GLENDALE, Calif. — For comedian Jo Koy, representation matters in Hollywood television and film.
As a Filipino American with many nurses in his family, he remembers growing up and not seeing Filipino brown-skinned actors and actresses as nurses watching movies or television shows such as “ER” or other medical shows.
His reality didn’t match what was on screen.
“I’ve been here for 40 years, I’ve seen Filipino nurses working in hospitals 12-hour shifts, taking care of people, saving lives, and helping people, but this is what I mean when I talk about representation,” Koy said. “When you go home from work, turn on the TV and watch a show set in the hospital, you don’t see a Filipino nurse — and that makes you feel invisible, worthless.”
So when he made it big in the entertainment industry, he made sure to represent the Filipino American community on the big screen.
Since the premiere of his full-length comedy movie, “Easter Sunday,” which centers on a story about a Filipino American family, Koy continues to push for representation of his community.
When most movie stars quit promoting the film after the red carpet premiere, Koy wasn’t sitting on his laurels.
In two weeks since “Easter Sunday’s” premier on Aug. 5, Koy could be seen crisscrossing the U.S. promoting his movie. In six days, from Aug. 11 to the 16, he hosted several meet-and-greets in six different cities, including some in Illinois and Washington.
He was at the AMC theater in Universal City Walk on Sunday. On Tuesday, he’ll be at select showings of “Easter Sunday” at the Harkins Theatres in Cerritos.
When asked why he needed to continue promoting his movie, Koy didn’t hesitate.
“Because this is the first one, the first of its kind,” said Koy in an interview with Spectrum News. “It’s an all-Filipino cast. It’s an all-Asian cast. Major studios backed it...I got to show them that this wasn’t a joke, that this was important to me and the Filipino community. So I’m going to go out there and tell everyone. I’ll go to every city and talk about this movie.”
Koy, real name Joseph Herbert Sr., was born to a white father and Filipino mother, who mostly raised him as a child. The Filipino American comedian’s jokes have centered on his love of growing up with a Filipino mother, the Filipino culture, and fatherhood.
His more than two-decade career has steadily risen from the local comedy stages to “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno” to specials on Comedy Central, Netflix and now the big screen.
“Easter Sunday” is loosely based on his life. The story centers on Joseph Valencia, a struggling actor looking to land a television show while balancing his tumultuous personal life.
As he weighs on whether to accept a role that requires him to play with a stereotypical accent, Valencia’s teenage son is on the verge of failing a class, and his insistent Filipino mother demands him to come home to the Bay Area for an Easter Sunday family gathering.
The movie also stars Filipino American actors Lou Diamond Phillips, Tia Carrere and Eva Noblezada.
As Koy strolls across a red carpet, hugging Los Angeles mayoral candidate Rick Caruso, and Filipino fans scream his name, Koy said he has “visualized” this moment.
“I had a goal, and this is what I’ve wanted,” Koy said as he looked outside a packed movie theater at the Americana in Glendale last week. “This right here, this moment, making a movie, promoting my culture, and talking about my people. This is what it’s all about.”
But Koy said he’s not done.
He’s doing more work to represent the Filipino American and immigrant communities. He aims to uplift the next generation of immigrants and Filipino Americans in entertainment and “open those doors.”
“We need to leave the door open, and then all of us support each other instead of taking one down. That’s the most important,” Koy said. “Sometimes, within our own community, we like to pull each other down and not help one another. This door is open. Let’s keep it wide open and let other people through.”
EDITOR'S NOTE: Jo Koy's meet-and-greets on Sunday, Aug. 19, at the AMC Theater at Universal City Walk and Tuesday, Aug. 23, at the Harkins Theater in Cerritos were canceled due to the comedian feeling under the weather. (Aug. 23, 2022)