‘You’re not living a life for anyone else’
Writer Daniel Anderson talks to actor Sam Song Li on his breakout role "Brothers Sun"
Sam Song Li
Ziyang Wang
Words by Daniel Anderson
At the start of the Zoom call, Sam Song Li points his finger at my screen. “There is a dumpling spot my mom and I go to all the time right on that corner,” he says, noticing my Zoom background of a strip mall in the San Gabriel Valley, aka the 626.
It serves as the setting of his Netflix action series, The Brothers Sun. Li stars as Bruce Sun, a kind and ordinary university student studying to become a doctor. His life takes a turn when his older brother, Charles (Justin Chien) comes back into town to protect their mother, Eileen (Michelle Yeoh) from nefarious assassins. Bruce quickly finds out the dark truth about his family: they lead one of the deadliest triads in all of Taiwan.
The good-natured boy is thrown for a loop as he watches his estranged brother effortlessly kill gang members and his mother nonchalantly dispose of a body at their kitchen table as if it were just another household chore—quite a departure from his own infraction of secretly using tuition money for improv classes.
That’s actually a passion Li shares with his character. “I started off wanting to be a filmmaker. I remember skipping calculus class when I was 16 years old so I could edit my videos. I think I've always been very creatively tuned in in that sense,” Li says.
He gets a bit shy as he admits the humorous spark that first fueled his love for filmmaking. “I've heard stories of these directors—the first film they ever saw was E.T. or some other epic masterpiece,” he says. “And I just feel like [mine is] the lamest story ever. Of all things, it was the Lonely Island. You remember ‘Dick in A Box’ and ‘I'm on a Boat?’ Seeing the Lonely Island build their own brand and be these pop stars in their own silly way... It was unique. It really inspired me to create a string of parody videos. So some of my earliest videos were whimsical comedy sketches or just straight up rap parody videos.”
Born in Shenzhen, Guangdong, China and raised in Southern California, Li is a social media savant, amassing over 230,000 Instagram followers through his comedic content. Acting initially was born out of necessity, wanting basic foundation in the craft if he ever hoped to direct. “The moment I started touching up on acting, I got hooked immediately,” he says. “I kept reading all of these books about classic icons like Sanford Meisner and Stella Adler. I just was so attracted to the idea of having different human experiences,” he reflects.
That naturally led to collegiate theater and making short films, but his mother, an aerospace engineer, had her reservations. “Bruce and I have a lot of similarities. We really do,” he muses. “It drove my mom crazy. I think she despised me. She thought I was throwing away my future. I think she genuinely thought she'd lost a son.”
Harsh as those sentiments were, he did empathize with her position. “I can't blame her because she was right, at the time, to feel that way. Outside of Jackie Chan, Bruce Lee, and John Cho, there really weren't too many successful examples,” he says. “I feel incredibly lucky to have seen careers like Steven Yeun and Daniel Dae Kim blossom. These male Asian actors really helped pave the way. And I think that the conversation changed quite rapidly over time with my mom. Once the wheels started turning, there were more opportunities. Now I get to be a part of that wave.”
Bruce is a perfect breakthrough wave for Li, who carries the same sanguine spirit as his character. Throughout the show, each Sun family member’s strongest attribute influences one another for the better. Eileen’s clandestine cunning, Charles’ physical ruthlessness, and Bruce’s compassion paints a stunning triptych of mind, body, and soul.
“When I first saw Bruce, I felt I was able to give Bruce a lot of credit for who he was simply because I felt I went through the exact same thing,” Li says. “That sincerity really bled through, or at the very least, made me feel very confident in being as authentically this character as possible. It was like being authentically myself in many ways.”
He continues, “I feel like that authenticity is what immediately stuck out to our producers and show runners Byron and Brad. If I hadn’t felt so right for it, maybe I would have tried to play it up a certain way or play an interpretation of who this person is.”
One source of inspiration for Li’s portrayal was anime. “Can I share a secret with you?” He asks, smiling. “I haven't even told anyone else yet. When I was tackling Bruce as a character, and I thought about who Bruce is as a person and I thought about how Bruce would think of himself, I wrote down that Bruce thinks that he is Tanjiro from Demon Slayer. It’s one of my favorite anime of all time. I'm a huge anime nerd.” Li specifically references the Mugen Train arc of the series, where it is revealed Tanjiro’s inner soul is seen as pure, warm, and a picturesque sky blue.
Outside of anime influences, Li resonates deeply with the themes of Brothers Sun. “When I describe who I am, I always describe myself as American Asian or American Chinese. I don't know why it's always the other way around, why we have to put our differences first,” he says. “This show is about a lot of American westernized ideas and themes like independence and freedom of choice. I've always felt really connected to that. The first issue is Bruce having to hide his dream from his mom and choosing what he wants, but on paper being obedient to her wishes. The show tackles these very traditional Asian themes of respecting and protecting the family as a duty.”
Recalling a conversation from childhood with his mother, Li was instilled with those same virtues. “She sat me down one day when I was like 14 years old, very seriously in front of my sister, and told me ‘李松璞，你有一天要当顶梁柱， 你知道吗？顶梁柱.’’ Li says it roughly translates to a metaphor for the pillar of the home. “I think that's where the pressures of making sure I would become a doctor or a lawyer or following in her footsteps was born, to find stability, to support the family. And I ran off and decided to become an actor. I did exactly what Bruce did,” he says.
However, the desire to live authentically is what Li strives for. “I'm a big advocate for making your own choices,” he says. “I'm not saying forget the family, but when it comes to choices, all I can say is this life is yours. You're not living a life for anyone else.”
To that end, Brothers Sun was a blessing in ameliorating the relationship with his mom. Li’s dreams fully clicked for her. “When she found out that I booked the show, her reaction was, ‘Oh, that's great, it sounds cool.’ I think in her mind, she's only seen the collegiate theater programs or short films I've done. When it really hit her was when she saw the mood board. She saw the set pieces and how big and legitimitate everything was,” he says.
When the show finished, Li returned the favor from when he was a young teen, imparting some of his wisdom to his mother. “I remember calling my mom when the show finished. She wanted to retire, she has this immense pressure where she always feels like she could do more. She's always thinking from a provider mindset. I was able to have a conversation with her that was inspired by the Brothers Sun. I told her ‘Mom, I think you worked really hard in life. you have to take some time and do what you want to do.’”
Published on January 2, 2024
Words by Daniel Anderson
Daniel Anderson is a disabled Chinese American adoptee based in Seattle. His freelance writing specialties include K-pop, entertainment, and food. He believes that any restaurant can be a buffet, and the key to success is to take a nap each day. Follow his adventures on Instagram @danzstan.