#StarringJohnCho is a social movement that literally shows you what it would look like if today's Hollywood blockbusters cast an Asian-American actor - specifically, John Cho - as their leading man.
Despite data that supports the finding that diverse films are better financial bets than non-diverse films, the Asian American community continues to find its narratives erased. In 2016, Hollywood had a number of whitewashing films, most notably Ghost In The Shell, featuring Scarlett Johansson playing the character Major Motoko Kusanagi.
Currently, Asian Americans represent ~5% of the US population. We are also the fastest growing ethnic group in America, our buying power tops $1 TRILLION, and we over-index in movie ticket purchases and streaming subscriptions. And yet, only 1% of lead roles go to actors of Asian descent.
The talent is here. The opportunities aren’t. Because Hollywood can’t “see it.” For an industry built on creativity, executives lack imagination.
So #StarringJohnCho is going to show you.
In order to vet options, I used the four qualifiers to find a subject that would be undeniably deserving of the career of a Hollywood Lead : 1. Cult Following, 2. Leading Role Experience, 3. Critical Acclaim, and 4. Box Office Success. After an extensive search, I determined that John Cho was one of the few, if only, individuals who had a bulletproof case.
In order to ensure that the posters would have maximum impact, I selected recent films that had achieved widespread praise and box office success, and upcoming, highly anticipated films. I created a landing page with additional resources and data, then specifically chose Twitter as my platform to disseminate the content and spark a conversation.
#StarringJohnCho has been featured in The New York Times, BBC, CNN, NBC, CBS, The Huffington Post, Refinery29, The Hollywood Reporter, Adweek, AdAge, mic.com, Vulture, Business Insider, among many others. It also garnered over 1 BILLION impressions worldwide, as well as furthering the conversation of how Asian-Americans are perceived in our society today.
The project has also won a Shorty Award and a Mosaic Award from the American Advertising Federation.
I even got to meet John Cho! Great guy.