Jo Koy has made his name in stand-up comedy for his hilarious routines rooted in his Filipino-American heritage and experiences growing up. But beyond his relatable jokes about Vicks VapoRub, lost lunchboxes, and munggo, Jo Koy is now making Hollywood history with his film Easter Sunday.
Now showing in Philippine cinemas nationwide, Easter Sunday is the first film with an all-Filipino lead cast to be produced by a major Hollywood studio. And it was Amblin’s Steven Spielberg himself, who wanted to put Jo Koy and his movie pitch on the big screen after seeing his Netflix special Comin’ In Hot.
The film follows the struggling comedian Joe Valencia who joins his Filipino family for Easter Sunday, but with his quarreling mother and tita, a TV show opportunity at bay, a son he can’t seem to make time for, and a cousin caught up with dangerous gangsters, Joe is up for a chaotic holiday.
Last Tuesday, August 30, Jo Koy joined the Philippine media at the press conference for Easter Sunday. Here, Jo Koy talked about his journey as a stand-up comedian, from getting into Netflix to turning his dream film into a reality in Hollywood which has long snubbed specificity in Asian characters. Here are some highlights of the press conference.
A rough road of rejections
Jo Koy may all be smiles and funny faces whenever we see him on stage, but the comedian’s rise to fame wasn’t an easy one, as he revealed during the press conference. The Comedy Central channel really kicked off his career as a comedian on TV, but Jo Koy also shared one of his most discouraging moments when he performed for the network.
“[It was like 2009], it was a long time ago, and I thought personally it was an incredible routine and I was hurt because they didn’t even air it,” shared Jo Koy. “And I was just like, ‘Hey, what’s going on right now?’ Like, they shot all of these specials and for some reason, mine just got buried. I was like, ‘Why is it not being played?’ There were times when I just wanted to quit, like ‘Why am I even doing this?'”
But the comedian kept going, citing his love for the art form of stand-up comedy. “I just love what it takes to get in front of people and make them laugh and tell a story,” he said. Of course, all of this paid off.
Jo Koy gained even more popularity when his comedy specials dropped on streaming platforms, most especially on Netflix. But getting that Netflix fame wasn’t easy either, because he was faced with multiple rejections before he finally got that spot on the streaming platform.
“My first special, Live From Seattle, they turned that down like eight times. They kept saying no to me, to the point where I was like, ‘Okay I’ll fund it myself and I’ll shoot it myself’ and I paid for that special and I sold it to Netflix,” explained the comedian. “If that didn’t happen, then Steven Spielberg would have never seen the second one, and that’s the one that Steven brought me in and asked me if I had a movie idea. You know what I mean? I was gonna do it no matter what.”
The comedian further shared that he also had to pull money from his own pockets for his second and third specials, just so he could produce them at the venues that he wanted but Netflix wouldn’t approve of. Jo Koy persisted and we got Comin’ In Hot which was shot in Hawaii and In His Elements shot right here in the Philippines.
“I wanted to showcase Filipinos. I wanted to show what the islands look like. I wanted to show what our people look like. I wanted to show how talented we are. I wanted to show Filipinos that are in the Philippines and give them a chance to shine on a platform like Netflix, and then have Filipinos from America and bring them to the Motherland and let them perform in front of Filipinos,” shared Jo Koy about making In His Elements.
But Jo Koy also noted that he now has a beautiful relationship with Netflix and the new people from the platform who he gets to make deals with. He even announced his fourth Netflix special shot at the Great Western Forum, which will be released this September 13.
An opportunity from Amblin
While it was a rough road getting his routines into Netflix, it seemed like Jo Koy finally caught a break when he was called in to pitch a film to Amblin. As it would appear, he just charmed the Steven Spielberg with his humor. According to Jo Koy, he thought it would just be another opportunity where he would give a pitch and nothing happens, because “that’s what happens in Hollywood,” but nope– Spielberg was intent on getting Jo Koy’s idea out there.
“What happened was I walked into Amblin and everybody’s like ‘Oh Steven loves you, Steven thinks you’re very funny, Steven this, Steven that,’ and you hear that and you’re like ‘Are you talking about Steven from accounting? [laughs] Like this can’t be Steven Spielberg, there’s just no way!”
But it was indeed Spielberg, and they agreed on producing a film that will have a global theatrical release. The comedian also noted that the renowned filmmaker only made two movies from that meeting, Easter Sunday and Jurassic World.
Filling in the Filipino representation in Hollywood
Easter Sunday isn’t just borne out of Jo Koy’s struggles, he makes this clear. The long journey to have Filipinos really represented on the big screen was also the struggle of many Hollywood actors and artists from the Motherland. This is why Jo Koy was certain that he wanted the veteran Hollywood actors Lou Diamond Phillips and Tia Carrere to be part of Easter Sunday.
“Back in the day, if you’re Filipino– it doesn’t even matter if you’re Filipino– if you’re just Asian, they’ll [round] you up in a group. That’s how racist Hollywood was,” said Jo Koy. “One thing [Tia Carrere] said to me, she said ‘You know I used to go out for roles? And the description would be Asian with a thick accent…’ That’s the kind of characters that she has to go in for, and [Easter Sunday] was the first movie where she got to play a Filipino, in her 42 years in Hollywood.”
It was these actors that had to go “to the trenches” so that a film like Easter Sunday would become a reality today. “They were there before anybody, they had to go through the hard Hollywood,” said Jo Koy.
Jo Koy on future film prospects
Easter Sunday gives Filipinos a first in Hollywood history, and we can’t help but wonder, what’s next? For Jo Koy, he wants to make more opportunities for everyone in terms of representation in Hollywood, not just as an actor but also from behind the scenes.
“Most importantly, for me, I want to also have my hand not only in front of the camera but behind the camera. I also want to open doors, to not just specific roles,” explained Jo Koy, also citing how the Filipino stereotypes he would often joke about remain prominent in Hollywood. “‘Oh, that’s a nurse, that has to be a Filipino,’ I don’t want that anymore. I want it to be anybody, a CEO of a business– Filipino; a cop, a singer, I don’t care. Let’s just have these roles for everybody, and I just don’t want to open doors for Filipinos, I want to open doors for everybody. So yes, I want to create more, I want to produce more.”
So besides his comedy specials, Filipinos can also expect Jo Koy’s further foray into the film industry. As Jo Koy’s journey had proven, getting there was no joke, but we can expect that the comedian will continue to persevere.
“Don’t close the door on anybody, if you have the light, share it. If you have the stage, open it up and let other people on it. There’s enough light for everybody, just remember that,” Jo Koy tells everyone in the room as the program ended.
Easter Sunday is directed by Jay Chandrasekhar. Also part of the cast are Lydia Gaston, Brandon Wardell, Eva Noblezada, Elena Juatco, Rodney To, Eugene Cordero, Melody Butui, Joey Guila, Tiffany Hadish, and Jimmy O. Yang. The film is now showing in cinemas nationwide, buy your tickets here.
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