Jimmy O Yang and his new movie, Love Hard
November 16, 2021
Jimmy O Yang is a Hong Kong-American comedian, who is best known for starring as Jian-Yang on the HBO comedy show Silicon Valley. He recently starred in the Netflix Christmas Romantic Comedy, Love Hard.
In Love Hard Jimmy O Yang plays a man called Josh, who catfishes a woman, called Natalie, not expecting her to fly across the country to see him. Once she realizes she’s been catfished she gets angry, until she realizes the guy who’s photo Josh used actually exists and lives in the same town as Josh. It turns out that Josh knows that guy, and he agrees to help Natalie get him.
The concept is silly and unrealistic, but it’s good for a Netflix Christmas Romantic Comedy. The actors are charming, which helps save an otherwise very mediocre movie. It’s cliche and a bit dumb, but overall a good time. For people who are looking for a nice, light watch, it’s a good recommendation.
In an interview with POPSUGAR, Yang relayed what it was like becoming the leading man in a Rom-Com. “It was cool,” said Yang, “There’s definitely still comedy in this movie, so that’s not lost, but at the same time, I really just get to dig into the humanity and the psyche of why someone would even catfish and find the humanity in this character, because if this person is not likable, the whole movie fails.”
“Our movie is flipping some of the old tropes on their head and modernizing it, which I really love,” Yang stated in the same interview with POPSUGAR. “Rom-coms really define an era… It reflects or it jogs memories of great times in your life. As predictable as it sounds, it’s usually always a happy ending.”
I saw all these comics doing five to 10-minute bits. And I was like, oh, my God. What is this art form? I’ve never seen this. And it’s so refreshing.
— Jimmy O Yang
Yang’s comedy special, Good Deal, currently holds a 81% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. The comedy special centers life as an Asian-American and confronting stereotypes. The special is available for streaming on Amazon Prime video.
Yang learned English by watching BET “Rap City.” In an interview with NPR Yang said, “That was my love of stand-up and my introduction to stand-up… I saw all these comics doing five to 10-minute bits. And I was like, oh, my God. What is this art form? I’ve never seen this. And it’s so refreshing.”
Yang has appeared with small roles in many movies, including Crazy Rich Asians and The Lego Movie 2. He also has a book out called How To American: An Immigrant’s Guide To Disappointing Your Parents. Yang is slowly rising in popularity.
