You can’t blame Yoson An for “nerding out” while sitting in a cockpit filming with Gerard Butler for two weeks. The Chinese-born Kiwi star still pinches himself about working opposite the legendary actor in the 2023 movie Plane, which went to number one on Netflix.
“I straight up told Gerry how big a fan I was,” Yoson recalls.
“I was like, ‘Dude, I grew up watching all your movies!’ I loved him as King Leonidas from 300 and in The Phantom Of The Opera. Back in my musical days, I sang his Phantom tune Music Of The Night and now I have a video of us singing it together!”
Early screen obsession
It’s one of many pinch-me moments the actor, 33, has experienced during his impressive rise to global fame. While he never considered an acting career growing up in China, his love for the screen started young as he got hooked on Chinese soap operas.
After stints in Macau, Hong Kong, Perth and Sydney, Yoson’s family settled in Auckland when he was around eight. An anime enthusiast, he ventured into musicals after a teacher found him playing piano and encouraged him to take part in the school’s production of Les Misérables.
From piano to stage
From behind the piano, Yoson noticed how fun it looked to perform on stage, so he joined the choir, then landed the role Yertle the Turtle in Seussical The Musical.
“Acting was never a career pursuit,” he recalls.
“I made fun of actors, like, ‘What kind of profession’s that?!’”
After high school, Yoson began studying economics and finance, but he was so bored by his second year that he returned to acting as a hobby, which reignited his passion for performing and prompted him to hire an acting coach.
Choosing passion over pressure
“My parents wanted me to get into banking, so when I told my mum, ‘This isn’t for me,’ there was that look of disappointment,” he shares.
“Family members tried to deter me from acting – they saw how risky this career is. But my mum came around and she’s supportive now.”
It helps Yoson’s enjoyed a string of impressive roles, including working with “wonderful” Rachel Griffiths in Aussie series Dead Lucky.
“She taught me a lot and I grew as an actor working with her,” he smiles.
Keeping big news under wraps
Another of Yoson’s biggest feats was landing a starring role in the live-action remake of Mulan, although he didn’t share the news with his family straightaway.
He recalls, “I kept my mouth shut throughout filming and just told them I was off filming an indie. Then one morning, my phone blew up because an article came out with the story. I went to see my family for lunch and everyone was like, ‘How did this happen?!’”
Big Disney dreams close to home
Yoson loved getting to work on a huge Disney production like Mulan just 15 minutes from his Auckland home with “legends” like Kiwi director Niki Caro. The role required months of intense workouts, martial arts and stunt training.
Then there was the Neon horror film Heart Eyes, which let Yoson explore portraying a villain, and the action-thriller flick Shadow Force with the “lovely” Kerry Washington. Filming on location in Colombia, Yoson felt like he was vacationing at a resort “like The White Lotus”.
Lessons from Kerry Washington
He tells, “On days off, Kerry took us to her favourite places to wine and dine. We had so much fun. It felt like a holiday. I was like, ‘Dude, what is this life?!’”
Yoson’s biggest professional lesson from Kerry was to “be kind”, noting that her positivity shaped on-set vibes. The actor has also enjoyed filming local productions like Creamerie and Tangata Pai, which inspired him and buddy Millen Baird to make the short film The Dishes.
He describes it as an “absurd dark comedy” and they’re trying to turn it into a feature film.
Meanwhile, Yoson’s latest project, the upcoming movie Site, is an “intense, emotional rollercoaster”, set during World War II, when Japan invaded China and performed human experiments.
Challenging roles with depth
“It was a very dark part of history and the role pushed me in different ways,” he admits.
“The movie’s also got deep spiritual elements and explores how the choices we make can change our future.”
Having previously lived in LA, Yoson plans to head back to California at some point, with dreams of working with top directors like Christopher Nolan. He’d also love to find Hollywood financing to film projects in New Zealand.
Until then, he’s enjoying time at home with his family and indulging his passion for vintage cameras.
He smiles, “It’s an expensive hobby because every photo costs about $5, but there’s something special about needing to be so present and making sure everything’s right before you take that shot.”
Tangata Pai screens 8.30pm Tuesdays on Three and streams on ThreeNow.
