TV & Beyond on 2025-06-11 12:10:00

by | Jun 11, 2025 | TV & Beyond Articles | 0 comments

TV & Beyond on 2025-06-11 12:10:00

praised for its portrayal of Asian-American identity. Wu is currently set to star in the upcoming sequel film (release date is TBD). On top of that, she also starred opposite Jennifer Lopez in the provocative “Hustlers.”

Although “Fresh Off the Boat” catapulted Wu’s career to new horizons, she didn’t leave the series unscathed. In 2019, after the show was renewed for its final season, Wu expressed anger at the renewal through comments on social media. She received public backlash at the time but addressed the controversy by stating that the renewal cost her a role she was looking forward to. Years later, in 2022, she revealed to ABC News that she was a victim of sexual harassment while working on the show, which surely influenced her reaction about the renewal. She also confessed on “Good Morning America” that the cyberbullying she endured led her to attempt suicide.

In recent years, Wu is finding her confidence again. She is currently starring in “The Terminal List,” a military drama fronted by Chris Pratt. She also was the voice of Daphne in the adult animated series “Velma,” but the series was unfortunately cancelled after two seasons in 2024. Most interestingly, Wu has returned to the theater stage, starring in three productions since 2022 including “Little Shop of Horrors.” 

Lastly, Wu penned a memoir entitled “Making a Scene,” about her upbringing, acting career, and the harassment she faced on the set of “Fresh Off the Boat.” Her complicated relationship to the show forged a clarity about her life and career that has strengthened her in this next chapter.

Randall Park (Louis Huang)

Teyonah Parris as Monica Rambeau stands shocked next to Randall Park as Jimmy Woo in WandaVision.

Marvel Studios/Disney

The other breakout star of the series, Randall Park as Louis Huang was a great onscreen contrast to Constance Wu’s Jessica. Easygoing and desperate for American acceptance, he was a pushover but not to the point of incompetence. He was still driven and a solid provider to his family. 

Park’s comedic chops on “Fresh Off the Boat” increased his acumen in Hollywood and landed him roles in a variety of genres on the big and small screens. He’s appeared in the Marvel Cinematic Universe as FBI agent Jimmy Woo in the second and third “Ant Man” movies and the  “WandaVision” TV series, as well as the DC Expanded Universe as Dr. Stephen Shin in both “Aquaman” films. Like Wu, he also took a lead role in a romcom, Netflix’s “Always Be My Maybe” (featuring a superb Keanu Reeves cameo), shortly before “Fresh Off the Boat” ended.

More recently, he’s had regular roles in TV shows such as “Young Rock,” “Watson,” and Shondaland’s new Netflix show “The Residence,” which might be of interest to you if you’re into Agatha Christie and murder mysteries. The most interesting turn for Park’s career since “Fresh Off the Boat” ended is his spate of voice acting parts in shows like “Tuca & Bertie,” “Human Resources,” and “Big Mouth.” He’s even dipped his toe in directing, with his first feature film “Shortcomings” released in 2023.

Hudson Yang (Eddie Huang)

Hudson Yang cooks in a kitchen in Crash Course Cuisine with Hudson Yang.

National Geographic

The initial star of the “Fresh Off the Boat,” Hudson Yang’s character was based on the real life upbringing of restauranteur Eddie Huang in Orlando, Florida. As the eldest son of first-generation immigrants, Eddie struggled with the tension of honoring his heritage, American assimilation, and rebelling to forge his own identity. Pulling autobiographical details from Eddie Huang’s book of the same name, the character version of Eddie was also huge fan of hip-hop and basketball. Toward the end of the series, Eddie took an interest in culinary arts, hinting at the real man’s future in the restaurant industry.

Yang’s trajectory appears to be no different. He’s invested in a Vietnamese restaurant in Los Angeles and now has his own cooking show called “Crash Course Cuisine with Hudson Yang” on NatGeo. He spoke with Mochi Magazine in October 2024 and detailed his journey to “Fresh Off the Boat,” his college experience at Harvard, and his culinary aspirations. Even with his culinary focus, Yang is still taking roles in less mainstream projects such as “Order Up!,” “Honor Student,” and “Extremely Unique Dynamic.”

He’s taking things as they come for now, telling the Mochi Magazine, “From going to Harvard and working on the show, I’ve learned that the less you take yourself seriously, and the more you just sit down and enjoy the process, the better things end up.”

Forrest Wheeler (Emery Huang)

Forrest Wheeler as Emery Huang sitting on a couch in Fresh Off the Boat.

ABC/20th Century Fox Television

The middle child of the family, Emery Huang (Forrest Wheeler) was the best of both worlds between his two brothers: academically high-achieving like Evan but also inclined to stir shenanigans like Eddie. He was the most sociable of the three brothers, and as such, he took an interest in acting by the end of the show. The actor, Forrest Wheeler, had small parts in “Mortal Kombat: Legacy,” “New Girl,” and “Community” before landing his main cast role on “Fresh Off the Boat.” Since the show ended, though, it appears that Wheeler has effectively retired from acting, or at least he doesn’t have any acting credits beyond his role as Emery at the time of this writing.

