Michelle Yeoh talks new series 'The Brothers Sun,' training for the action role and more
The actress said she instantly agreed to do the show after reading the script.
Oscar winner Michelle Yeoh is back onscreen, playing yet another complicated character in the series "The Brothers Sun."
In the new action-packed Netflix drama, the "Everything Everywhere All at Once" star portrays a mom of two named Eileen Sun.
Created by Brad Falchuk and Byron Wu, and written by a nearly all-Asian writers room, the series follows the family story of a Taiwanese gang leader who was shot by a mysterious assassin.
Charles Sun (Justin Chien), raised as a hardened criminal and ruthless killer, is forced to leave Taipei and head to Los Angeles following the death of his father, in order to protect his mother Eileen and his naïve brother Bruce Sun (Sam Song Li), who was previously in the dark about his family history until his brother's arrival.
Speaking to "Good Morning America" about the series, Yeoh said she instantly agreed to the role after reading the script, adding that she was already a huge fan of Falchuk.
"When I read the script, the complexities, the characters, and the story that he wants to tell -- how it is set with a different tone -- I went, 'This is very interesting,'" she said.
"I think the most important thing was the story really jumped at me, because you know, violence is violence, but how they have set this violence, the gore, into a very dark humor where you go, 'I don't want to laugh at it, but I am, I can't help myself,' it is really funny," she continued.
Gushing over her co-stars Chien and Li, who play her adult children on the show, she shared that both of the actors are "hysterical" and praised their martial arts skills.
Yeoh said a key element to the show's overarching storyline is the topic of "forgiveness."
In the series, her character -- also known as Mama Sun -- had to leave her first child behind with her husband in order to build a life for herself and her youngest son, to start a clean slate, living free from Taiwan's gangsters and crime.
"How do you forgive a mother for abandoning you? That's [her eldest son's] thinking. And then there's like, how do you reconcile without dropping to your knees to ask for forgiveness?" she said. "So, it was very, very cleverly written, how these worlds collided, but at the same time, it's like in the midst of all this chaos ... everybody sees and respects each other for who they really are."
How Yeoh trained for the action role
Yeoh has been involved in the martial art world for decades, having starred in Hong Kong action films since the '80s, for which she regularly performed her own stunts.
When it comes to getting herself prepared for her next action role, Yeoh told "GMA" she makes sure she is consistent with her training, even during breaks from acting.
"I basically exercise every day, I do a lot of stretching, because I want to always be ready," she explained. "When I take on my next role, I don't have to go into, you know, intense training. I will learn what are the weapons [I have to use] … the style that I might have to do."
"It varies for movies or TV series, depending on the styles," she continued. "But what I have to do is to make sure my endurance is there, my stamina, my flexibility. And that is the only way to achieve it is to be in constant practice. So, I basically exercise every day."
"The Brothers Sun" is available to stream now on Netflix.
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