Restaurateur and “Fresh Off the Boat” author Eddie Huang is making his feature film directorial debut with a basketball drama titled “Boogie.”
Boogie’s story: The film, which unveiled its first trailer on Tuesday, tells the story of Chinese-Taiwanese American Alfred “Boogie” Chin, a talented basketball player who aspires to someday play for the NBA, reports People.
- Boogie, played by newcomer Taylor Takahashi, is conflicted between chasing his dreams and meeting his parents’ expectations.
- “No one believes in an Asian basketball player,” the character says in the trailer. “It’s a joke in this country. We can cook, clean, count real good but anything else we’re picked last.”
- In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Huang revealed how the 1998 film “Good Will Hunting” inspired him to do a film like “Boogie.”
- “I would like to make a film that changes another kid’s life,” he was quoted as saying. “The way that they were able to humanize domestic violence and those relationships, it opened my eyes because I didn’t know you could talk about stuff like that in movies.”
About the movie: “Boogie,” which is set to be released in theaters on March 5, is written by Huang and produced by Focus Features.
- Late rapper Pop Smoke (Bashar Barakah Jackson), who died in an alleged home invasion in February 2020, plays Boogie’s rival Monk.
- Pamelyn Chee, Jorge Lendeborg Jr., Mike Moh, Dave East, Perry Yung and Alexa Mareka complete the cast of Huang’s film.
- Huang’s goal is to tell an “intersectional immigrant story.”
- “This is for all immigrants in America,” he said. Check out the trailer below.
Feature Image via Focus Features
