18 Asian And Pacific Islander TV/Movie Characters Who Made People Feel Seen

"As a Polynesian woman, Moana was a game changer for me. Seeing a Disney princess inspired by my culture made me so proud! I loved the little details that accurately represented my heritage like the tattoos, clothing, mythology, and music. Unfortunately, before Moana, many people I spoke to had never heard of the Pacific Islands (except Hawai'i). After the movie came out, I had a reference that everyone knew and understood. Being seen is so important!"

Recently, we asked the BuzzFeed Community to share the AAPI TV and movie characters who made them feel seen. Here are some of their favorites:

1. London Tipton from The Suite Life of Zack & Cody

© Disney Channel / Courtesy Everett Collection

"The queen London Tipton! Watched a ton of Disney growing up, and it was nice to have a character who looked like me and did not embrace typical stereotypes for which Asians are usually made fun of."

—finleybee

2. Kamala Khan from Ms. Marvel

Daniel McFadden / © Disney+ / Marvel Studios / Courtesy Everett Collection

"I related so much to her struggles as a Muslim and South Asian American teenager. It took me an embarrassingly long time to love and appreciate my culture, but she really helped me realize the beauty of it all."

—Anonymous

3. Mei from Turning Red

© Walt Disney Studio Motion Pictures / Courtesy Everett Collection

"It was the first time I felt like I was seeing myself on screen. Before Mei, there weren't many Asian-American characters who I felt connected to. She's shy but loves boy groups (especially K-pop) and anime. Seeing Turning Red and Mei navigating who she is and her relationship with her mom, I couldn't help but cry. It really felt like part of my life was told beautifully on screen."

—aselaleek

4. Moana from Moana

© Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures / Courtesy Everett Collection

"As a Polynesian woman, Moana was a game changer for me. Seeing a Disney princess inspired by my culture made me so proud! I loved the little details that accurately represented my heritage like the tattoos, clothing, mythology, and music. Unfortunately, before Moana, many people I spoke to had never heard of the Pacific Islands (except Hawai'i). After the movie came out, I had a reference that everyone knew and understood. Being seen is so important!"

—Anonymous

"For context, I am half Filipino whose family comes from Hawai'i. We do have Native Hawaiians in our family, just not in my direct line of blood. I grew up pretty immersed in local Hawaiian culture, a bit more than my Filipino culture. I danced hula as a child and consumed a lot of Hawaiian content, so when I saw Moana with my mom, we both cried because it meant a lot to see Polynesian culture on the big screen. It reminded us of our second home, Hawai'i. I had long, dark, wavy hair just like Moana, and even though she is not the same blood as me, I still felt represented in some way by Moana."

—Anonymous

5. Joy from Everything Everywhere All at Once

Allyson Riggs / © A24 / Courtesy Everett Collection

"The mother-daughter relationship didn't have to hit THAT close to home, but it did. The understanding of Mandarin but not fully knowing how to speak it, the arguments, the misunderstandings, the way we both know she loves us, but neither of us knows how to express it in a healthy way. There were just so many, and VERY specific, parallels between my own life and their relationship, it's uncanny."

—brittneytrinh

6. Kamala from Never Have I Ever

© Netflix / Courtesy Everett Collection

"Regardless of how accomplished you are, the first question brown aunties ask is why you are not married, especially if you're older than 25."

—dinogrimmy

7. Mulan from Mulan

© Buena Vista Pictures / Courtesy Everett Collection.

"Mulan because growing up she was the only Asian princess from Disney for the longest time."

—abbyschalupa

8. The cast from Monsoon Wedding

© USA Films / Courtesy Everett Collection

"It shows us Indians in modern times while embracing the culture at the same time."

—tanyam44ab2253d

9. Numbuh 3/Kuki Sanban from Codename: Kids Next Door

Cartoon Network / Cinematic Collection / Courtesy Alamy

"IDK how much I'd say I felt she directly represented me, but Numbuh 3 from Codename: Kids Next Door. While there wasn't necessarily a personal connection, it was cool to see her and Numbuh 5 as the two badass — again, for kids lol — girls in Sector V!"

