#Ben Wang

[the-lean-buddha]

My thoughts on the news about The Long Walk's film adaption

I have very little faith that The Long Walk will be a good adaption but maybe I'll be wrong! I can dream, and I've been wrong before. Here are my thoughts on the casting announcements and set pictures.

Cooper Hoffman and David Jonsson are the leads, according to Deadline, which means they're presumably Garraty and McVries. Jonsson seems like a good actor but an awful fit for either character, and with Hoffman (presumably Garraty) it comes down to how good an actor he is, I guess, because I can see it working if I squint but I haven't seen anything from Hoffman to suggest he can do Garraty. And I reaaaaally doubt he could do McVries. McVries has a bite to him.

Joshua Odjick is Native American so he's presumably Joe or Mike (not to say that a different character couldn't theoretically be Native American in the adaption, but it's key to Joe and Mike that none of the other Walkers understand their culture at all, and only Baker defends their parents). It's odd that either of those two would have a prominent enough role to be cast already, so I wonder if either one of their roles is beefed up, or if Mike and Scramm will be a composite character and Joe won't feature at all. Alternatively, Odjick isn't playing a Native American character (or he is but Mike and Joe are adapted out), in which case I'd guess Parker.

Roman Griffin Davis is someone I've only ever seen in Jojo Rabbit so I don't know how much range he has. I think he'd fit best as Barkovitch but I wouldn't be surprised if he's been cast as Baker or Olson.

Charlie Plummer is Stebbins. I say this almost entirely because he's a long-haired blonde. If McVries is black then book descriptions (and characterizations, let's be honest, you can't make McVries a black kid in the 70s and keep his character the same) are thrown out the door already, but google Charlie Plummer and tell me he's not been cast as Stebbins. Also, take a look at this.

Ben Wang is Asian American and there are no explicitly Asian American characters, so we've gotta guess this one purely on Vibes (Olson and Barkovitch could both be canonically Asian American, but Barkovitch is openly racist, so). From Wang's YouTube channel and some clips of Chinese Born American I found, he's a nice and playful guy (hmu Ben let's get a lemonade, also tell me who you're playing), so I'd assume Baker or Olson or Abraham because they fit that the closest, I guess? But this is unfortunately a flawed way of guessing because actors playing lunatics are sometimes normal people in real life, walking among us, going almost undetected.

Tut Nyuot's a young, sweet-looking kid. I'd assume Percy? Again, weird to cast Percy already because he doesn't even have any lines in the book, but I can't imagine Nyuout playing a character who's supposed to be the same age as Charlie Plummer's character. Maybe he's unexpectedly good at playing deranged assholes like Barkovitch? We'll see.

For Garrett Wareing I'd say Olson, looking through clips and interviews.

Jordan Gonzalez gives me no strong impression. Sorry, Jordan. Feel free to give me a stronger one over lemonade (and tell me who you're playing). If I'm held at gunpoint then I'll say Abraham.

Mark Hamill is presumably playing the Major. He's absolutely not who I would have picked because he overflows with character and I always pictured the Major as a stoic, empty Big Brother type figure, whose moments of charisma and friendliness were obviously just an act. And I guess Hamill could play that, but I think the Major will more likely have a lot more personality and vim and vigor in the movie, if Hamill was cast - he's easily the biggest draw in the cast. Not necessarily a bad way to portray the Major, but easier to mess up. We'll wait and see.

Judy Greer as presumably Mrs. Garraty will presumably be fine.

Set photos look promising, aesthetically. No half-track, though. And there's a tank. Why is there a tank?

There's a Deadline article suggesting that there are only 50 kids and the pace limit is 3mph. But there's also an article suggesting it's still 100 kids so it might be a mistake? If it's 50 kids then that's presumably done for practicality but it's a bad change, the number will either get too low too fast or it'll drop too slowly (and also no 47 and 61 which would be weird but that's not significant). 3mph isn't necessarily bad, it's more feasible, but it does mean the "first into Massachusetts in seventeen years" can't happen. Maybe they'll make New Hampshire the record instead.

i want lemonade

Reblog with your thoughts! We've got news, people, and I'm sure someone somewhere is more excited about that than I am. Let's get some discussion going on in here.

