In his first starring role, The Brothers Sun’s Sam Song Li found himself in the enviable position of playing Michelle Yeoh’s favorite son.
Created by Brad Falchuk and Byron Wu, the action-dramedy series chronicles a single mother, Eileen “Mama” Sun (Yeoh), and her son, Bruce (Li), whose modest and peaceful life in the San Gabriel Valley is upended by the urgent arrival of Charles Sun (Justin Chien), their estranged son and brother, respectively. Charles, who’s also known as “Chairleg,” is a ruthless assassin for their family’s patriarch, Big Sun (Johnny Kou), and his Taipei-based triad known as the Jade Dragons. Eileen went to extraordinary lengths to shield Bruce from the family business back in Taiwan, but now they must both reckon with the secrets they’ve been keeping from each other.
Li and Chien were initially cast as the eponymous brothers without any foreknowledge that the then soon-to-be Oscar winner, Yeoh, would be joining at the last minute as the series’ matriarch. Filmed in the summer between Everything Everywhere All at Once’s March 2022 release and Yeoh’s awards season reign, Li remains in awe of all the real-life parallels between his own Southern California childhood and the one he depicts with Yeoh on camera.
“There’s so much [in common] that it’s kind of shocking. I was also raised by a single mom in San Gabriel,” Li tells The Hollywood Reporter. “So I related to Bruce in terms of also wanting to pursue something that was non-traditional, and always fighting to validate that experience with my own Asian mom. She wanted me to be a doctor or an engineer, and I wanted to go into the performing arts … So it was really easy for me to bring that to Bruce just because it’s almost identical to my own experience.”
Viewers might recognize Li from his memorable scene with Patrick Fabian’s Howard Hamlin in “Plan and Execution,” the seventh episode of Better Call Saul’s final season. Written and directed by Thomas Schnauz, the scene involves Li’s HHM intern, Cary Anderson, dropping a pallet of soda in front of Hamlin and receiving a lesson in settling a shaken soda can through rotation. The scene ultimately went viral because fans believe that it foreshadows the shocking end to the episode, which includes the rotational motion of a silencer being fastened to a firearm.
“Better Call Saul was the first TV show I ever booked, and so it was really my first acting experience ever,” Li says. “Being on that set really set the standard for me as an actor and the level of game that I wanted to bring. It taught me a lot about professionalism, work culture and just being ready and locked in. It’s an incredible Emmy-nominated show that should have won at least once already.”
Below, during a recent conversation with THR, Li also discusses the tricky tone of Brothers Sun, the superficial reason why he and Chien thought they wouldn’t be cast as brothers and the Better Call Saul physics lesson that didn’t work out for him in real life.
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Was there anything unusual or eventful about the casting process?
Yeah, the casting process felt longer than normal. It was about two-and-a-half to three months. Half of it was on Zoom, and then the other half I got to do in person. It was the first in-person callback that I got to do in a while just because of the pandemic era. And when I saw the casting call for Bruce, it just sounded a lot like me. (Laughs.) So I had a good feeling about it from the start.
Did you read with a bunch of potential Charles candidates before you and Justin Chien became The Brothers Sun’s eponymous brothers?
It wasn’t a bunch, but it was a very select group. So I had the chance to read with a couple of other Charles.
Once you read with Justin, was it obvious that the two of you were the right combo?
Yes, what immediately stood out to me was Justin’s ability to totally nail the humor in these tense, dramatic conversations. He had this playful undertone to his intensity that totally sucked me into the scene. Funnily enough — and apparently this was true for him as well — but the moment we both saw each other for the very first time in those chemistry tests, we both went, “Aww shit, we’re screwed.” We thought the other person was definitely going to get cast, and that we wouldn’t be a good match due to our height difference. I thought Justin was going to get cast and that I was too tall to play his younger brother, but he thought I was going to get cast and that he was too short to play my older brother. So it’s kinda funny how those thoughts went through our heads, simultaneously. (Laughs.)
Was the series established as a Michelle Yeoh-led project from the start?
Funnily enough, no. They always had the intention to try and get Michelle, but she was one of the very last people to be cast. In the beginning, it was mainly Justin and I. We knew that we were going to be the brothers Sun, but then a bombshell was dropped on us when we found out that Michelle was attached. So that was a very delightful surprise.
Conventional wisdom would suggest that everything was built around her matriarch character, but it sounds like it was just the opposite.
