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|---|---|
 Vang in 2008 | |
| Born | (1991-11-04)November 4, 1991 (age 33) Fresno, California, U.S. |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 2008–present |
Bee Vang (RPA:Npis Vaj,Pahawh:𖬃𖬰𖬨𖬵 𖬖𖬰𖬜; born November 4, 1991) is an American actor ofHmong Thai descent. He is best known for starring inClint Eastwood's 2008 filmGran Torino asThao Vang Lor.[1]
Vang was born inFresno, California, four years after hisHmong parents emigrated from Thailand.[2] He has five brothers and one sister.[3]
Vang resided in theTwin Cities area. He grew up in a neighborhood inMinneapolis that he described as "poor."[4] He later lived inRobbinsdale, Minnesota.[5] In his earlier years, he attended Webster Open, a middle school in Minneapolis where he took theater class. For his freshman year he attendedCamden High School, and he was in theUniversity of Minnesota's advanced program.[6] He also attendedRobbinsdale Armstrong High School inPlymouth,Minnesota.[7]
As a youth, Vang mainly watched Asian films.[8] He also watchedClint Eastwoodwesterns[9] and was a fan of Eastwood.[10]
Vang attendedBrown University inProvidence, Rhode Island.[4] He graduated from Brown "with a degree in international politics, political economy and media and cultural studies".[11][12]
Vang auditioned for the Clint Eastwood filmGran Torino "on a lark". He had no prior acting experience. More than 2,000 actors auditioned for the role that Vang eventually received. He learned later that he had been selected because of his "innocent looks and slight build".[2] The film is notable for being "the first major Hollywood portrayal of Hmong families".[13] Vang portrayed Thao Vang Lor, "a mild-mannered Hmong teenager who as part of a gang initiation tries to steal the prized 1972 Gran Torino of his next-door neighbor, a surly Korean War veteran" played by Eastwood.[14]Gran Torino grossed nearly $270 million worldwide.[15]
In 2009, Vang stated thatGran Torino was "generally accurate in its portrayal of Hmong, a highlands people who fought for the U.S. during the Vietnam War and later emigrated from Southeast Asia and settled in Minnesota, Wisconsin and California".[2] In later years, Vang spoke extensively against the film's use of anti-Asian slurs and its portrayal of Hmong people.[16] By 2010,[17] Vang had become an activist.[18] He collaborated onsocial justice film, Internet, and print products with Louisa Schein, a Hmong media expert, Va-Megn Thoj, a Hmong filmmaker, and Ly Chong Thong Jalao, aUniversity of California Santa BarbaraPh.D. student. He traveled around the United States doing public speaking regardingGran Torino and post-Gran Torino issues related to the Hmong community.[17][16] Vang also wrote a 2011 editorial criticizing aKDWB radio comedy segment, saying that it portrayed Hmong people in an offensive manner.[4] In 2021, Vang stated that he did not regret his role inGran Torino, but noted that he did not see "a place for 'Gran Torino' in this day and age". Vang added: "'I couldn't possibly imagine the film being made in this moment...where you know there's a lot of violent language used against Asian bodied people. It's not OK'".[19]
SinceGran Torino, Vang has appeared onModern Family[20] and acted in independent films and stage performances.[17] Vang acted in aYouTube parody of one scene inGran Torino, titled "Thao Does Walt: Lost Scenes from Gran Torino".[21] In addition, he acted in "Anatomically Incorrect", "Fallen City", and "Sunset on Dawn".[17]
Vang returned to cinema in 2020 with a role inComisery, an apocalyptic Asian-American science fiction comedy.[22] In 2021, he was cast in a lead role in a horror comedy entitledDark Christmas.[23]
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Gran Torino | Thao Vang Lor | [16] |
| 2011 | Modern Family | Himself | [20] |
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| National | |
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