—Anonymous

10. Bobbie Draper from The Expanse

Rafy / © Syfy / Courtesy Everett Collection

"It takes place a few hundred years in the future and she's born on Mars, but she is just as proud of her Māori roots as her martian heritage. She's strong, self-possessed, and a great leader with a huge heart, and her journey is incredible."

—Anonymous

11. Jake from American Dragon: Jake Long

© Walt Disney / Courtesy Everett Collection

"He's mixed, and it was cool to see them center his Asian heritage in all the dragon lore — especially with his grandpa being the Chinese dragon. Personally, i definitely felt seen when they introduced the Korean dragon, Sun Park! She's actually Jake's home economics teacher and ends up becoming Haley's (Jake's little sister) dragon master. Her dragon character design is also actually based on Korean dragon lore (but with lil wings)."

—Anonymous

12. Pai from Whale Rider

Universal Images Group North America LLC / Courtesy Alamy

"While my family is Samoan, my mom is from New Zealand and moved away when she was young. I remember seeing Whale Rider in the movie theater as a child. My mom was crying to see her home represented on screen, and I connected so much with Pai's love for her Māori people and culture, yet her determination to modernize traditions. She fought for girls and women to be accepted in male-dominated cultural spaces, and to this day, that's something I continue to do."

—Anonymous

13. Jade from Jackie Chan Adventures

© Columbia TriStar Television / Courtesy Everett Collection

"I loved that she was this spunky, adventurous, young Asian girl who wasn't afraid to go out of her way to do the right thing and also capable — or as capable as a kid can be — of looking out of herself (vs. being a damsel type character or meek)."

—Anonymous

14. Albert from Sione's Wedding

© Magnolia Pictures / Courtesy Everett Collection

"I loved Albert from Sione's Wedding. For once, we see a Pacific Islander who isn't especially courageous, creative, or strong (we tend to be all those things!). Albert is a little awkward and has his priorities wrong for most of the movie and comes off a bit nerdy like me. Such a great film because it shows a lot of different personalities within the Pacific Islander community."

—Anonymous

15. Lana Lang from Smallville

Michael Courtney / © Warner Bros. / Courtesy Everett Collection

"As a comic fan, I know she's originally a red-headed white girl. But because they cast Kristin Kreuk, a mixed-race actor, to play her in Smalllville, Lana Lang is a mixed-Asian woman to me. Not only was she portrayed as the popular girl in Smallville — a leap from the scary Asian villain or nerdy sidekick tropes at the time, portraying Asian features as beautiful and desirable — she was genuinely kind, smart, and strong. While they don't talk about her heritage at all, it was cool to see back then (in the same way it's cool now) characters who happen to be Asian vs. having characters centered around the Asian identity."

—Anonymous

16. Kimi Watanabe-Finster from Rugrats

© Paramount / Courtesy Everett Collection

"She was added to the Rugrats gang later (like, almost 10 years after the show started) when Chaz meets Kira in paris, but it was really cool to see an Asian baby added to the group! She was so edgy, confident, and cool in All Grown Up! and really owned her style."

—Anonymous

17. Lilo and Nani from Lilo & Stitch

© Walt Disney / Courtesy Everett Collection.

"Moana didn't come out until I was older, so Lilo and Stitch was all I had growing up. Seeing brown faces on screen meant so much to me. Lilo danced hula, and Nani sounded like my cousins. The emphasis on family also hit home. It will always have a special place in my heart."

—Anonymous

18. And finally, Lara Jean Covey in the To All the Boys franchise

Masha Weisberg / © Netflix / Courtesy Everett Collection

"I had never felt desirable or seen any representation in the Western media of an Asian-American girl getting the guy. When To All the Boys came out on Netflix, it inspired a lot of hope in me. I ended up meeting my now-husband a year later."

—Anonymous

"She was the first Southeast Asian (Vietnamese) actor who gave me hope that Southeast Asians, like myself with my Filipino roots, can make it onto the big screen and do so many things in the spotlight! She's been a huge role model for me in recent years."

—Anonymous

Which AAPI TV or movie character made you feel seen? Share your story in the comments!

Note: Some responses have been edited for length and/or clarity.

Check out more API-centered content by exploring how BuzzFeed is celebrating Asian Pacific American Heritage Month! Of course, the content doesn't end after May. Follow BuzzFeed’s A*Pop on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube to keep up with our latest API content year-round.

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