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Michelle Yeoh - On typecasting, fertility and THAT Oscars speech

How To Fail With Elizabeth Day

Wed Nov 19 2025

Summary

Podcast Summary: How To Fail With Elizabeth Day

Episode: Michelle Yeoh – On typecasting, fertility and THAT Oscars speech
Date: November 19, 2025
Host: Elizabeth Day
Guest: Michelle Yeoh

Overview

This episode of How To Fail features the groundbreaking actress Michelle Yeoh, whose illustrious career has ranged from kung fu cinema and Bond franchises to making Oscar history. In the spirit of the show, Yeoh intimately explores three “failures”—stage fright, Hollywood typecasting, and a life-altering stunt accident—sharing lessons learned, her resilience, and how perceived failures have shaped her as an artist and a person. With humor, humility, and insight, Yeoh also reflects on familial expectations, fertility struggles, her mother’s influence, and the cultural importance of her Oscar win.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. On Joining "Wicked" and Being Surrounded by Love

[06:16] Michelle describes filming Wicked as a grounding experience, providing "a solid foundation of love and serenity" during the pressure of Oscar season. She fondly refers to the cast as her “wicked, wicked family.”
Reticence about singing: Initially wary about taking a singing role, Yeoh was encouraged by Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande. Cynthia supported her confidence during recordings.
- Quote: “I know you can do this. I’ve heard you sing, so please sing.” – Cynthia to Michelle ([09:21])

2. Family, Early Failure, and Finding Her Voice

[10:49] Michelle’s mother is described as a forceful but glamorous presence—supportive, but also instilling a tendency to please others at the expense of self-confidence.
Divorce and finding her voice: Michelle recounts standing up to her traditional mother during her divorce ([12:48]).
- Quote: “If you love him so much, why don’t you marry him?” – Michelle, to her mother ([12:55])

3. Fertility Struggles & Redefining Failure

[13:37] Both host and guest discuss their personal experiences with infertility. Michelle reflects on the sense of failure imposed by traditional expectations and her journey to acceptance.
Redefining motherhood: With the love of godchildren and an extended family, she learned "to love in another form."
- Quote: “At that point, I did feel like a failure of a woman... Why have I been singled out?” – Michelle ([14:25])
- On moving forward: “It shouldn’t be a feeling of loss... finding yourself and believing that you can move forward.” ([14:42])

4. Lessons on Relationships

[16:11] Yeoh shares her approach to step-grandparenthood and describes her strong, non-competitive marriage. She stresses the importance of mutual respect and individuality in relationships.

5. Failure 1: Stage Fright

[20:37] Michelle’s first declared failure is stage fright—not when performing physically, but when required to speak publicly, in any language.
- Golden Globes anecdote: During her acceptance, nerves overtook her so much that she swore on stage:
  - Quote: “Everything goes. I forget my name. I don’t know what I’m there for. The first word... was shit. Then I realized... and turned back around and said, fuck.” ([21:23])
Oscars Speech: Despite nerves, her heartfelt acceptance made global waves, particularly for Asian representation.
- Quote: “It came from here. It really did.” ([23:41])

6. On Representation, Immigrant Stories, and "Everything Everywhere All At Once"

[24:36] Discussion of the importance of roles like Evelyn (her Oscar-winning part):
- “They’re everywhere… They’re not seen, they’re not heard… almost, like, voiceless.” – Michelle, on Chinese-American laundromat owners in popular culture ([24:36])
Insisted Evelyn not be named "Michelle": To ensure the character had her own distinct identity ([26:10])
On growing up in multicultural Malaysia: Michelle credits her wide worldview to her upbringing and her parents' values ([27:00]).