He is currently attending New York University, and from the looks of his Instagram, he’s living the New York twenty-something experience. His sparse posting (approximately once a year) suggests that he wants to live his life privately away from the spotlight. Especially for child stars, it’s not uncommon for these actors to disappear from Hollywood after their breakout role.

Ian Chen (Evan Huang)

Ian Chen as Evan Huang sits on a couch in Fresh Off the Boat

ABC/20th Century Fox Television

As the genius youngest son of the family, Evan Huang (Ian Chen) was his mother’s golden child, at times to his chagrin. At first, Evan relished his role as the perfect son, but by the end of the series he realized there was more to life than academic achievement. In a slightly different way, Ian Chen also accepted that you can be more than what is expected of you.

Like his TV older brother, Chen seems to be solely focusing on school at the moment. After graduating high school in 2024, he began attending, you guessed it, Harvard! This is especially funny given that the series ends with Evan graduating Harvard and giving a valedictorian speech. Chen acknowledged how “life imitates art” on his Instagram in a cheeky post. Based on his sporadic posting on social media, it appears he’s living the normal life of a college student. If you want your fix of Ian Chen, for now you’ll have to sate yourself with his previous role as Ethan Choi in “Shazam” and the sequel “Shazam: Fury of the Gods,” a movie with an odd affinity for Skittles.

The actors that played the Huang sons have shown that they share key similarities to their characters. In hindsight, it sheds a different light on what they each brought to their roles: an authenticity that made each boy’s personality believable.

Lucille Soong (Jenny Huang)

Lucille Soong as Pei Pei's mom sings karaoke alongside Jamie Lee Curtis as Tess Coleman in Freakier Friday.

Walt Disney Pictures

Jenny Huang (Lucille Soong), Louis’ mother and grandmother to the Huang sons, played the typical sitcom elder role: always ready to make a witty comments to herself about the family’s shenanigans. She spent about half the series only speaking in Mandarin with subtitles. Similar to Ray Wise (further down this list), Soong has been in countless small roles across her career spanning seven decades, including “The Mini-Affair,” “The Joy Luck Club,” “One More Time,” and “Desperate Housewives.” Coming up on her 90th birthday this year, her most well-known roles have been in this century.

After playing Grandma Huang, she voiced Dang Hu, the chieftess of Talon, in “Raya and the Last Dragon” and portrayed Grandma Lin in the Hallmark miniseries “Holidazed.” But millennials best remember her as Pei Pei’s mom in the 2003 “Freaky Friday.” If you were hoping for Soong to reprise her role alongside Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan in “Freakier Friday,” set to release in August 2025, you’re in luck, because she’s back too!

Chelsey Crisp (Honey Ellis)

Constance Wu as Jessica Huang and Chelsey Crisp as Honey Ellis share a laugh in Fresh Off the Boat.

ABC/20th Century Fox Television

Honey Ellis was Jessica’s best friend, confidant, and sometimes punching bag. With a smile that lit up any room, she was the perfect foil to Jessica’s serious nature. Once her time as Honey was over, Chelsey Crisp had a handful of small parts on TV. She had a season two role in “Young Rock” as campaign staff for Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s future presidential campaign. (“Young Rock” and “Fresh Off the Boat” were both created by Nahnatchka Khan, so the move to “Young Rock” was very convenient.) Crisp was also a main cast member on Amazon Prime’s short-lived “Ten Percent,” which aired on BBC America in the United States.

According to her website, she is slated to star in the action-comedy film “Balls Up” alongside Mark Wahlberg, Benjamin Bratt, and Eric Andre. She’ll also be featured in the upcoming heist film “Eenie Meanie,” which features an ensemble cast of Steve Zahn, Marshawn Lynch, and none other than former castmate, Randall Park. It wrapped filming in summer 2024, but an official release date has yet to be announced.

Ray Wise (Marvin Ellis)

Ray Wise as Marvin Ellis grumpily sitting in a lawn chair in a yard Fresh Off the Boat

ABC/20th Century Fox Television

Marvin Ellis (Ray Wise), Honey’s old-school but well-meaning husband, became a season regular in season three because of his funny one-liners. Judging the book by its cover would have you assume Marvin was a curmudgeon, but he grew to be more open-minded because of his interactions with the Huangs.

Decades before “Fresh Off the Boat,” Ray Wise was best known for his role as Leland Palmer in “Twin Peaks.” But that was hardly his only role — a skilled character actor, he also starred in various main and supporting roles in “RoboCop,” “Jeepers Creepers 2,” and “X-Men: First Class.” You might remember him from “24” as Vice President Hal Gardner, “Reaper” as The Devil, or “Mad Men” as Ed Baxter. He’s one of those actors whose face you know because he’s been in everything, and his filmography is filled with one-time appearances for roles big and small. 

Since “Fresh Off the Boat” ended, his most prominent role was in “The Young and the Restless,” where he returned as Ian Ward from 2024 to 2025. He’s also made small appearances in “All Rise,” “Home Economics,” and “Psych 3: This Is Gus.”

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