Lucy Liu

I remember thinking, like, why can't I just get into that get smart world?

I didn't really understand that there were laugh tracks.

I thought that there was so much more entertainment and lightheartedness outside of the home.

And I really wanted to fall into that world and just...

Wait a minute.

So you thought like, oh, everyone's having a great time in these other houses.

They've got people laughing at them.

Yeah, they just are just, you know, people are just amused.

And, you know, to me, I really thought that comedy was, you know, the way to someone's heart.

You tell this story about seeing how people treated your mother.

I think there was a particular story where you all were in a store and you saw her being disrespected.

And that kind of really told you something or taught you something about how you wanted to live your life and be treated.

Yeah.

I think as a child seeing that, you know, that she was kind of treated in a way based on her fragmented English and also based on what she looked like, based on what we looked like.

It was really infuriating as a child to see that.

And I think there was a helplessness and a feeling of wanting to stand up for your parents, but then also feeling like you didn't have a voice anymore.

Let's get into your career, Lucy.

We talked a little bit about how at a very young age, you knew you wanted to be an actor.

You wanted to actually step inside of the TV and be with those families, which I find remarkable because at the time when you were growing up, you didn't see many people who looked like you on television and in movies.

Where do you think that knowing came from without a map to follow?