Do not tell Michelle Yeoh what to do, says Michelle Yeoh
The Oscar-nominee said some fools told her to retire before Everything Everywhere All At Once
People love to boss others around. But why they think they can tell Michaelle Yeoh what to do is beyond us. The Oscar-nominee is currently riding high on the road to the Academy Awards, where her high-energy postmodern kung fu epic, Everything Everywhere All At Once, is nominated for 11 little gold men. It’s the perfect capper to a career that continues to defy the generally sexist expectations about female actors and what roles they can or cannot do. And yet, despite starring in blockbuster superhero movies, animated family films, and romantic comedies, she still hears the same garbage as other actors going through the very natural experience of getting older.
“You know, as you get older, the roles get smaller,” Yeoh said on the L.A. Times awards podcast The Envelope [via Variety]. “It seems like the numbers go up, and these things go narrow, and then you start getting relegated to the side more and more. So when Everything Everywhere came—it was very emotional because this means that you are the one who’s leading this whole process, who’s telling the story.”
Yeoh’s been going strong since 1984. She kept up with Jackie Chan across several Supercops, broke the rules of gravity in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, and even gave James Bond what for. In the last 20 years, her filmography grew to include a Mummy sequel, Star Trek: Discovery, and two characters in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Not to mention, she made romantic comedies a viable genre again with Crazy Rich Asians. The woman is practically carrying Hollywood on her back; still, some moron has the gall to tell her to retire.
“As you get older, people start saying, ‘Oh yeah, you should retire. You should do this. You should…’” she said. “No, guys. Do not tell me what to do. I should be in control of what I am capable of, right?”
Despite her position as a key supporting player in so many blockbusters, the genre-bending, multiverse-hopping Everything Everywhere gave her the role she’s been waiting for.
“The first thing is you feel like, ‘Finally, thank you. You guys see me, you guys really see, and you’re giving me the opportunity to show that I’m capable of doing all this,’” Yeoh added about the movie’s breakthrough success. “As an actor, you need the opportunity. You need the role that will help you showcase what you are capable to do.”
Michelle Yeoh gets it. Now, let her do what she thinks is best.