N.S. actor Chase Tang happy to be part of new wave of diversity in Hollywood

A Nova Scotiaactor who just landed a role inan upcoming Netflix series says he'sexcited to be a part of a wave of more Asian representation on screen.

Chase Tang was raised in Bedford and Upper Tantallon, N.S., after his family emigrated from Taiwan when he was a child. He grew up playing hockey, then worked in the corporate world before turning to acting.He has been cast as the villain inJupiter's Legacy,which will be his biggest role to date.

"Being Asian, I think I came in at a time when it wasn't quite as difficult. It was 2016 going into 2017 with Crazy Rich Asians coming in. It was a little but more accepted and there were a lot more opportunity," Tang told CBC Radio's Information Morning Nova Scotia.

Tang willbe starring in Jupiter's Legacyalongside actors Josh Duhamel, Ben Daniels, Leslie Bibb, Elena Kampourisand Jamie Slater. Theseries is set to be released in 2020.

Tang said he couldn't reveal much about the plot of the show due to a strict non-disclosure agreement, but he did say it had to do with the children of superheroes being unable to live up to their parents' legacies.

"It's got a really personal element that I think everybody can relate to and I think the audience will really love it," he said.

Former corporate career

Tang is relatively new to the acting world, with his first movie credits appearing in 2017. He said he started acting after his corporate job hit a roadblock.

"Had my corporate career gone a lot better, I don't think I would have made this transition," he said. "I was always very curious about acting."

But he said having a corporatebackground helped him with his acting career. He said he already had a bit of money set aside to get the ball rolling, so he wasn't struggling to make ends meet and could focus on the artistic side.

"I do think for somebody who went into theatre school, who went into arts off the bat if you're purely depending on that to make a living, it's really tough," he said.

Entering the acting world

Getting into the industry wasn't easy, Tang said. He said he had little acting experience and thecoaches he had along the way could be harsh with their criticism.

"You're going against people who have been doing it for a long time so when I first started in 2016, I was absolutely horrendous I really didn't know a thing," he said.

Tang said he has been inspired by Simu Liu, the Canadian actor known for his roles on Kim's Convenience who was recentlycast asMarvel's first Chinese superhero,Shang-Chi.

"He'sabsolutely a pioneer in terms of representation," Tang said.