There were some rumors: “Hey, we’re trying to get this person to play your mom. It’s going to be fantastic.” And we were like, “Well, who’s that person?” And then a couple weeks later, we were like, “Oh, it’s Hollywood legend Michelle Yeoh!”
The first episode is titled “Pilot,” but Netflix, historically, hasn’t done the pilot process until recently [Little Sky]. Did you actually shoot a pilot before receiving a full-season pickup?
No, we were a straight-to-series order for eight episodes, and we filmed episodes one and two simultaneously. The first day of filming, we started with one of episode one’s first scenes, and then we ended the day with one of episode two’s last scenes. So it was an interesting experience to map that out as an actor and keep tabs on those moments.
So they called the first episode “Pilot” just for the sake of tradition?
Tradition, yes.
Now, as you were filming this series, was Michelle in the midst of her awards season reign for Everything Everywhere All at Once?
No, we caught her right in the in-between period. So, two months after we wrapped filming was when her [awards season] schedule picked up. So it really worked out, but we all kind of secretly knew. We just had a feeling. There were rumors as well.
Did she screen the movie for the Brothers Sun cast and crew?
She did! There was one day where I couldn’t make it, but then there was another [screening], and it was the first time that we had ever met. So I got the chance to watch it with her, and it was a real treat to not only get to watch it with her but also see her reaction to it. It was oddly similar to mine when I watch Brothers Sun. It’s very deadpan. (Laughs.) The life and soul has been drained out of the magic of the screening just because you’ve seen it so many times. But what’s nice about Everything Everywhere and Brothers Sun are the little details that stick out on second and third viewings. I’m still noticing more and more details and production choices on Brothers Sun.
How long did it take for you to get used to the fact that you were not only acting opposite the beloved Michelle Yeoh but that she was also playing your mother?
The first day. (Laughs.) Maybe the first half hour was a little bit nerve-wracking. I was going to be acting opposite Michelle Yeoh for the next four or five months, but the thing about Michelle is that she is so maternal. She has such maternal instincts, and then my acting instincts kicked in and took over as well. You have to realize and tell yourself that this is just an acting gig, and that this is just someone that I’m going to build a relationship with on screen. But she’s also an incredible listener. She listens with her heart, and the combination of that and her being a great actress just made acting with her very simple and very effortless. All the work I had done prior also set me up for success. So I was able to adapt very quickly, and it just felt like I was talking to my own mom.
You mentioned that you have a lot in common with Bruce. Are you referring to your own Southern California upbringing with your mom?
Yeah, and there’s so much more that it’s kind of shocking. I was also raised by a single mom in San Gabriel. The 626 area code. So I was already familiar with the area and the culture and growing up with an Asian mom in that way. And funnily enough, some of my earliest recollections of wanting to work in entertainment were in high school when I would ditch class to produce and write my own movies or skits at the time. So I related to Bruce in terms of also wanting to pursue something that was non-traditional, and always fighting to validate that experience with my own Asian mom. She wanted me to be a doctor or an engineer, and I wanted to go into the performing arts and work in comedy. So it was really easy for me to bring that to Bruce just because it’s almost identical to my own experience.
Bruce believes that improv is a valid foundation for his acting career, and unbeknownst to his mother, he spends his college tuition on improv classes. Have you dabbled in improv at all for your own acting career?
I’ve had some experience with UCB, and then I dabbled with Groundlings in preparation for this role. Groundlings focuses more on character-based improv rather than concept-based, and it was incredibly helpful to put into perspective where Bruce is coming from as someone with dreams and aspirations of becoming an improviser. Improv teaches you a lot about life, and the way that Bruce sees life can actually be summed up with improv. So, later on in the show, I approached Bruce like he’s improvising through all of this in a sense. “Yes, and” is a huge concept in the improv world and going with the flow, so Bruce adapts that as a way of life and “yes, ands” the world. That’s what allows him to adapt so quickly. Thinking on his feet in every situation that gets thrown at him is his superpower.
Whenever Bruce gets caught up in a fight scene, did the creative team make a point to highlight his improv skills in these moments? For example, in episode four, he ducks beneath the railing of a pool to protect himself.
Not really, but it was more of a gut instinct on my end. In general, it just made sense for Bruce to improvise through it all. Our set was also a very collaborative environment, and I pitched a lot of ideas to experiment with during the action sequences. With the pool railing, the stunt team knew there was potential there, but plenty of my suggestions ended up in the final show and some of them were improv on the day.
