Kelvin Yu, who adapted Gene Luen Yang’s graphic novel, American Born Chinese, for Disney+, said Yang’s characters belong with the other legends in the Disney pantheon. That includes Disney’s own princess and their Marvel slate.
“I went to Disneyland on Friday with my son,” Yang told Deadline’s Dominic Patton at Contenders TV. “It’s Captain America over here, Ariel over here, Moana. The Monkey King and Guanyin and these characters deserve a place on that shelf.”
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Yang’s graphic novel was an adaptation of the classic Chinese story Journey to the West, which has also inspired many films, including a series by Stephen Chow. The Monkey King (Daniel Wu) is a mythical character, comparable to those American legends.
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“It’s honestly like if Batman and Spiderman had a baby and that baby was named Jesus,” Yu said. “It’s the inspiration for Mega Man and Dragon Ball and Sonic the Hedgehog, and Joey from Friends. I’m just kidding [about Joey].”
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Executive Producer Melvin Mar has wanted to adapt Yang’s graphic novel since it was published in 2006. Yang had reservations about characters being taken out of context in a negative way but Yu’s take won Yang over.
In American Born Chinese, the Monkey King is living in modern day with a teenage son in high school.
“It’s been 3000 years,” Wu said. “He’s got this son who’s come down to earth on this mission and is screwing things up. Yes, my son is making mistakes like I did when I was a kid. Do I let him and let him learn from that?”
Wu said the high school story makes American Born Chinese universal, even with the specific Journey to the West influences.
“Everyone felt awkward in high school,” Wu said. “Everyone was trying to figure out who they were as a teenager.”
Yu said American Born Chinese has all the goddesses, demons and Kung Fu of Yang’s graphic novel. However, the heart of the show is the friendship between Monkey King’s son, Jin Wang (Ben Wang) and new student Wei-Chen (Liu Ching). Yu said their ancient struggles are only exacerbated by modern culture.
“As Daniel just said so eloquently, being 15 sucks in every culture at all times,” added Yu.
American Born Chinese also stars Michelle Yeoh, Ke Huy Juan and Stephanie Hsu. Destin Daniel Cretton and Lucy Liu direct episodes.
American Born Chinese premieres May 24 on Disney+.
Check back Tuesday for the panel video.
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