Stephanie Hsu spoke to Jimmy Fallon about her role as Jobu Tupaki in the breakout A24 film Everything Everywhere All At Once, directed by the Daniels (Swiss Army Man). She reveals that she had to get over some nerves when it came down to embodying Jobu — someone who’s so over the top and wild, a foil to the grounded and practical Evelyn Wang (Michelle Yeoh), that it’s no surprise that Hsu might have felt a little self-conscious.
Hsu said that she’s comfortable being weird with the Daniels and they “bring out more weird” in her, but she was worried that her colleagues and co-stars on set would find her performance off-putting or extreme. It’s a fair point; even her wardrobe is scene-stealing, since Jobu’s outfits range include an Elvis-inspired jumpsuit and a clown suit. But Hsu said that the Daniels constantly told her to “destroy the movie” as a direction; the very first scene she shot with the cast and crew — including Yeoh — was the hallway scene which served as Jobu’s introduction.
It’s reasonable for Hsu to be concerned. The introduction scene sees Jobu fighting off security guards by turning them into confetti after hitting them over the head with a pair of dildos. So, she told Fallon, she had the Daniels make an announcement before filming: “Hey everybody! This is Stephanie! She’s gonna be kind of weird, but we told her to do that!”
Warranted, but honestly, Hsu’s stellar, Oscar-nominated performance speaks for itself. She “destroyed” the movie in the best way possible — and we can’t wait for Everything Everywhere All at Once to keep breaking records this awards season.