Ming-Na Wen couldn't be happier to see another young star following in her footsteps! On Thursday's episode of The Drew Barrymore Show, the actress popped up to have a surprise chat with Kelly Marie Tran, who stars in the new Disney movie Raya and the Last Dragon.
Wen sees Tran's career path as a "mirror" to her own
Tran had been gushing about Wen earlier on in the interview, sharing that the voice of "Mulan" had been "such an inspiration" to her when she was growing up because of what she represented. She explained that Wen's career was "a symbol of all the things I want to be"— only to be shocked when the actress herself appeared!
"I feel like I'm looking in a mirror at the younger me," Wen said to Tran, going on to talk about how their careers have paralleled one another. Wen also played "Fennec Shand" in The Mandalorian, while Tran played "Rose Tico" in the recent Star Wars trilogy and voices the newest Disney princess, "Raya"! "I feel like we have this whole mirror thing going on and I love it," Wen told her. "I'm so proud of you."
Wen calls anti-Asian racism "a constant fear" as a mother
Wen also addressed the topic of targeted harassment against the Asian community. Back in 2018, Tran penned an op-ed for the New York Times about why she decided to leave social media following the online backlash she received for her Star Wars role. She said the continual racism Asians face is "a constant fear" for her as a mother, saying how "it kind of boggles my mind a bit that it happens still."
She then talked about why the messages at the heart of Raya and the Last Dragon are important ones, saying that Tran's new project "crosses all barriers" in a similar way to Mulan! "It's about believing in yourself," Wen explained of the film, which debuts on Disney+ on Friday. "It's also about compassion and sharing the love to fight for humanity and fight for what's right."
She's still one of our favorite Disney princesses!
Going green in her new role!