7. Failure 2: Typecasting and Stereotypes

[31:27] In early Hong Kong and Hollywood work, she was typecast into roles such as the “damsel in distress” or limited Asian stereotypes.
- On breaking barriers: Michelle pushed to do action roles, using her physical prowess to avoid cliché parts ([32:15]).
With Jackie Chan:
- Quote: “He’s a little macho... no, no, don’t let her jump on the motorcycle…” ([33:43])
- Reflects on the adrenaline and danger of performing difficult stunts herself, “I would never do it again.” ([34:07])
On Name Changes: Marketing her films required changing her name to 'Michelle Khan' to appeal to western audiences until encouraged by Barbara Broccoli to use her own.
Hollywood Roles Post-Bond: Despite expectations after Tomorrow Never Dies, many offers remained typecast, so she turned them down for two years ([38:29]).
- “Suddenly I was a minority... it was the first time it struck me.” ([38:29])
- On limited roles: “Chinatown, right? Or a waiter in a Chinese restaurant… The most important thing is to be seen doing ordinary things, normal things, even positions of power.” ([40:05])

8. Experiencing Racism Even After Success

[41:33] Has experienced forms of racism throughout her career, though directness has decreased with her success.
- Quote: “I would be lying if I say no.” ([41:33])
- Calls for compassion and kindness to counter judgmental tendencies.

9. Failure 3: Stunt Accident

[45:13] Details a traumatic accident on set while performing a complicated stunt, playing a stuntwoman in a film directed by Ann Hui.
- Incident: Was pushed off a flyover, landed on head/neck, and ended up in a full body cast for months.
  - “My head going into here. My legs came from behind me… On fire. Everybody thought, this is it.” ([49:34])
- Learning limits: The accident made her reconsider performing dangerous stunts and the importance of self-protection.
Quentin Tarantino’s Visit: During recovery, Tarantino’s enthusiasm rekindled her passion for filmmaking.
- “He reminded me of why I loved filmmaking so much. It’s a passion, not just a job.” ([53:02])

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

On failure and resilience:
- “When you're down, you learn. You become resilient, you become stronger and you learn from mistakes. Don't wallow in them.” – Michelle ([17:57])
On womanhood and motherhood:
- “It shouldn’t be a feeling of loss… finding yourself and believing that you can move forward.” – Michelle ([14:42])
On Oscars speech nerves:
- “Everything goes. I forget my name… The first word that came out was shit… then fuck.” – Michelle ([21:23])
On having the right people:
- “Find your people. Please don’t walk alone... You have a much better time.” ([55:00])
On breaking stereotypes:
- “Why do I need saving? What is it about that? It’s heroic for the guys, but for us, it’s kind of boring.” ([31:45])

Timestamps for Key Segments

[06:16] – Finding comfort on the Wicked set
[10:49] – Michelle’s mother and early upbringing
[13:37] – Fertility struggles and redefining motherhood
[17:57] – On resilience and moving beyond failure
[20:37] – Failure 1: Stage fright
[24:36] – Cultural importance of Everything Everywhere All At Once
[31:36] – Failure 2: Typecasting and industry stereotypes
[33:43] – Jackie Chan’s advice and early stunts
[38:29] – Discrimination and the "minority" experience in Hollywood
[41:33] – Experiencing racism, compassion as a remedy
[45:13] – Failure 3: Stunt accident and recovery
[53:02] – Tarantino’s visit and reigniting her passion
[54:07] – Reflecting on failure and resilience

Closing Reflections

Michelle Yeoh reframes her so-called failures as pivotal lessons. Stage fright taught humility; typecasting taught persistence and the value of representation; her injury taught self-preservation and reignited her passion. Her story embodies resilience, the necessity of community, and the courage to embrace every direction failure can take us.

"There are ups and there are downs, but each... taught me to be more resilient, taught me to be smarter... Moving on, always in motion." – Michelle Yeoh ([54:10])

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Transcript

Michelle Yeoh (0:00)

When you're down, you learn. You become resilient, you become stronger and you learn from mistakes. Don't wallow in them. I held my arms out like that. Luckily I had a big gown on and went oh my God. I was sweating. It was just dripping because I was so scared.

