Joan Marcus Daniel Dae Kim's 2025 Tony Award nomination earned him a spot in the record books at the first Asian American to be nominated in the Lead Actor in a Play category TheYellow Faceopens up to PEOPLE about taking risks and carving out a spot for himself in show business A filmed version ofYellow Facewill air on PBS' Great Performances on Friday, May 16, and can be streamed on PBS.org until June 30 Daniel Dae Kimis far from lost after his latest Broadway role. Back in the fall, the 56-year-old star trod the boards in David Henry Hwang's semi-autographical play,Yellow Face. And earlier this month, his performance earned him a2025 Tony Award nominationfor Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Play — a feat that landed him in the history books as the first Asian American performer to nab a nod in the category. "It feels incredibly special," Kim tells PEOPLE at the Tony Awards' annual 'Meet the Nominees' event on May 8. "I found out that stat a couple of weeks ago, and it really surprised me because the Tonys have been around for 78 years! To know that I'm the first makes me a little sad, but a lot happy. It's very meaningful. In fact, it means more for that reason than it does for my own achievement." Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE's free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. Mike Coppola/Getty Yellow Faceis inspired by the infamousMiss Saigoncasting controversy, which made headlines when the musical transferred from London's West End to Broadway in 1990 with Welsh actor Jonathan Pryce reprising his role of the Engineer, a Eurasian (French-Vietnamese) pimp. Hwang, 67, was among many who spoke out about the casting, penning a public letter of protest saying that Pryce's performance — which he had seen in London — was demeaning to Asians and an affront to the Asian community. But despite the noise, Pryce went on (and even won the Tony). Hilariously, Hwang's play skewers that outrage, following the character of "DHH" (Kim) years after his protest, when he mistakenly casts a white actor as the Asian lead in one of his own plays. Knowing he can't fire him because of his race, he instead scrambles to cover it up. Joan Marcus Taking the role inYellow Facewas a risk for Dae Kim — though not because of its subject matter. Sure, theLostactor had been on Broadway before, but not in 10 years (he made his debut in 2016, in the Broadway revival of Rodgers and Hammerstein'sThe King and I). And he had certainly never played a role like this before. "It was so different for me because I got to play some comedy," theHawaii Five-0alum explains to PEOPLE. "It's not something I've done a lot of on TV or in film, and so to be able to kind of have the freedom of using my whole body to make people laugh was really liberating." Risks like that are something that's not always afforded to every actor. But in his two decades in Hollywood, Kim has learned to advocate for himself. "I remember someone saying to me once, 'There's no room for you in show business. You have to make room.' And I've kept that with me for times when I felt the opportunities weren't where I wanted them to be," he says. "I thought, 'Well, so what can I do to make them happen?' " The PEOPLE Appis now available in the Apple App Store! Download it now for the most binge-worthy celeb content, exclusive video clips, astrology updates and more! Cindy Ord/Getty Kim was a major force behind bringingYellow Faceto Broadway. The production has its first preview on Sept. 13 at the Todd Haimes Theatre ahead of its opening on Oct. 1. Performances wrapped on Nov. 24. He also made sure those who missed the Roundabout Theater Company's production got a chance to see it, helping raise funds to filmYellow Facefor PBS'Great Performances.It will air nationwide on Friday, May 16, and will be available to stream on PBS.org until June 30. "One of the saddest parts about theater is that it exists for that moment in time with that audience and that cast, and then it becomes a memory. So when we're able to memorialize it on tape for the screen, it lives forever," Kim shares. "Our show is one that is incredibly timely — and probably more relevant now than it was even when we ran in the fall," he adds. "So it's nice that people will be able to see the themes that we're talking about, and address the issues that we are delving into and explore them for themselves." Directed by Leigh Silverman,Yellow Facealso stars Kevin Del Aguila, Ryan Eggold, Francis Jue, Marinda Anderson, Greg Keller and Shannon Tyo. Kim will next be seen on screen in Amazon Prime spy seriesButterfly. "I'm really excited because it combines an American and a Korean cast," Kim says. "We shot it entirely in Korea with a Korean crew, and it's likeLost —It's a mixture of English and Korean, and so it really represents the two sides of who I am." "I've been trying to find projects that bridge both Asia and America, and this is one that I think does it in the way that I feel proud of," he adds. The 2025 Tony Awards air live from Radio City Music Hall in New York City Sunday, June 8, on CBS. Read the original article onPeople
