Steven Yeun Earns Best Actor Oscar Nomination for ‘Minari’

Steven Yeun tried to sleep through his history-making Oscar nomination. It was 5:45 a.m. in Los Angeles — really 4:45 a.m., given Daylight Saving Time — but his phone Would. Not. Stop.

Bzz! Bzz! Bzz!

“I tried really hard to go back to sleep,” said the 37-year-old actor, who scored a best actor nomination for his turn in Lee Isaac Chung’s “Minari,” about an immigrant trying to realize his dream of starting a farm in the heartland. “And I’m still tired. I apologize, I don’t even know what’s happening right now.”

Yeun, who was born in South Korea and raised in the United States, was one of two men of Asian heritage nominated in the best actor category — along with Riz Ahmed (a Brit of Pakistani descent), who stars in “Sound of Metal” — at this year’s Academy Awards, the first time that’s happened in the 93-year history of the Oscars. It was also the first best actor nomination for a man of Asian heritage in nearly 20 years.

“It just feels very surreal,” Yeun said on Monday. “I still haven’t processed it.”

In a phone conversation, a still-groggy Yeun discussed what it was like to work in the United States with a largely Korean-American cast, whether it feels like Hollywood has reached a turning point when it comes to Asian-American representation, and what’s next for him. These are edited excerpts from the conversation.

You’re one of two men of Asian heritage up for best actor this year, which is an Oscars first. How does it feel to make history, especially when the Oscars have largely overlooked Asian performers in recent years?

It’s not something I really concern myself with. I carry with me my culture and who I am, and if that challenges or breaks through things, that’s wonderful.

What was your first thought when you read the script?

Isaac [the “Minari” writer-director] has such a way with words, and he captured something I deeply wanted to say on multiple levels right on the page. When I read it, I was so moved by it. I deeply connected with it. Isaac maybe didn’t write something that was new to reality, but he wrote something that’s new to our collective understanding of what reality is. Having people understand this new language and feeling we put out there is the most humbling and beautiful thing.

What was it like to work in the U.S. with a largely Korean-American cast?

It had its own challenges. You navigate miscommunication in different ways. But after the first couple of days, we worked out the kinks and came together to tell this story about family and what it’s like to be human. I know the nominations are delineated and separated, but it really was a collective experience. It was a labor of love, and I hope everybody gets seen. We all poured our hearts into it.

Your co-star, Yuh-Jung Youn, was nominated for best supporting actress, and it feels like a breakthrough for the academy to recognize more than one star from an Asian-led ensemble. Does it feel like things have shifted in Hollywood when it comes to Asian representation?

I don’t know if I have an opinion on that. I know what I want to do in those lanes: I want to continue to be as honest and truthful as possible and speak from my place. I carry with me a lot of things, such as being Asian-American. Ultimately, wherever life takes me, I just hope I get to share more stories like this.

What films did you watch this year that you’re glad were nominated?

To be honest, I haven’t looked at yet at who was and wasn’t. But I really love “Sound of Metal” and “Nomadland.” And I thought “Da 5 Bloods” was incredible.

What’s next for you?

I don’t want to make things heavy, but we’re still in the throes of the pandemic, and I’m still trying to process where I’m at and what I’ve learned and what’s to come. But I have a lot of faith and hope in the future, and if I’ve learned anything, it’s to really try to root myself in the present and take account of what’s happening now.