Elizabeth Day (0:18)

Yes, hello and welcome to how to Fail. This is the podcast that believes that failure shows us who we truly are and what we're really made of. Before we get started on this conversation, please do remember to subscribe and follow so that you never miss a single episode. I know from experience that starting your own business can be super intimidating and can feel really isolating. So I empathize with those of you who are currently feeling that way. However, I've got a tool for you that can simplify everything and make you feel less alone. For millions of businesses, that tool is so Shopify Shopify is the commerce platform behind millions of businesses around the world and 10% of all e commerce in the US from household names like Mattel to brands Just getting started. Get started with your own design studio. With hundreds of ready to use templates, Shopify helps you build a beautiful online store to match your brand style. Turn your big business idea into With Shopify on your side, Sign up for your pound one per month trial and start selling today at shopify.co.uk fail. Go to shopify.co.uk fail.

Jonathan Van Ness (1:43)

Hey everybody, it's Jonathan Van Ness from Getting Better with Jonathan Van Ness. If you care about protecting real religious freedom for people of all religions and for people who don't want to believe in any religion, there is an event that's happening for you. I need it on your radar. The Summit for Religious freedom or the SRF pronounced sir. It's three days of connection, strategy and action in Washington, D.C. and online April 25th to 27th. You'll hear from authors, lawyers and policymakers. Join an organizing institute to level up your skills and even do a hill Day to meet your representatives and tell them why church state separation matters. You guys, this isn't just a conference, it's a community on the move. If you're looking for a way to get off the sidelines and into this fight of pushing back against Christian nationalism and building a future where LGBTQ + rights, reproductive freedom, and strong public schools are protected, this is for you. This is a movement for big change and collaboration that strengthens our democracy, protects public schools, reproductive and LGBTQ plus rights, and more. Come, learn, organize and leave with a plan and friends. You can learn more@the srf.org Michelle Yeoh.

Elizabeth Day (2:54)

Has created a legendary body of work that defies easy categorization, from cult classic kung fu cinema to blockbuster Bond flicks and Oscar winning sci fi leads. In fact, it was her turn as a harassed laundry owner in 2023's everything everywhere all at Once that made her the first Asian woman to be given the Academy Award for Best Actress. At the time, Yeoh said in a moving acceptance speech that for all the little boys and girls who look like me watching tonight, this is a beacon of hope and possibilities. Her story began 63 years ago in Malaysia, where she was born, surrounded by mountains and nature. Her first love was ballet, which she learned from the age of four before going to England to attend dance school in Chester. At the age of 15, a spinal injury put paid to her dreams of turning professional. But back home, her mother entered Yeoh into the Miss Malaysia competition, which she won. From there, she made the leap into action movies, literally with her impressive physical prowess. Yeoh performed her own stunts opposite the legendary Jackie Chan, including landing an aerial motorcycle jump onto the top of a speeding train in 1992's Supercop. She was cast as a Bond girl in Tomorrow Never Dies, then starred in the global box office hit Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. For many of us, Yeoh will also be best known for her performances as Eleanor, the chilling future mother in law in Crazy Rich Asians, and as Madame Morrible in the Wicked films. This month sees her returning to the role in Wicked for good. In her seventh decade then, Yeo is as busy and in demand as ever. Her continuing and well deserved success recalls something else she once remarked. With every turn, with every twist and with every role, I simply said, why not? I will commit totally. I will do my best. I will be brave and unafraid of failure. Michelle Yeoh, welcome to how to Fail.

Michelle Yeoh (27:00)

