Let’s begin by completely shattering any illusion of journalistic objectivity: I am obsessed with Everything Everywhere All at Once. I demand that you see Everything Everywhere All at Once in theaters as soon as physically possible. Like, now now. Go on—git. You need to see this movie because it is rapturous and blood-tingling and enveloping and hysterical. You need to see this movie—a heart-shattering family drama disguised as an action-heavy sci-fi thriller—because it will renew your faith in the ability of fight sequences to thrill and bewilder you. Because it will make you laugh and yell and think and weep in the span of a single scene. Because it will make you want to call your mom and tell her you love her as soon as the credits roll. You need to see this movie because it is an illogical miracle that has no business working, but will leave you buzzing and rhapsodizing to anyone who will listen—like I am right now—weeks after you watch it. But most of all, you need to see this movie because of Ke Huy Quan.
If that name sounds at all familiar, that’s good: It means you grew up in a sane household where the Indiana Jones trilogy and The Goonies were part of the regular VHS rotation. At 12, Quan was handpicked by Steven Spielberg to play Indy’s baseball-capped sidekick Short Round in 1984’s Temple of Doom, and then was offered the part of Data in the Spielberg-produced Goonies immediately after. Those unlikely early roles helped Quan fall in love with acting, but as he got older, he faced the harsh reality of Hollywood’s lack of opportunities for Asians. After a long career dry spell in the ‘90s and early ‘00s, Quan put his acting dreams on ice for good—or so he thought—choosing instead to pursue life behind the camera. He enrolled at UCLA Film School and found plenty of work in Asia, helping to choreograph fight scenes in a handful of Hong Kong action flicks and assistant directing for the enigmatic auteur Wong Kar-Wai.
And then Crazy Rich Asians happened, and it reawakened something in Quan that had never fully gone to sleep. He signed with a new agent, and the first script that landed on his desk was for Everything Everywhere All at Once. Helmed by Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert—the visionary directing duo known collectively as Daniels—the movie is a multiversal head trip that casts Quan as several wildly disparate versions of Waymond, the husband to Michelle Yeoh’s protagonist Evelyn. There’s the goofy, aw-shucks dad Waymond; the hyper-competent martial artist Waymond; the somber, romantic Waymond who feels plucked directly from Wong’s In the Mood for Love. In other words, it’s the role that Quan, now 50, has been waiting for—and unintentionally training for—his entire life. He crushes it, serving as the beating heart of this relentless tornado of a movie and giving Hollywood a good, hard look at the undeniable star they could’ve had the last two decades.
Now, Quan is making up for lost time. He caught up with GQ via Zoom following a long day on the set of American Born Chinese, the forthcoming Disney+ show based on the acclaimed graphic novel. With his acting career at long last back on the rails, and Everything Everywhere opening wide in theaters today, Quan reflected on his long, meandering journey, the lessons he’s learned from Spielberg and Wong, and making the most of this well-deserved moment.
GQ: So, I need to show you something kind of embarrassing. I’ve had this action figure of Data from The Goonies sitting on my desk for the last five years. You’ve been staring back at me every day at work for half a decade now.
Ke Huy Quan: Oh my god!
I’m obviously not alone in this, but The Goonies and Temple of Doom were such enormous parts of my childhood—in no small part because you were one of the only visible Asian faces in any Western media, much less two of the biggest blockbusters on the planet. Did you have any conception at the time of just how big of a deal that was?
No. At that age—12, 13—you don’t have the maturity to process what all that means. I was just having the best time of my life. Looking back on those memories 38 years later, it’s a real gift.
In fact, when I did Indiana Jones, I’d never seen a Spielberg movie or a Lucas movie. I didn’t even know who they were when I auditioned for them or when I was on the set. I remember shooting at a London stage one afternoon, and George Lucas was there producing, Steven was directing, Harrison Ford was on set, and then Carrie Fisher—Princess Leia!—came in to visit. And I just had the most amazing afternoon without knowing what all of these people being in one room meant to the world.
They were just a bunch of friendly adults.
They were just really nice, down to earth, humble people watching me do takes. They were by the monitor and were just laughing and having a really good time. I remember rolling on the ground with Carrie Fisher—that’s how great and nice she was to everyone. It was not until I finished filming [Temple of Doom] that George and Steven screened their movies for me. I saw Star Wars and Raiders of the Lost Ark for the very first time, and I realized, “Oh my God. These filmmakers are really successful, and they’re very, very famous.”
Steven and George purposely did it that way, so I could just be myself and not worry about being on camera. In fact, I was never allowed to watch playback. I shot the entire movie without ever looking at myself on screen, and the very first time I saw the movie was the LA premiere at Mann’s Chinese Theater.
That must’ve completely blown your mind.
Absolutely. I fell in love with the movie while we were shooting it, but watching Harrison, Kate Capshaw, and I up there on the screen with that amazing John Williams score and over a thousand people cheering and clapping at every scene? That moment, I was hooked to this wonderful and fantastical world of moviemaking. I fell in love with acting, which was ironic, because I didn’t pursue it as a kid.
