, and VERY surprised Sessue Hayakawa wasn’t even mentioned!!!

[@rickiltbeman4303]

I found this interesting even if you did leave out Sessue Hayakawa a Japanese actor once the highest paid actor in Hollywood, all be it during the silent era. In spite of being consistently cast as a villain he was desirable enough to be considered a sex symbol at the time. He also won an academy award for his role in "Bridge over the River Quay" 1957. Since his career started and ended in Hollywood movies the oversight does stand out,

[@Littlerip495]

One the one hand it is great to see a shift towards diverse representation in media. On the other, I wonder if this is a new form of Orientalism (per Edward Said)?

[@aaron12693]

I'd be curious to hear about how this does or does not relate to the growing importance of the Chinese market for Hollywood films. In addition to providing a broader image of Asian Americans in this country, how does this character shift play in the rest of the world? Also, where did the term come from? Sounds like Jimbo.

[@JArtsChannel]

I imagine it's a pun on bimbo... Which is "blonde dumbo."

[@aaronpoole5531]

I think the word is a masculine play on the term 'bimbo' - don't quote me on that though!

[@mlueva1]

It’s just some bullshit they’re trying to conjure up to try to get dumb people’s feelings riled up when those in this culture shouldn’t care about what white or black people say.

[@petraw9792]

I don't think it relates at all. When you look at who is cast in these roles - and perceived as attractive by Westerner's standards - they don't seem to fit into Chinese propaganda of masculinity.

[@SM-yz4hi]

Other commenter was correct in saying it’s a male version of the word “bimbo”, which refers to a stupid, but sexy (and usually promiscuous) woman

[@sonorasgirl]

😂 I just realized half my favorite male characters are Asian himbos…idk what this says about me, but I’m not mad at it

[@cb9825]

Selfie tv series was also starring John Cho❤his character was so good. And all those tailored suits looked fabulous, you know. But there were only 13 episodes, what a shame!

[@petraw9792]

His character was smart and successful though. But still one of the first romantic leads, if not the first.

[@mgh62000]

One of the original Asian himbos on screen was Dante Basco on Fresh Prince in 1995. Props to whoever on Fresh Prince who made that happen and was ahead of his or her time.

[@loron99]

Hollywood has a long way to go, but at least it’s starting to get more diverse, thx great show

[@mariavwrld]

i am so happy i found your channel, love the way you present topics that need to be discussed and i am so grateful to be able to acess your clearly hard work, keep on. sorry for any mistakes in the grammar i am brazilian

[@ianbrundige9069]

Never did I think PBS would produce something about himbos

[@narutotrickzxtv3D]

Not to compartmentalize it to a single aspect of Asian culture as being the “sole” reason but I think we can all agree that between K dramas and K pops rise into traveling beyond various regions of mass media especially in the west and the north that it definitely played at least 50% of the reason for the Himbo concept to thrive so much, like it’s not even just about the culture differences that pull people in but that it feels like a new glamorized world in the sense of k dramas and k pop they always present male figures who are well rounded, good looks/visuals kind hearted, romantic, funny etc. It was only a matter of time before Asian males succeed with such high and positive expectations surrounding them.

[@tompetrocelli8787]

As an Italian American, I wouldn't hold up the Godfather, Goodfellers, or the Sopranos as the epitome of our representation. When you consider that Italian Americans were represented as sports heroes like Lou Gehrig in the 40s and competent soldiers in WW2 films from the 50s, our representation as mostly gangsters is a step backward.

[@danielland3767]

As a Italian American coming in as immigrants, what where the trials faced and how did the transition go from being a Italian Immigrant to just being "white"? It seems as long as this country has been anything it has been against immigration but yet the British colonists where immigrants or refugees themselves.

[@jcortese3300]

PREACH, fratello.

[@mojomike]

@@danielland3767 Italian Americans today still very much have our own identity as Italians first imo.

[@danielland3767]

@@mojomike culture wise? I'm so open to this discussion, so do you see Italian as a race per say? I know you still do Italian culture things that came with your ancestors. So in your opinion when did it go from Italian - American to just white? I know that Black is just about everything dark toned (African & African American, afro-latino, afro-Caribbean) might fall into this category but we usually encompass a race, culture & various religions. How does that sort out for your culture when it comes to job applications & do you still encounter a measure of prejudice that's targeted to Italian Americans?