I always felt loved. I always felt happy. Malaysia is a very beautiful country in the sense that it is very multiracial. So to be honest, when I was growing up, we grew up with Chinese, with the Malays, with the Indians, with the expats. So we embraced our different cultures. We celebrated all our different cultures. So when I was growing up, I'd never thought that one day I would be on the silver screen. My mother is my mother again. She was a big factor in why I love movies so much. Because as a child we would go to all kinds of movies, like Indian movies, Malay movies, Chinese movies in all the different languages. Horror stories like I grew up with Dracula. Okay, I think she traumatized me, but. And as I was watching the screen, I never thought, one day that's what I want to do. I want to be able to do that. It never crossed my mind. I was very single minded in the fact that I wanted to do ballet. I wanted to be in the world of dance. I wanted to have my own school. I would go back to Malaysia. I come from Ipoh, this very small mining city, and start my own. Have my own school. So that was my dream at that point. You know, I'm a small town girl, but my dad, he made us think wider. He made us think beyond the borders. He made us believe that, you know, the most important thing is education in his mind. But he never limited us to, say, he's a lawyer by profession, that you have to be a. I think a lot of. Especially for Chinese, Asian families, you have to be a lawyer, a doctor, an engineer, you know, an academic, something that is stable. Then you don't have to worry about making money and, you know, you'll be able to pay the rent or, you know, have a stable life. And he. Whatever you want to study, it's your choice, because at the end of the day, it's your life. And at that point, even during my divorce, he was the one who stood up for me, and he turned around and said, no, if he's not the right man for you, and he doesn't appreciate you the way he should. And it wasn't Dixon's fault or my fault, but it was just a reality of the situation as such. And my dad was like, this is your home. Whatever you decide to do is your choice. And so he always instilled that in us, even as a child. So I went, oh, then I want to go to England. Because ballet was from the Royal Academy of Dance, right? It's from England. And so my dream was like, I want to go to England to see it for real, to the Royal National Theater to do all that. And he goes like, okay. And in fact, when I was offered a contract in Hong Kong, after all the injury, going back to Malaysia, winning the title, and then I still wanted to go back to England. And then I was offered to do a commercial with Jackie Chan in Hong Kong. And while I was there, the film company offered me a contract. And I was 22. I thought, no, my parents will definitely not. I think they would not agree because I would be by myself there. I held a contract in my hand for, like, two days and was like, how do I go to my dad and say, I would like to try this? Because it's not a subject that I studied. I've never been in a movie before. I didn't study it. In the end, you know, you gather up all the courage, and it's like, what's the worst thing that can happen. No, right? No. Okay. So I went to him and he looked at the contract. The first thing he said, oh, this is like a slave contract. Then I said, that's why I need you, Dan. But he didn't say no. He turned around and said, when do you want to go? So that's how I started my career in Hong Kong.

Michelle Yeoh (34:57)

Yes, yes. It was really funny. I was on holiday in Italy, and so Barbara said, she will come and meet me. Have a first meet. And I love this woman to death. She really is such a champion for women. I was traveling with a group of friends, and my surname is Yo. So she went to the desk and said, okay, Michelle Khan. And they go like, khan what? So for the longest of time, she went through all the. So she checked. She Googled it was King Khan. Because my Chinese name is you Chu King. And we always put our surnames first, which is Yo. In England, they would put Chu King. Yo, right? So when I was studying here, I didn't have Masha. My friends called me Chu, which is short for Chu King, Right? Chu was easier. They'd be, like, teasing me, going, so everybody knew my name and remembered it. So finally we found each other. And when I eventually got cast to play Wei Lin in Tomorrow Never Dies, and Barbara and I have become fast and firm friends from then. And she said, what's all this nonsense about Khan? And na, na, Na, he's not even your name. Why would you have that name? And I go, well, because I was Advised when I was in Hong Kong, because in Hong Kong, they called me by my Chinese name. But once the name had to go on the posters for Europe and for elsewhere for distribution outside of Hong Kong. When they put Yo, Chu King, everybody goes like, what is this? Actually, okay, sidebar. I am so proud of my Korean friends who have stuck to their Korean names. You know, kudos to you because that's your identity, that's who you are. But you know, when I was first in Hong Kong, I had to listen to advice from people who have been in the business who are in the marketing field. And so then we said, how about King? But King. No, that doesn't sound like your name. Yo. I said, yo is a one syllable. How difficult it is, is it? It's just that when you look at it, a lot of people go like, yeah. And I go, oh my God, they really dest my name. So that's why they said, okay, let's have a Chinese sounding Khan, right? So I was like, okay, if they. Because you never get to go to Europe to promote your films. At that time, it was all focused really, mainly in Asia. And it was for the first time I saw my name. And it was next to this voluptuous woman with long wavy hair, looking very Caucasian. Actually didn't look like me at all. And there was my name, Michelle Khan. And I went like, oh. Because they had to market it in such a way that it was attractive.