Fil-Malay actor Yao on working with Hailee Steinfeld, Michael B. Jordan in ‘Sinners’ (2025)

Filipino-Malaysian actor Yao has credited the talent and professionalism of his co-stars Hailee Steinfeld and Michael B. Jordan for helping him connect with his character Bo Chow in the supernatural horror film “Sinners.”

Yao, who was born to a Malaysian father and a Filipino mother, recently spoke with INQUIRER.net about his experience on set, sharing that Steinfeld and Jordan’s dedication to their characters inspired him to delve deeper into his own role.

Incidentally, Steinfeld herself has Filipino heritage, courtesy of her maternal grandfather.

“They are such pros. They are so great. I mean, they are so chill off camera. They would ask me to go for lunch. But as soon as they lock into their work, it’s there. They are the character’s greatest advocate. That’s what I learned so much from the pros, it’s just how much you need to be able to get behind the eyes of the character. And if something doesn’t make sense, you have to be able to flag it,” he said.

Set in 1932 Clarksdale, Mississippi, “Sinners” follows twin brothers, Smoke and Strack, both portrayed by Jordan, who return to their hometown to open a juke joint. Their plans meet a dark turn when they encounter a vampire army threatening their community.

Yao as Bo Chow character poster. Image: Warner Bros.

Yao landed the role of Bo Chow, an Asian-American who owns a grocery store with his wife, Grace, portrayed by actress Li Jun Li through self-tape auditioning.

When asked to recall his reaction after learning that he booked the job, the rookie actor shared that it was a very surreal moment, especially because he was with his dying grandmother when he received the call.

“​​I couldn’t believe my mind […] It was mind-blowing. And I was actually in Malaysia in my late grandmother’s living room at the time. So it was a very humbling moment,” the actor said.

Yao emphasized that working in a drama-free environment with his co-actors and director Ryan Coogler (Black Panther, Creed) made him realize how much he wanted to thrive in the acting industry.

“It’s really hard steering a $90-million ship. But they had so much patience and care for people coming on. It’s always like, hello, good morning. OK, we’re going to have you. There’s no yelling. There’s no ego. There’s no drama. From day one until the very end, it was the utmost amount of respect. It’s made me the actor and the person that I am today. It’s part of why I want to continue working in this industry,” he explained.

Filipino-Malaysian actor Yao. Image: Warner Bros.

Yao also expressed his admiration for Jun Li for being his on-screen wife and helped him go around the ropes in the set.

“Lili was kind of my champion because I’m a total newcomer to this work. And she would explain to me, she’d be like, this is what a run sheet is. This is what the drafts mean […] She took so much time educating me. She would just hold my hand through the whole thing. I would not have any confidence saying, you know, I know my way around a movie set if it wasn’t for Lili. I still don’t, you know. But then working together, she’s a pro,” he stated.

When asked what kind of lesson the film conveys to its audience, Yao explained the importance of learning to invest in your senses and to celebrate all kinds of feelings and things, whether they are tangible or not.

“Celebrate. As if your life depended on it and dance as if your life depended on it and sing as if your life depended on it […] No matter what that is, good, bad, ugly, sad, tragic. When it’s good, it’s good. And when it’s bad, it’s bad. And you have to be able to celebrate both,” he said.

Prior to his role in “Sinners,” Yao has appeared in the Singaporean films “More, More, More” and “Lookatime,” which earned him the Best Performance award at the New York Asian Film Festival in 2022.