[@SY-ok2dq]

Although Edie Falco is best known for "The Sopranos" she played other characters that weren't specifically Italian-American or were "white" in previous filns. She played the sister of blonde actress Adrienne Shelly in "Trust." The characters were actually Irish American Catholics. Falco has blue eyes and fair hair - she doesn't look stereotypically Italian (actually Northern Italians are quite fair, lots of blue eyes and blonde or light brown hair). Shelly was of Jewish background - not Irish/Catholic. What matters in casting are how their looks are perceived, and if they're right for the part and a good actor, the best actor in auditions. Someone like Lorraine Bracco (who's breakout role was playing a Jewish woman, at the time that she was still with her Jewish partner, actor Harvey Keitel) has gotten stuck in a lot of Italian-American roles because of her accent, if you ask me. Bracco has also played roles not specifically Italian-American, and with blonde hair etc. Actress Mia Sara went with a shortened form of her last name - Sarapochiello - and she never got stuck in gangster films or stereotypical Italian-American roles. She's probably best remembered for playing "Sloane", a very WASPy type, in "Ferris Bueller's Day Off". Edie Falco is a lot more Northern European looking than Mia Sara.

[@derrickilse2904]

YAY! Danielle! I love seeing any videos you are in! Keep gettin it!

[@ReeniEspino]

Harry Shum/Mike Chang in Glee; he didn't say much, but eventually had a whole episode to be sweet and funny. Dancer extraordinaire w the physique to prove it.

[@jimbekind83]

Missed Daniel Dae Kim from LOST. He had a BIG influence, was competant and desirable on this chart.

[@clairegittens3707]

Black, non-American, living in Asia. I think blacks went through a time where everything was a caricature, a mammee, a slave, or comic relief. I think it is getting better, and we are getting roles that are not centered on race and not stereotypical, though there is still a large imbalance. I wonder if Asian characters are taking the same trajectory as black characters - from caricature to real, fleshed out characters -but 20 to 30 years behind.

[@sky2934]

Very good and educational clip about history of Asian male representation in Hollywood. You forgot to mention Sessue Hayakawa, the first Asian sex symbol in Hollywood (aka Hunk) during the silent movie era and how he was put into obscurity when he had to leave Hollywood for some time and during his return he was made to play in villainous roles.

[@AndrewLinArchives]

I do think there's still an issue of desirable Asian male characters being portrayed by half-white actors, but it really is great to see representation changing in this positive direction. Like Darren Barnet in the thumbnail is only 1/4 Asian and looks white - so I don't think this should count as Asian male representation.

[@Turquerina]

This is why I inherently distrust western media when it comes to representation for people and communities of color. I love watching Never Have I Ever (it made me sob like a baby), but you can clearly see that they struggle with black representation as well. Asian men and black women tend to get the short end of the stick, as there's this insidious resistance against casting mono-racial actors of darker shades and features that deviate from the western beauty standards. But then again, Shang-Chi got flack in China for being too "stereotypical/average" or whatever so it's a damned if you do, damned if you don't kind of sitch.

[@crazysmall.artist]

@@Turquerina if you're gonna start talking about other races of color, how about native Americans who don't get any recognition at all? Ig we're just invisible then-

[@Turquerina]

@@crazysmall.artistThat's also an issue. There seems to be this notion that Native Americans are a people of the past, therefore they no longer exist in modernity. It's unfortunately utilized to rewrite and whitewash history, ignoring the very real impact colonialism has in various communities. You guys deserve more representation than just Pocahontas.

[@SY-ok2dq]

Hm that would make Barnet even less Asian than Keanu Reeves, who has played "white" characters throughout his career. Reeves' father is of Chinese descent, but I think full East Asian, not half, making Reeves half East Asian. I can't think of when Reeves has played Asian characters, except for his role - in brown makeup - in "Little Buddha." And that was a South Asian role, really. I think with acting, it's really more about what the actor looks like, and how their faces are perceived, or what they could pass for. John Turturro is not Jewish, although he's been married to a Jewish actress for decades. But he's certainly played a lot of Jewish characters and one Latino character (Jesus in "The Big Lebowski" and another film about Jesus). He's Italian-American. Probably Sicilian, or from the south, like many Italian-Americans. Southern Italians are darker. Go to Northern Italy and you'll see a lot of fair haired people, blue eyed people and even blondes. Southern Italy was poor in the past, hence why so many of them left to migrate to other countries. Winona Ryder was originally set to play Mary in "The Godfather 3." Ryder is her stage name. Her real name is Horowitz and she's half Jewish. Not remotely Italian. But she could believably be the descendant of an Italian. Italian-American Francis Coppola hired Ryder so I guess it was good enough for him... BTW Robert De Niro's mother is a white woman of Anglo/Celtic (not mainland Europe) descent. Only his father was of Italian background. But De Niro played a full Italian in "The Godfather."

[@AndrewLinArchives]

@@SY-ok2dq visual appearance is def important, because that's how most people make judgments about race. In Barnett's case he looks completely white. Also I feel like Italians have not had the same racial baggage that Asian men have had when it comes to media representation

[@ondreya_1047]

I don't like the way that TV looks at me after it asks a question.😂😂😂 All jokes aside this video is very informative and I learned so much from all the videos on this channel.