[stormboundstars]

I watched American Born Chinese, and it is an enjoyable series, honestly. It's silly and fun but it's also a show with a really big heart, it's a show that doesn't take itself too seriously but also makes a point to open important conversations regarding culture and identity, typecasting/stereotyping, the importance of speaking out for yourself, the struggle of breaking the glass ceiling in industries, etc. I also love the many references the show made to art/media forms, like the manga, sitcom, and xianxia, so it's like a study in intertextuality but also feels like a celebration of art. Overall, I could feel that this show was made with a lot of earnest love and thought, and I really hope it gets to tell its story in full!!

[miyagi-hokarate]

New Karate Kid Movie Casts Disney Legend Ming-Na Wen In Mystery Role

[eastasiansonwesternscreen]

“American Born Chinese” – Premieres Spring 2023 on Disney+

American Born Chinese tells the story of Jin Wang (Ben Wang), an average teenager juggling his high school social life with his home life. When he meets a new student on the first day of the school year, even more worlds collide as Jin is unwittingly entangled in a battle of Chinese mythological gods.

(via Variety)

[stuff-diary]

American Born Chinese

TV Shows/Dramas watched in 2023

American Born Chinese (2023, USA)

Creator: Kelvin Yu (based on the graphic novel by Gene Luen Yang)

Mini-review:

I loved this so much! Sure, it has its flaws, but its strengths far outweigh them. The show feels refreshing and almost groundbreaking thanks to the way it takes inspiration from Journey to the West and Chinese culture. With these elements, the show gets to tell a fantastic story about coming of age and finding your identity. It also tackles the topic of representation head-on, with a beautiful monologue by Ke Huy Quan in one of the last episodes. I can't think of many TV shows that talk so frankly about this, and American Born Chinese deserves big kudos for that.

But the main reason why this show is a hit is its cast. For starters, we have legends like Michelle Yeoh, the aforementioned Ke Huy Quan and Daniel Wu. Obviously, they are as great as anyone would expect from them. But the young cast also delivers: Ben Wang's comedic timing is perfect, and Jimmy Liu pretty much steals the show with an incredibly charming and adorable performance. On top of all this, the action scenes are fantastic, with amazing choreographies and very stylish and cinematic direction. Also, I thought this was supposed to be a limited series, but I guess it's not? I'm not complaining, cause I really enjoyed it, but I hope it's doesn't end up being cancelled.

P.S. Why the f**k is Disney+ not promoting the hell out of this? They have Michelle Yeoh, Ke Huy Quan and Stephanie Hsu from Everything Everywhere All At Once, plus Destin Daniel Cretton, who directed the Shang-Chi movie, and they are doing nothing to promote it. It's seriously baffling.

[trendfilmsetter]

Jonathan Entwistle’s new KARATE KID film has been delayed to May 30th, 2025

The cast includes Ben Wang, Ming Na-Wen, Jackie Chan and Ralph Macchio.

[buffyfan145]

More new "Karate Kid" movie castings as Aramis Knight and Wyatt Oleff have joined!!! 😀 I'm a fan of Wyatt's and very happy to see him in this. Both roles are being keep secret but I can see Wyatt playing a best friend role to Ben Wang's new character, similar to Freddy in the original movie and Hawk & Dimitri in "Cobra Kai".

[demifiendrsa]

Sony Pictures has cast Ben Wang, best known as the star of Disney+ series American Born Chinese, to star in its latest installment of the Karate Kid franchise.

The casting comes after a global search that saw thousands of submissions from around the world, with 10,000 entries reported in the first 24 hours alone. According to studio insiders, Wang delivered a standout audition that demonstrated his deep connection to the character. It also helped that he is fluent in Mandarin and highly skilled across many forms of martial arts, including karate, wing chun/kung fu, gumdo, kempo and taekwondo. Some of those skills were already showcased on American Born Chinese, the well-regarded adaptation of the acclaimed coming-of-age fantasy graphic novel by Gene Luen Yang that also starred Michelle Yeoh.  

