In a candid interview at the Locarno Film Festival, Lucy Liu opened up about her childhood as the daughter of Chinese immigrants in Queens, New York, revealing the profound isolation that defined her early years and informed her powerful performance in Rosemead. “Growing up, I didn’t understand English for so long…I remember feeling not invited to the party, not being cool, not having the strength to speak out when people were making fun of my mother, or that her accent was strong,” she shared, connecting deeply with her character Irene’s struggles.
Liu explained how these experiences shaped her drive for authentic roles. “I came to this business to act. I think it’s sometimes hard to get the opportunity. You get to do a lot of other fun roles… [But] the opportunity to do something like a real life story, sometimes it goes to a different race,” she told journalists. “People like you in a certain role and…they want to continue seeing you in that role. Understandably. It’s fun. It’s entertaining. But it’s important to tell stories. That’s why I got into the business to begin with.”
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Her hands-on role as producer amplified this: “Producing is all-encompassing and I don’t recommend it to the faint-of-heart. But I do feel that it’s worth the effort. The importance of the authenticity of this was crucial. So every word, every sound…you have to account for everything.”
The actor pushed back against stereotypes, drawing from her heritage. “She wasn’t that far from my heart because I feel I understand her. I grew up in that situation where my parents were misunderstood or thought less of. Nobody advocated for [them] because they didn’t speak the language well. Even though there were scientists [and] civil engineers, people talked down to them…I think it’s really important to not necessarily disguise it, but to expose it. That’s what I try to do with her—to expose the trauma and the smaller side of myself to reach her,” Liu reflected.
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On community divisions, she noted a key Rosemead line: “Just because you have a Chinese face, it does not mean you are one of us.” Adding, “Even though he had nothing to do with what happened at the police station, she has already put him on the other side. It’s such a dangerous thing…There’s a general truth out there. But now, it’s shifted so much that truths are becoming more and more insular. There’s such an individualization that occurs. There’s no unity. That’s when we lose each other as a community.”
Receiving Locarno’s Career Achievement Award felt like a full-circle moment. “To me, this is not about my body of work. It’s about how I have learned to love—more bravely, more deeply throughout my life and through this career I have been so blessed to have been on,” she said in her speech. “Coming from immigrant parents, they really shaped me, the way I see, the way that I listen, the way that I behave with other people. They sharpened my ability to be more cognizant [towards] stories that were more on the edge.” Liu ended optimistically: “I feel like my career is just starting.” Her story underscores the power of exposing hidden immigrant truths through art.