[@crystalwolcott4744]

I feel like ya'll skipped how this was purposfully done originaly in shows like Craxy Ex-Girlfriend and The Good Place to flip the stereotype on its head. It wasn't JUST done for diversity brownie points. Both shows had other men of color in the main cast as well. I agree with your take I just think there was more of a middle era where it was done to be a humourous reversal of the all asains are smart trope. Just my two cents lol

[@petraw9792]

Also Josh wasn't written as Asian initially, the role just happened to go to an Asian actor.

[@silentsmurf]

@@petraw9792 Rachel Bloom said she wrote the character as Asian American. She's from Southern California and grew up with a lot of Josh Chans around her and wanted her show to reflect the reality of the area.

[@rinsolaris2284]

Agree! They purposely flipped the stereotype. Look at Chidi Anagonye from The Good Place. He's a black/african academic from a family of professors. A far cry from the "black man gangsta from the hood" stereotype.

[@karljohnvillarias3371]

Glenn (Steven Yeun) from the walking dead he's not the lead but his the most loved character. Desirable but equal to incompetent and competent scale. Asian's actors are so great 🙌🙌

[@aaronstanley6914]

100 years ago in 1920s we had a himbo actor by the name of Sessue Hayakawa. Racism f'ed over his career. 100 years later Hollywood got the head out of thier ass and realized Himbo's are profitable lol.

[@greenmachine5600]

true

[@woomy8971]

Himbo history is the riveting content we needed in this APA heritage month

[@leodouskyron5671]

I did not even know Himbo was a thing. Now I know.

[@lorenzwinterhoff8049]

:O Dr. Danielle! I miss the Originauts! Good to see you again (love the blue hair deal)

[@Geallach83]

George Takei's Sulu and Bruce Lee would probably go to the upper right quadrant.

[@alessandrahidalgo6509]

Don't forget the rise of Asian musicians, I think they help broke some stereotypes. The biggest boyband nowadays are koreans, and alll the wave of asian artists are coming strong

[@MariaJoseRangelUwU]

Josh Chan was a hot mess and i love how he actually acknowledged his flaws and tries to better himself

[@leeluv96]

When I first saw Daniel Dae-Kim on "Lost", and when I first saw Jung Ji-hoon AKA/Bi-Rain (or just Rain) in the movie "Ninja Assassin", I was in love. However I am biased because I've been watching Asian films (some made before I was born) pretty much all my life so there were many Asian (Chinese, Japanese, Thai, Korean, Viatnomese, etc...) actors I was attracted to. Asia is a huge place so there are really too many countries to choose handsom men from. Although many argue that the "Middle East" is an inaccurate phrase, I have long since been attracted to men who would traditionally come from that region of Asia.

[@dominicmooney4556]

I'd love to see how the rise of the "Asian himbo" in American media compares to the rise in the popularity of kpop with American young women. I think kpop has definitely affected how desirable western girls and women view east Asian men.

[@princesstriceestar]

I'm would just like to honorable mention Jason Scott Lee. I legit remember falling in love at 12-13 seeing him in the 1st live action "Jungle Book". Hollywood did him dirty after the Bruce Lee movie.

[@whatsup968]

So was this video meant to cover brown Asians as well or no? Bc Harold and Kumar were both included, but there was nothing that really addressed how Asian people of different skin colors are usually portrayed differently. Bc western society does tend to view different regions of Asia very differently So this seems to be about East/Southeast Asian representation overall but imho it was a little unclear I just feel like it would have been good to address that there was only one brown Asian guy on the board in some way

[@TinLeadHammer]

When you have a series, always put a link to the playlist in the description of each video.

[@claudioalves775]

I can't believe they didn't mention Sessue Hayakawa, one of Hollywood's first sex symbols. At the height of his fame, around the 1910s and early 20s, he played characters whose sensuality was often foregrounded. That didn't mean he wasn't slotted into racist stereotypes, though. Still, he's a crucial figure in the History of Asian representation in Hollywood, especially the History of Asian male desirability.

[@Rk-uj4nj]

As an Asian American who was born and grew up in the 90’s and 2000’s, the stereotypes of Hollywood did effect me and my confidence and health. I thought I’ll never have this or that because of racial stereotypes. It still does effect me to this day, but I’m slowly changing my mentally of that. I still do have confidence problems but regardless I wish change would have come sooner like after 2008. But I still have doubts, cause in this country whenever there is progress it’s always three steps forward then two steps back. But who knows the future is unpredictable.

[@arcturionblade1077]

I'm surprised that Mark from the violent animated superhero show on Netflix, Invincible, didn't get a mention. He's half-Asian, handsome, and tries to do good with his super powers. Or Simu Liu from the recent MCU film, Shang-Chi.

[@greenmachine5600]

good mentions

[@tjlnintendo]

I mean thats more of an animated character. This video seemed more focused on live action + actors.

[@oatmealtruck7811]

I agree that there has been a rise in this new trope. I can think of one example that’s several years old, however: Jin from Lost had a lot of character growth and ended up being a great guy. Very competent and sexy as hell.