Plot details are being kept under a bonsai tree but the new installment will bring the story to the East Coast and focus on a teen from China who finds strength and direction via martial arts and a tough but wise mentor (or maybe even two).

Jonathan Entwistle, known for his well-regarded and award-winning teen television dramas I’m Not Okay with This and The End of the F***ing World, is directing the feature that has a script by Rob Lieber, whose credits include Sony’s Peter Rabbit and Disney’s Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good Very Bad Day. 

Karen Rosenfelt is producing.

Sony has slated the film for Dec. 13, 2024.

[kdram-chjh]

Cdrama: The Unknown: Legend of Exorcist Zhong Kui (2021)

Gifs of Intro of cdrama “The Unknown: Legend of Exorcist Zhong Kui”

[ENG SUB] The Unknown: Legend of Exorcist Zhong Kui 01 (Xing ZhaoLin, Xuan Lu) | 问天录

Watch this video on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NVSfRaPVBOc

[popgirlnyc]

Finally catching up on American Born Chinese on Disney Plus after being psyched up New York Comic Con 2022. In order- panel moderator: #jujuchang actors: #danielwu #benwang show runner: #kelvinyu cartoonist & ep: #geneluenyang ep & director: #destindanielcretton not pictured but seen virtually: #michelleyeoh

[floorman3]

American Born Chinese Review- A Fantasy/Mythological Series with a Terrific Coming of Age Story

Disney has been known for a lot of things regarding their films and television series. Their channel had a bunch of popular shows. Now their streaming service is picking up from where the television channel left off. They have a lot of quality shows from Star Wars, Marvel and others. The latest series is called American Born Chinese. It has a lot of recognizable faces in front of and behind the…

[thirst-for-boys]

[miyagi-hokarate]

Ben Wang is going to be the next karate kid in the new Karate Kid 2024 movie!!

[eastasiansonwesternscreen]

“Chang Can Dunk” is the coming-of-age sports film — which begins streaming March 10 on Disney+ — follows Chang (Bloom Li), an unpopular high schooler who loves basketball and Pokémon. Chang finds himself wagering a bet with the school’s all-star player, Matt (Chase Liefeld), that he will be able to make a slam dunk — in 12 weeks time.

The film also stars Zoe Renee, Ben Wang, Dexter Darden, Eric Anthony Lopez, Nile Bullock, Mardy Ma and Angel Oquendo.

[binging-asian-dramas]

My Girlfriend is a Alien. 8

Story: 8

Acting: 10

Chemistry: 9/10

Comparable to: My Love From a Star (kdrama) ; My Amazing Boyfriend (cdrama) ; I Robot (kdrama)

This is a hard one for me to judge. In some ways I absolutely love this drama and in other ways I really don’t. At first the storyline seems to be great, yes it’s cliche and predictable but it was entertaining and hilarious also. Well for me at least anyway. Yes it did start to get repetitive and drawn out, especially midway. I almost considered fast forwarding through some scenes, but I didn’t. Now the chemistry between the main leads at times I felt were somewhat lackluster but other times like fire. I can’t put my finger on what it is exactly but there were moments that you could feel Bie Thassapak Hsu and Wan Peng connect then other scenes not so much. Maybe it was the way Wan Peng’s character was written for me. The character could become slightly overbearingly too much. 🤷‍♀️. I’m just now starting the second season which I will admit feels kinda ‘meh’. Honestly you don’t have to watch the second to feel complete nor likewise do you have to watch the first in order to understand the second. Nonetheless Its still a fun entertaining romcom. I definitely recommend watching it at least once for romcom fans.

[haute-lifestyle-com]

Sight, from Angel Studios, and Kaleidoscope Home Entertainment, brings to the screen the true story of Dr. Ming Wang, an impoverished Chinese prodigy who flees Communist China to become a pioneering eye surgeon in America.