I was in my elementary school when Spielberg had an open casting call. They told the teachers, “Hey, if you have anybody that fits this description, bring them in. We would love to meet them.” My brother’s teacher thought he was perfect, and I went and tagged along. While he was auditioning, I was off-camera giving him notes, and the casting director saw me and asked if I was interested in auditioning too. I said, “Sure, why not?” I didn’t think much of it. The next day we got a call from Steven’s office. I went there, walked into the room, and there was George Lucas, Harrison Ford, and Steven Spielberg, and we spent an entire afternoon together. Three weeks later, I was on a flight to Sri Lanka on one of the most amazing adventures of my life.
The irony, like I said, is that I didn’t pursue acting when I was a little kid. But as I got older, in my late teens and early 20s, I really took it seriously. That’s what I wanted to do, what I wanted my profession to be. But when I started pursuing it, there were just not a lot of opportunities for me. It was extremely difficult for an Asian actor at that time. In Hollywood, very, very few child actors make smooth and successful transitions into adult acting. It’s very difficult for many, but I think it’s a hundred times—a thousand times—more difficult when you are an Asian actor. I found myself at a crossroads at a very early age. Do I want to continue down a path where I just didn’t see many opportunities for myself? Or do I want to go down a path, an unknown path, where I really don’t know what I want to do? And I struggled for a long, long time. And at the same time, I was just hoping that phone would ring with an amazing offer to be in a movie like Indiana Jones or The Goonies, or a great role for an Asian actor, and it never came. I was so dispirited and disheartened.
When I made the very difficult decision to step away from acting, it was painful, but I love this business so much. I wanted to still be in it, so I enrolled at USC Film School. When I graduated, I started working behind the camera for many years, and I was very lucky to work for filmmakers like Corey Yuen and Wong Kar-Wai. And I was content at that time, but something was missing, and I didn’t know what it was. And I guess it was because for many years I lied to myself by saying that I didn’t like acting anymore to make it feel less painful.
For a long time I thought I was at peace with it, but something was missing, and I really didn’t know what it was until Crazy Rich Asians came out. I saw my fellow Asian actors up on the screen, and I had serious FOMO because I wanted to be up there with them. I thought about it for a long time, because I hadn’t done it in 20 years, and you don’t know if people will still embrace you. But when I stepped in front of the camera again, I realized that’s what was missing all those years. I was nervous, of course, but somehow all those wonderful memories from when I was a kid came rushing back in.
What was it like that first day back on set?
The very first scene I did for Everything Everywhere, I was in a cubicle with Jamie Lee Curtis in front of me, Michelle Yeoh behind me, and James Hong to my left. In that moment, I had a panic attack. I thought, “Oh my god, what the hell am I doing here? I haven’t done this in so long, and these people have been doing it for decades nonstop.”
When we finished that first shot, I was really nervous and insecure. But we kept shooting and shooting, and there was one shot that I did [by myself]. Jamie Lee Curtis was by the monitors watching, and after that shot, she came up to me and said, “Ke, that was fucking amazing.” She gave me a really long hug, and that was what I needed. I walked on set the next day with total confidence, and that’s how I finished the movie.
You’ve rightfully been getting raves for your performance. How has it felt to see the reception to the film so far?
I’ve cried so many times reading [reviews]. When I decided to do this, I didn’t know what the audience’s reaction would be. I didn’t know whether they would embrace it. To see all those positive reviews, to have all these people at the premieres be so welcoming, I’ve cried so many times. And it feels really good. I’m in such a good place. I’m so happy right now.
For all the challenges you faced as an Asian man trying to make it in Hollywood, does it at least feel somewhat vindicating to now see so many Asian actors that you inspired break through today?
Over the years, I’ve met a lot of Asian talent now working in Hollywood. They always thank me and say, “Man, it was so great to see you up there on the screen, because I was able to see myself. Thank you for paving the way for us to be here.” And, of course, it’s really interesting because they’ve paved the way for my return. My return to acting is the direct result of the progress made by them. It proves how important it is for not just Asian, but for all groups of people to be represented in entertainment, because like you said, until you see yourself, until you see it, visualize it, you still can’t believe that it could also be you up there on the screen. So that’s why I am so grateful for what has happened the last few years. It’s happened gradually, but I’m very optimistic and very hopeful about where things are going.
One thing I noticed about your comeback: starting in the late ‘80s through the early ‘00s, you were billed as Jonathan Ke Quan. For Everything Everywhere, you’ve chosen to go by your Chinese birth name. That feels like a meaningful decision.
It was a big deal for me to go back to using my birth name, Ke Huy Quan. That was the name I was credited with on Indiana Jones. But by the time I got to my late teens, I was working on a sitcom and the warmup comedian would butcher my name every week. It was seen as difficult to pronounce, so I was encouraged to go with an American name. I was Jonathan for many years, but it never felt like that was me.
When I decided to return to my roots in acting, my name was the very first thing I was positive about. I thought, if I work hard enough and get my name out there enough, one day people will learn to pronounce it. For me, it really completes the puzzle.
