Lucy Liu Breaks from Perfection

Lucy Liu’s mother saved all her report cards and gifted them to her when Liu was in her 30s. “All of the notes written were like, ‘She doesn't talk, she's too shy, she doesn't participate in class,’” says the actor. Growing up the child of immigrant parents in humble surroundings in Jackson Heights, Queens, Liu wasn’t much like her best-known roles. The quick succession of parts in Ally McBeal, Charlie’s Angels, Chicago, and Kill Bill established her as an icon who specialized in playing confident women as glamorous as they were intimidating. The film Rosemead offered Liu a chance to return to her quieter roots. In Eric Lin’s drama, she plays a real-life terminally ill widow whose attempts to deal with her schizophrenic teenage son lead to tragedy. Liu’s revelatory performance has already won her numerous awards on the film festival circuit and the Trailblazer Award at the Critics Choice Association’s Celebration of AAPI Cinema & Television ceremony. For W’s Best Performances Issue, Liu talks bad tans, the rivalry of Daryl Hall and John Oates, and her early days as an omelet chef.

Rosemead is based on a true story about a woman who was convinced that her teenage son, who suffered from schizophrenia, was becoming increasingly violent. What drew you to this project?

It's based on a 2017 story in the Los Angeles Times: “Woman Buys a Gun, Shoots Her Son.” The headline was very aggressive clickbait. I read the article after I read the script, and it really was a gut punch. It devastated me. I wanted to have this woman exist in a way that came from a loving place, because that's how I felt when I read it.

You are a very glamorous person, and in this film you are stripped down: no makeup, and she’s in nearly constant distress. Was that difficult?

I come from the same roots as the character, so understanding her was immediate for me. I think perfection is about imperfection: The more we show how imperfect we are, the better it is for the audience. Growing up, I didn’t see people like myself in films or on television. And I want people to see this woman, and to see her community.

Were you a theatrical child?

No, I was very shy. When I was in college, somebody came up to me on the subway and gave me their card. I was very suspicious, but I called the Better Business Bureau, and they confirmed that the person was real. Through that person, I booked a commercial for a school supplies company. At the audition, I was asked to talk about my prom dress. Instead of talking about a fancy gown, I told them about a vintage $10 dress that I bought. Somehow that caught their attention, and I got the job. When I moved from New York to Los Angeles, I got work. I was lucky for that. I think my first job in L.A. was on Beverly Hills, 90210.

Did you like Los Angeles when you first arrived?

I thought it was kind of spectacular. The weather was always perfect. I worked at a breakfast catering company, so I can make a really killer omelet. Actually, I don't eat omelets anymore because I made so many of them.

Who was your first cinematic crush?

C. Thomas Howell in The Outsiders. I was able to afford one of those teen magazines. I Scotch-taped it up to my wood-panel wall. He had a very ’80s look, with his hair blown back and his hand in his jeans pocket. Ironically, I ended up working with him decades later on Southland. I never told him that I had a crush on him because I was so embarrassed. We were playing tough cops.

You’ve been on a lot of red carpets. Do you have any fashion moments that you regret?

For Charlie’s Angels, the thing then was to be tan. And I looked orange, like an Oompa Loompa. I was wearing a white dress, and the contrast…it wasn’t even a natural color. The orange look was not for me.

Do you have a go-to karaoke song?

Anything Daryl Hall and John Oates. “Maneater” is everything. It slays every time, whether I’m on or off key. I was sad to hear that Hall and Oates didn’t get along. Like The Brady Bunch—when the books came out about The Brady Bunch, which said they either were sleeping with each other or not getting along, it crushed me. That was my whole childhood!

Style Director: Allia Alliata di Montereale. Codirector: Frank Lebon. Director of photography: André Chemetoff. Hair by Jawara for L’Oréal Professional at Art Partner; makeup by Lauren Parsons for Sisley Paris at Art Partner; manicure by Jolene Brodeur for Dazzle Dry at the Wall Group. Set design by David White at Streeters.