“I’m always trying to navigate this balance of collaboration, which is so incredibly important to me, and listening to my own voice. I think that’s something I’m doing constantly in my life—shifting from world to world, perspective to perspective. It’s about having the courage to go seek.”
-Lulu Wang, episode 360 of Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso
Following the success of her autobiographical 2019 film, The Farewell, Lulu Wang has emerged as one of the most exciting voices in Hollywood.
With the arrival of her new series Expats, she joins us to discuss the responsibility she felt creating the Hong Kong-based show (6:55), collaborating with actor Nicole Kidman (12:30), and Wang’s personal connection to the project (13:12). Then, we unpack the contrasting perspectives embedded in the story (19:44), what she witnessed growing up in Miami, as an expat herself (22:55), and how she processes her family history today (24:15).
On the back-half, Lulu reflects on her college years (34:45) where she began to find her creative voice (36:46), the road to her debut feature film Posthumous (45:32), and why she wanted to tell a more personal story in The Farewell (50:30), which she first narrated on This American Life (51:25). To close, we talk about her full-circle moment creating Expats (1:04:00) and the importance of community (1:06:30).
For questions, comments, or to join our mailing list, reach me at [email protected].
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Show-notes:
- Watch Lulu’s new series Expats on Amazon Prime Video.
- Read The Expatriates by Janice Y. K. Lee.
- See Lulu’s previous films: The Farewell, Touch, and Posthumous.
- Hear her on This American Life in 2016.
- Follow him on Instagram and Twitter.
- For more, hear our talks with Ava DuVernay, Steven Soderbergh, Hiro Murai, Janicza Bravo, and Benny Safdie.
- Order your Talk Easy mug in cream and navy or our vinyl record with Fran Lebowitz.
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Original illustration by Krishna Shenoi. Reference Photograph by Matt Morris.
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