Be it Community or Hangover , Ken Jeong rises above his cultural identity to tickle audience across cultures. This week he will be seen as Mr. Arthur , a journalism teacher, in Ari Sandel’s high school-comedy The Duff. It is about a girl Bianca whose world is shattered when she discovers that the fellow students have designated her as ‘The DUFF’ (Designated Ugly Fat Friend).
Excerpts from an interview:
Tell us about your role
I am the mentor/surrogate father to Bianca whose real father is absent following a divorce from her mother Dottie. My character sees the potential in Bianca. He challenges her, pushes her and even scolds her. He is a good coach and mentor who knows that she can handle the challenges so he challenges her even more.
You are known for your crazy eccentric roles, what attracted you to play the role of sober school teacher?
I found the story both comedic and touching. The script was so good and it was so funny — laugh-out-loud moments from the get-go. It really had great heart, and I love the role. What I loved about the characters is that they’re three-dimensional. There are no one-dimensional archetypes. Everyone’s got a layer of humanity to them. The story aspires to teach self-acceptance and to discourage labels and stereotypes.
When you do a comic role, what do you really do to make sure it’s funny?
I never think about making it funny. I think of making it good. If it’s a comedy, you want to make it a certain tone of funny, I guess. That’s what you need a good director for, and Ari Sandel was very clear what he wanted out of my character. He knows how not just to find the funny in a right way, which a lot of directors can and a lot of actors can, but finding a specific type of funny that’s right for the film? That’s hard, and that’s really dependent on the filmmaker. I have played twisted characters in already deviant comedies, but toned it down a notch here as the affable, goofy editor of the school newspaper and high school teacher who is also a former DUFF.
You have great fan base in India. Do you think it’s going to have a positive effect on the box office in India?
I am very surprised to know that I have fan base in India. I don’t know about the positive effect on box office, but I am very excited this film is going to release in India and hoping for the positive response. Indian audience will get to see a new character that I haven’t explored before. The film has a positive message that I am sure Indian audience will definitely love and relate to.
You are equally popular on the small screen and the big screen. What do you enjoy more, the comfort of a long running character or the spontaneity of a film role?
Well, it will not be fair to choose one over the other; not to me and not to my fans. The first and foremost fact is that I do both because I love and enjoy both the mediums. Essaying the role of Chang in Community has a sense of comfort about it. I sometimes think of Chang as my alter ego. Movies are a different game altogether. I work with a fresh group of people every time who expect me to bring something fresh to the table. Most importantly, movies give you a chance to diversify and meet new people, listen to new ideas. To me this is an integral part of my learning curve.
If you ever get an offer to do a Bollywood film, would you like to do it?
Of course, why not! I have seen a couple of Bollywood films. It is very unique from industry with signature style of cinema. Bollywood has very high entertainment values. If I ever get an offer of a Bollywood film, I would definitely take it up if the role looks interesting.