You’ve said that when you first read the script for Everything Everywhere, you felt like the part was written for you. At the same time, you’ve also said that if this role had been presented to you 10 or 15 years ago, you wouldn’t have been ready for it. How are you different today from the person you were back then?
Hopefully I’m a little wiser now. I have come to appreciate all the low points, and now hopefully I’ll get to enjoy some of the highs, because you can’t really know what sweet tastes like unless you know the sour. Over the years I’ve learned to look at things from different angles, and I could never have played Waymond had I not believed in his empathy, in his optimism, in his kindness, in his true belief that we should treat people with respect. I’ve come to realize that family’s really important, friendship is really important, and I wouldn’t trade it for anything else. Because that’s what makes life beautiful: to have someone to share it with.
Does it feel, then, that this movie is a gift that’s been given to you at precisely the right time?
Absolutely. Had you told me a few years ago that, “Ke, you’re going to be doing this movie with this crazy talented cast,” I would say, “You’re crazy.” No way. But everything had to happen in the order that it did for this very moment to happen.
Our movie deals with multiverses, and when things are not going according to plan, it’s human to be tempted by the idea of all the “What ifs?” But our movie speaks perfectly to the notion that the grass is not always greener on the other side. I love all the ups and downs. I love the peaks and the valleys, because that’s what makes a beautiful landscape.
I needed to work with Wong Kar-Wai for all those years, to watch Tony Leung from behind the camera, to pay homage to those guys in this movie. I needed to work with Corey Yuen, who taught me how to choreograph and shoot action scenes in order to do the fight sequences in this movie. Honestly, I wouldn’t change a thing, because the present universe right now is looking pretty good.
You’ve worked with some groundbreaking directors over the years: Spielberg, Wong Kar-Wai, and now Daniels. What are the greatest lessons you’ve learned from each?
Over all the years I worked with Wong Kar-Wai, I learned one word really well: perseverance. As you know, he makes one movie over the span of five years. Every year, we would miss the deadline to Cannes. Every single year, right before the deadline, everybody would say, “Oh my God, we need to rush!” And then we would miss that deadline. And we would miss the next deadline, the next three deadlines. Three years later, we’re still making the same movie. And yet, the entire time we were so composed, we were so calm, and he kept to his vision, and he never gave up. I remember being on a set where he would finesse one shot for hours. We would be at it for five, six, seven hours just to finesse this one dolly shot. He didn’t shoot a single frame until that shot was ready. And at the end of that day, when he began to roll camera, it was the most breathtaking, jaw-dropping shot I’ve ever seen.
From the Daniels, I learned humility. During dinner on set, they would give up their table mid-meal for background actors who needed a place to sit. Just zero egos. From the get-go, they told me, “Ke, everybody’s equal, there’s no hierarchy on our shoot. Feel free to come to us and throw out any ideas that you have. It’s really a collaborative process.” You hear that a lot in our business, but a lot of times it doesn’t quite happen that way. But with the Daniels, it’s 1000% that way.
From Steven, I learned kindness. Steven is so caring. And even after all these years, if there was ever something any of us needed, he would help, he would get on the phone, he would meet with us. And he really cares about us. He really cares about his friends, and he’s like a big kid, he loves movies. For someone to be as successful and as great as he is, it’s incredible to see that he still cares about people. He still cares about everybody he works with.
Given all your experience behind the camera, is directing something you’d be interested in someday?
Hopefully one day, but right now my entire focus is on acting. When I was shooting Everything Everywhere, I only put on the actor’s cap, because that’s what I wanted to do: I wanted to do what I didn’t get to do when I was younger. So now I’m in a really cool and happy place, and hopefully I’ll get a lot of opportunities to play a lot of different roles that I wanted to play in my early 20s that I didn’t get. But directing is maybe something for further down the line, absolutely.
Two more things I have to ask before I let you go. First of all, I learned that Jeff Cohen—who played Chunk in The Goonies—is now your lawyer. Are all of you still really close?
Goonies never say die. We’re always going to be Goonies, we’re all brothers and sisters. We are forever bonded by that movie. Yes, I’m good friends with Jeff. He’s my entertainment lawyer and we see each other a lot. Jonathan Wang, the producer of Everything Everywhere, loved that he had to talk to Chunk in order to book Data for his movie.
I see Corey Feldman and Sean Astin a lot, too. Over the last couple of years, during the pandemic, we’ve had a couple of really nice Goonies reunions with everybody: even Dick Donner and Spielberg, Chris Columbus, Cyndi Lauper. It was such a nice way to reconnect before Donner passed. But my gosh, what a legacy, what a life he had. We’re all hopefully going to get together in April to try to honor him.
Finally, they’re making a fifth Indiana Jones movie. Would you ever be open to coming back as Short Round?
First of all, I don’t want to spread any rumors: I’m not in Indy 5. But of course I would love to. That was my first job ever and Short Round is an amazing character. He’s funny, he’s courageous, he saves Indy’s ass. People come up to me all the time and say, “I wanted to be Short Round,” or Asian kids will tell me, “[My friends] call me Short Round.” It’s always so heartwarming. I would love to have an opportunity to revisit that character. We’ll see what happens.