The second episode features fight sequences with assassins in dinosaur costumes. Was that one of the strangest couple days you’ve ever had on set?
Yes, that was the moment where I realized that this show was going to be fucking awesome. There are so many fight sequences on this show, and I was just like, “Wow, no one has ever done a fight quite like this before. How silly, fun and whimsical it is to do a fight scene like this.” I already had some stunt training and martial arts experience, and when it came to the actual stunt sequences, the stunt team really thought I was overqualified. They requested that I stay away just because they thought I already knew too much of what was happening. So I had to dumb down or water down my stunt and martial arts competence. But it plays quite well because I got to really exercise that in the form of physical comedy. My role is to run around like a chicken with his head cut off, and I feel like I’ve turned that into an artform by making my performance as physically goofy and silly as possible. I even looked at some of the physical comedy greats of the world, like Buster Keaton, Charlie Chaplin and Jackie Chan. So I think it reads when watching it back. We had fun.
The Brothers Sun really walks a tonal tightrope. One minute, it’s comedic and heartfelt, but then there’s decapitation the next. Was there a lot of back and forth about it?
Yeah, in my experience, figuring out the tone was the most challenging part of filming the first few episodes. The scripts were really funny; it’s a hilarious season of writing. But I think we had to water down a lot of the funny moments because there was so much to offer dramatically as well. So I realized pretty quickly that there is a balance, and that’s one of the biggest takeaways for me. They say that doing a season of television is one of the best acting masterclasses you could ever have in your career, and I absolutely agree, especially on a genre-bending show like this. There were some moments where we really wanted to be on the nose with the comedy, but then there were others where it had to be really subtle and striking. So achieving that balance was part of the fun and challenge of the show.
Charles eventually wants to be some form of a mentor to Bruce even though their mom doesn’t want Bruce in the family business. Do you have your own mentor to lean on in this industry?
I have obviously taken tons of acting classes and have a lot of respect for all of my acting teachers and mentors, but there is no central figure yet. The thing about this industry is that no one’s journey is quite the same, but what’s incredible is that there’s so much resource out there just in the form of interviews and information that you can gather online. So I feel like I’ve collected a database of other people’s journeys and how they found success. So, in a weird way, I have more of a parasocial relationship with my mentors. But quite a few people have mentored me in the details and nuances of the industry. It’s stuff like etiquette or contracts or certain legal hacks, and that has been invaluable. But in terms of the craft, I really feel like my mentorship has been through a collective experience.
Speaking of mentorship, what happens when you drop or shake a can of soda?
(Song Li laughs and mimics his Better Call Saul character’s explosion sound.) “Something about the centrifugal force …”
Of course, we’re referencing the scene in which Patrick Fabian’s Howard Hamlin teaches your character, Cary Anderson, how to settle a shaken soda can. How would you summarize your Better Call Saul experience?
Better Call Saul was the first TV show I ever booked, and so it was really my first acting experience ever. And how lucky was I to work on a show like that? Being on that set really set the standard for me as an actor and the level of game that I wanted to bring. It taught me a lot about professionalism, work culture and just being ready and locked in. It’s an incredible Emmy-nominated show that should have won at least once already. [Writer’s Note: Saul has received 53 total Emmy nominations, and its last chance to win one will come at Jan. 15th’s 75th Emmy Awards.] And working with Patrick was also an incredible experience. I saw up close what a real acting veteran looks like on that level, and I just learned so much from that whole experience.
The ending of your episode, “Plan and Execution,” had a major impact on the conclusion of the series. Did you receive the full script with that shocking ending, or just your sides?
Oh man, my sides were locked in a safe, and I only had one key. (Laughs.) I was very sheltered from anything else that was going on that show. They really didn’t want spoilers of any sort, and I had no idea what was going on at the time. But I got the chance to talk to Patrick a little bit, and even he wasn’t really allowed to say much. No one was allowed to say much. So it really was a shock when I had the chance to watch it.
Have you actually tried that life hack just to see if it actually prevents a shaken soda can from exploding?
I have! I tried it with some of my friends after the episode was released, just because the clip from that exact scene went super viral. I think it became one of the most viral clips from that show, which is just so crazy to me. But it didn’t really work for me. (Laughs.) I think I did it wrong and shook it up too much.
The illusion is ruined!
(Laughs.) That’s movie magic.
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The Brothers Sun is now streaming on Netflix.
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