Killing Eve actress Sandra Oh reveals she was told her chance of making it as an Asian actress were 'slim'

The actress confessed she 'couldn't see herself as a leading lady'
Looking back: Sandra Oh recalled being told her chances of making it in Hollywood were 'slim'
Thomas Whiteside/Marie Claire UK
Natasha Sporn6 June 2019
The Weekender

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Sandra Oh said she was shocked to be cast as the lead in Killing Eve after being told her chances of making it as an Asian actress were “slim”.

Oh, who rose to fame in Grey’s Anatomy, revealed her struggles with self-doubt and recalled the harsh words she once received from an agent in a candid new interview with Marie Claire.

“She said, 'Listen, I’m not going to lie' – and that was, I think, what was so painful – 'I’m going to tell you the truth,’” Oh said.

“It was basically, 'Go back home and get famous, and then try and make a transition because I already have an Asian actress on my roster, and she hasn’t auditioned in three months. I don’t know what I could do for you.’”

Actress: Sandra Oh
Thomas Whiteside/Marie Claire UK

Oh confessed that she “couldn’t see herself as a leading role” when she was first cast as MI5 officer Eve Polastri in the immensely successful BBC America drama, opposite Jodie Comer as serial assassin Villanelle.

Oh told the publication: “I was like, 'What’s my part?' When my agent said, 'You’re f****** Eve,’ I just couldn’t see it. I couldn’t see myself in a leading role.

“It’s like a f****** shard in my heart [that I felt that way] because we work really hard, love what we do and understand how important it is to be visible and to see ourselves, right?

Cover star: Sandra Oh is on the front of the latest issue of Marie Claire
Thomas Whiteside/Marie Claire UK

"But to catch myself in a moment where I’m not [doubting myself] is still really difficult.”

Born to two Korean immigrants, Canadian actress Oh found fame as Cristina Yang in medical drama Grey’s Anatomy. In 2005, she won a Golden Glove for Best Supporting Actress and later a Screen Actors Guild award for her portrayal.

To read the feature in full, see the July issue of Marie Claire, out now. Also available as a digital edition through Apple Newsstand.

Killing Eve: Series 2- In pictures

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