"Heroes" James Kyson Lee goes back to roots for words of advice

James Kyson Lee speaks at a special lecture held at the Korea Creative Content Agency (KOCCA) in Seoul, South Korea on April 12, 2011. [Korea Creative Content Agency]

Korean-American actor James Kyson Lee may be one of the few Asians paving the way for others like him in Hollywood, but he has kept in closer touch with his roots than his fellow Asian actors.

Showing up in Seoul on Tuesday for a special lecture on the American drama industry and his experiences in Hollywood, Lee shared his thoughts on Korean dramas and talent as well while talking to his audience in close-to fluent Korean throughout, despite his 25-year stay in the U.S. since turning 10.

"Korea is a country where everyone shares similar thoughts and concerns so it's probably more difficult to come up with new stories," Lee said after pointing out that many Korean dramas are similar to each other -- from the characters to stories.

"But Korea has a long history and has been through a lot so I'm sure there'll be a lot of very interesting stories to tell, especially regarding heroes, and not just about heroes in the past but even the present."

He then stressed, "Imagination is an element the U.S. values greatly so you too need to keep imagining, even of things that you haven't heard of. That'll be the push you need."

Lee himself became widely recognized for his role as Ando Masahashi in NBC's "Heroes," a sci-fi TV series that tells of ordinary people around the world who discover they have supernatural powers and how these abilities affect the characters' lives.

The series had faced stiff competition -- in the U.S., only about five of some 100 pilots produced every year make it through the first season, Lee said -- but "Heroes" lasted four seasons and picked up a number of awards and nominations on the way.

In the meantime, Lee was more skeptical on Korean stars making it big in Hollywood. A number of Korean celebrities have tried their hand at acting in the U.S. but have yet to establish firm footing in the market.

Asian pop sensation Rain, whose real name is Jung Ji-hoon, has worked on a couple features in Hollywood including playing the main character in the Wachowski Brothers' martial arts film "Ninja Assassin" but the pic flopped at the U.S. box office and top Korean actor Lee Byung-hun has landed a role in the "G.I. Joe" series but needs a few more major projects to leave a mark.

"I think the biggest obstacle comes from the difference in sensibility. You can't show the sensibility unique of Americans when you've been born and raised in Korea...... Americans have such different energy and personalities from Koreans," remarked Lee.

"So in most cases, I think there'll be a limit to how far they can go. It's the same vice versa though, I was raised in the U.S. so I'm sure it'll be difficult for me to express myself like a Korean," Lee added.

He then advised, "The best thing to do would be for that person to leave their life in Korea behind for a while and go to the U.S. or at least go back and forth as often as he or she can so they acquire that sensibility."

Nonetheless, although Lee may not have enough time to return to Korea for a while with his new series "Hawaii Five-O" and a possible movie, his efforts to "always speak in Korean with my parents" may assist him in possible future endeavors in Korea.

"I recently did read about two scripts in Korea although I don't know the details such as when they're going to go into production... But I'd definitely like to help out if there's a project where Korea and Hollywood work together," Lee said.

In the meantime, Lee will continue to work at refining what he loves doing the most. "Acting is a form of art that is closely related to people... it is about your experiences with traveling, with others and what goes on in your life. Hence there's still so much to learn about this art which I hope to do so through many life experiences."

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Jessica Kim jesskim@