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There is the kind of wealth that buys designer clothes. Then there’s the kind of wealth that stops Rodeo Drive for a private Lunar New Year party, has a nine-piece band and a Gucci claw machine for a one-year-old’s birthday, and takes a friend in his favorite restaurant – in Paris – like a treat.
These are the social activities of Netflix’s ‘Bling Empire’, which is part of a wave of unscripted Asian and Asian American fare that has popped up on TV screens in the wake of the 2018 hit movie ‘Crazy Rich Asians’. .
“I bet Anna goes to Paris more times in a year than Silverlake”, ironically Kelly Mi Li in the first episode, referring to the socialite of LA Anna Shay, who transports Li to France for his birthday and him buy a friendship. ring from the high-end jeweler Boucheron.
Eight-Episode Docusoap Joins HBO Max’s “House of Ho”, Bravo’s “Family Karma” and Netflix’s “Fabulous Lives of Bollywood Wives” in Hollywood’s Sudden Interest in Drama and Group Privacy who has spent decades under the radar in the United States. Television screens.
“Let’s say you grew up in the 80s. The narrow view of what was acceptable as an Asian character when I grew up is something very painful,” says Brandon Panaligan, executive producer of “Bling Empire,” whose the father is Filipino. “Growing up you saw people who looked like my dad and looked like my dad’s family – there was no room for fully human Asian characters on TV or in movies. And it’s something that I took with me.
There is no Long Duk Dongs in his program. Instead, there’s fashionable Singaporean oil and gas heir Kane Lim, and boyfriend Kevin Kreider, a Korean-American model from Philadelphia who never seems to tire of taking his shirt off in front of the camera. As the only seemingly not-so-rich Asian on the show, Kreider is the viewer’s proxy to enter the realm of caviar and $ 10,000 bottles of wine. “Crazy Rich Asians” opened the doors to not only a reality TV show for her, but it also helped her love life, giving potential mates a slightly less dated cultural touchstone.
“I remember having had a few dates, and I always ask the same question: ‘So, have you ever dated an Asian? And they’re like, ‘Oh my God, yeah, I love’ Crazy Rich Asians’, ”Kreider says. “And it was so different because it wasn’t like, ‘Oh my God, yeah, I love Bruce Lee.'”
“You have no idea how badly I resented Bruce Lee [growing up] because that’s all I’ve heard of, ”he continues. “Everyone identified me as, ‘You look like Bruce Lee. You should make movies like Bruce Lee. And I don’t know martial arts. How am I going to do Bruce Lee? “
What separates “Bling Empire” from its reality brethren is not riches or chiseled abs. (Ostentatious richness and beauty are almost a prerequisite for being on a docusoap.) These are the cultural references that are woven neatly into the fabric of the narrative: Lim casually discussing Buddhism or Singapore independence, or the month-long preparation of his colleague Cherie Chan. of pork trotters and black vinegar stew. The show doesn’t bother explaining to viewers that the dish is a traditional Chinese recipe for postpartum recovery.
There is a similar shortcut on “House of Ho”. The enthusiastic absorption of American patriotism by the upper Vietnamese American family is probably familiar to many first- or second-generation immigrants. Houston-based couple Binh and Hue Ho named their sons Reagan and Washington, the latter named his sons Roosevelt and Lincoln, and their daughter Judy named her cubs Kennedy, Truman and McKinley – all US presidents. . (In contrast, Judy Ho was named after the woman who sponsored the family’s immigration to America and taught them English.)
“It’s a really triumphant family, and in a way it’s a bit breathtaking,” says Katy Wallin, executive producer of “House of Ho”, who alongside her EP colleague Stephanie Chambers was moved by the family history. “It is the quintessential example of the American dream coming true.”
This show also bears the hallmark of “Crazy Rich Asians,” although the emphasis on dysfunction that comes from patriarchal expectations gives it a more austere tone. Knowledge of Kevin Kwan’s book and the eponymous film helped the project move forward, says Jennifer O’Connell, unscripted head of HBO Max. But also the ability of producers to find an interesting family with a story to tell, warts and all. While she wouldn’t go into details of the audience data, O’Connell is “happy” with her performance on the service so far.
“I think the current appetite for diverse storytelling in all areas has increased,” she says. “And I think because of that it seems like fertile ground.
Before “Crazy Rich Asians,” there was a perception among reality producers, says Jeff Jenkins, executive producer of “Bling Empire” and longtime producer of “Keeping Up With the Kardashians,” that Asians were more private and less. likely to open to the camera. When casting for the series, Panaligan and Jenkins sought to build on an existing group of friends. In fact, Jenkins had known Shay, socialite Christine Chiu, and Andrew Gray – former Red Power Ranger and sometimes Li’s boyfriend – for over a decade.
Chiu, inclined to engage in one-upmanship tactics with Frenemy Shay on the show, has already tried her hand at reality TV. Working with Jenkins while at the unscripted Bunim / Murray Powerhouse, her husband, Dr. Gabriel Chiu, was the original doctor on “Botched,” the plastic surgery makeover show gone wrong, says -she. (The show ultimately starred Dr. Paul Nassif, ex-husband of young “Real Housewives of Beverly Hills” star Adrienne Maloof.)
“Bling Empire” marks Chiu’s first outing as a television producer. This means that she has a limited level of creative stealth on the show and has “taken one or five for the team.” (When asked what she meant by that, Chiu replied, “There are times when I might not have said certain things or I might have spoken more, but in the ‘interest in the overall tone and direction of the production and the story, I wanted it to be as entertaining as possible. ”)
Beyond the glitz and glamor – and there is a lot of it – the series easily unveils the story of Chius’ fertility issues and Kreider’s decision to reunite with his birth parents. But the show was not initially as dramatic as it turned out, Chiu says.
“We were very passionate about not only portraying Asia on TV, but also being able to showcase the entrepreneurial side of our lives and the business we built and, of course, the nonprofits that I was. and I am very passionately involved. », She explains. “Of course, it’s not always fun all the time. So steeped in deeper stories and crazy antics and, of course, little drama.
One potential concern is whether this new characterization – being extremely wealthy and overly wealthy – is a new stereotype that Asian Americans might be classified into, following a generation of model minority surpassers and nerds. Panaligan optimistically sees it as a starting point for different types of stories.
“I look forward to all the different kinds of stories that can be told, because obviously the ‘Crazy Rich’ angle has given us a crazy rich set here, but the story of Asian Americans is so deep and so vast – there are so many faceted entry points, ”he says. “I think once we prove that it can work here – that people can fall in love with this cast – the world is completely open.”
“Bling Empire” is now streaming on Netflix; “House of Ho” is now streaming on HBO Max.
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