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The importance of uplifting, awarding, and celebrating communities of color has never been more relevant than today. Following the years of Asian-American underrepresentation, a powerful cultural awakening is taking root. Asian-American women have slowly been breaking the molds that they have been put in, and are now commanding the world’s biggest stages – from various award shows to movie theaters worldwide. And this trend will only continue.
Alysa Liu
Firstly, it’s undeniable how amazingly Alysa Liu took Gen-Z, and frankly, the world by storm. Having become the youngest U.S. women’s figure skating champion at only thirteen in 2019, it’s clear that Liu is rich in talent. However, a few years later, Liu retired at sixteen due to burnout and a desire to regain passion. She took a two-year break and did just that. She resumed training in twenty-twenty four and has been a strong vocal advocate for artistic expression > pressure. And this mindset is what led her to her 2025 win as an ISU World Figure Skating Champion and, most notably, 2026 Olympic Gold. Her victory is easily seen as a moment of national pride to unite all Americans and serves as a testament to the talent, joy, and grit that she brings to her sport and the Olympic community.
Hoppers: Piper Curda
Disney and Pixar recently released a new film, Hoppers. The animated sci-fi comedy follows the main character, Mabel Tanaka, a nineteen-year-old environmental activist, voiced by Piper Curda. The film has already broken several records, most impressively being the biggest original animated opening in a decade, the highest rated Pixar film in a decade, and the highest grossing animated release of 2026. Despite being a film geared towards young minds, it features relatable and heartfelt development, coupled with emotional depth of nostalgia, all while tying in inarguably laugh-out-loud moments. It’s without a doubt that this new release has resonated with people in a widespread manner. The significance of both Tanaka and Curda, coming from Asian descent, is notable because centering Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) representation breaks stereotypes and normalizes the presence of Asian Americans in stories that they do, in fact, belong in.
The Pitt: Isa Briones, Kristen Villanueva, and Amielynn Abellera
The Pitt is a highly realistic medical series that follows the daily lives, personal crises, and high-stakes jobs of healthcare professionals, specifically those of the emergency room in the Pittsburgh hospital. The show takes the form of roughly 45 to 60-minute episodes, displaying one hour of the characters’ shifts, and then they pick up with the following hour in the next episode. This unique structure, along with the unmatched medical realism, wonderful acting, and relevance in modern life, popularized the show. This popularization has gone so far that The Pitt has won a Critics’ Choice Award for Best Drama Series, an Emmy for Outstanding Drama Series, and a Golden Globe for Best Television Series. It’s obvious that a show is nothing without its cast, and another aspect of this series that sets it apart from the rest is how diverse its cast is. Ranging talent from Australia to England, ranging in sexual orientations of the LGBTQ+ community, and of course, ranging ethnicities from Black, Middle Eastern, Afro-Latina, and many of the AAPI umbrella. Isa Briones plays a second-year resident, Trinity Santos, Kristen Villanueva plays a nurse, Princess Dela Cruz and Amielynn Abellera also plays a nurse, Perlah Alawi. These three women are the faces of the Filipino representation within the series. Often conversing in Tagalog, these characters bond over their culture and provide much comedic relief to a heavy show. This visibility is significant as it provides an accurate representation of the US healthcare system’s “backbone.”
K-Pop Demon Hunters
K-Pop Demon Hunters is a Netflix animated musical that focuses on a girl group named Huntrix who secretly fight demons to protect their fans. Released in 2025, the film exploded in popularity through its vibrant animation, catchy soundtrack, and, naturally, visibility of female Asian faces. The film being recognizable through just a few lyrics of a song and having widespread choreographed dances on apps like TikTok are a testament to its popularity. But if that doesn’t say enough, being the most-watched film in Netflix history, and having won numerous major awards, will. The most recent win for K-Pop Demon Hunters was the Best Animated Feature and Best Animated Track (for the song Golden) at the 2026 Oscars. This film, like Hoppers, is mainly targeted at the youth audience, but can be easily loved by all. Especially due to its unapologetic center of Korean culture, folklore, and the Asian-American experience. This “love letter” toward K-pop challenges Hollywood’s longtime lack of representation.
This recent string of successes for Asian-American women in the media, from award shows to breaking box-office records, marks a long-overdue shift toward authentic representation. While stereotypes have historically limited narratives, trailblazers like the ones detailed here are dismantling these tropes by centering diverse stories. Although challenges regarding systemic inclusion remain, the increasing visibility of Asian-American women is fundamentally reshaping the industry and setting a new standard for cultural storytelling in Hollywood and beyond.