Jason Mendoza is not too bright, but people love him.
“He’s not your typical hardworking nerdy Asian stereotype,” Manny Jacinto says of his role in NBC’s The Good Place. “He is the complete opposite and it pushes forward a sense that not every Asian is going to be smart and hardworking.”
The writers wanted the character to be easy, going and simple minded because they noticed that “there are no dumb Asians in mainstream media,” the Filipino Canadian actor tells Mochi in an interview. Jacinto is no dummy.
Jason is “not defined by his ethnicity, so you don’t hear him speak Tagalog or Mandarin or whatever it may be. He’s really, at the end of the day, a person, just like any other individual,” says Jacinto.
In contrast to Jason, Jacinto has apparently given some serious thought about his good fortune landing the role in a hit series. “I want to be able to inspire the next kid, the young kid, to have somebody to look up to in a sense, that they can be this or be that,” he says. “That was the biggest part for me—for Asian males specifically to not just be an Asian nerd or an Asian martial artist.”
“It really kills me how Asian males are being emasculated, especially in TV and film,” he says. “I’ve definitely been a victim of discrimination and that’s one of the biggest reasons that I stay in this game—so I can change that.”
“Bottom line: We are actors first. We are creators first. We are artists first,” he says. ”And by taking hold of that identity rather than being an Asian actor, we can do a lot more.”
This doesn’t mean his background gets erased or ignored — just the opposite. Jason Mendoza gets to be Filipino Canadian, with a huge Blake Bortles tan and a fondness for EDM and the NFL’s Jacksonville Jaguars. Like all of us, Jacinto and the character he plays are the intersection of a lot of weird and wonderful things. Why shouldn’t TV show all of that?
Representation matters, Jacinto tells GQ. “Seeing someone like you, with your skin color, spiritual background, age, sexual orientation, or disability is no small thing. It can inspire, change minds, and move people to act. Every role on every show gives Hollywood another chance to get it right. Not just for top talent, but for the children … (and adults) watching and wondering if anyone sees them too.”
In one episode, Jason laments to a costar played by Kristen Bell, “Everyone here thinks I’m Taiwanese. I’m Filipino. That’s racist. Heaven is so racist.”
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