Julius Cho is a Canadian Film, TV, and voice actor, known for his role as Yoshi on Netflix’s Wedding Season as Suraj Sharma’s best friend. He has worked on such shows as What We Do In the Shadows, CBS’ Ghosts, Kim’s Convenience, and CW’s In The Dark. His voice credits include Magnus Black on Netflix’s reboot of Bakugan Battle Planet, Paw Patrol: Ready Set Rescue, and Ubisoft’s Hyper Scape. We had fun catching up with him to discuss his career and aspirations.
Thank you for agreeing to catch up with Occhi Magazine. Congratulations on your career to date. For readers unfamiliar with your background, how did you get into the arts?
Thanks for having me! It’s my first magazine interview, so I am very honored to be a part of yours! So, the origin story of how I got into the arts started in my high school days. I was fortunate to have a wonderful Drama teacher, Kate Greenway, who really supported my growth as an actor in class and in school plays.
When it came to picking a university and career, I always remember telling her my options and she turned to me and asked, “Why not try acting?” It was a funny moment for me, being raised in an immigrant family where the occupation choices were doctor, doctor, or doctor. So considering the arts as a real choice was kind of rebellious, and I liked that.
As a kid, I watched a lot of films and television and noticed that the leading men and women weren’t Asian. An East Asian person on screen was basically martial artists, doctors, or ancient evils that needed to be stopped. Heaven forbid we would see an English-speaking Asian man as a romantic lead. I think that was what ignited in me a sense of “why not?” and to go after acting without the fear of rejection and one-day hope I could be more visible.
You’ve referenced apprehension from traditionalist family members and university professors regarding your pursuit of an acting career. You’ve had much success to show for your aspirations! Are your family and professors happy now?
I hope so! I think I’ve been very fortunate these last few years to do work that I’m proud of and to have my family really acknowledge that it’s great. My dad, nonstop, needs to know what I’m working on next so he can post and share it with his friends, so it’s very touching.
I’m not sure if the professors are happy per say, since I haven’t reached out to them for approval. But I think the best gift is knowing approval from others is fleeting and the best approval is from yourself.
You’ve amassed a great resume of work including CBS’ Ghosts, CBC’s ‘Kim Convenience’, and most recently Netflix’s Wedding Season. Are there any particular experiences that have shaped your appreciation of the industry or methods by which you approach a role/character?
I found myself during the pandemic struggling with my acting. I think most people felt they were in a situation where they didn’t know what was happening in their future and especially with work. I started to let go of the desperation of needing to succeed, or at least thinking I needed to be perfect in my performances. I started to find ease, get more comfortable with being myself on camera, and even grab a snack while filming auditions to help myself not to overthink it. Actually, I think I was snacking on chicken wings during my Wedding Season audition! Maybe what’s led to my recent success is trying to find myself more in these characters. How can I be my usual funny and outgoing self in each role? I think the key is being able to watch or listen to myself. Getting a good laugh is a great clue that I’m on the right track.
Currently, we can see you as Jean-Luc in ‘Children Ruin Everything’ available on CTV, CTV.Ca, and the CTVapp in Canada. Please tell us more about the series, your role, and what audiences can expect.
Children Ruin Everything follows Astrid (Meaghan Rath) and James (Aaron Abrams) as they struggle with the balance of parenting their two children, Viv ( Mia SwamiNathan) and Felix ( Logan Nicholson), and their own lives in the city.
I play Astrid’s new boss, Jean-Lucs, in Season 2 which premieres on the Roku Channel in the US on February 3rd. He’s basically your young, unqualified boss who definitely needs your help…with everything. So basically the unofficial office family that Astrid needs to take care of.
Audiences can expect a fun family comedy with a lot of heart! I think audiences will enjoy this show for its quirky but insightful commentary on how hilariously hard raising a family is, but how rewarding it truly is.
Can you tell us more about the production and how you got involved in the project?
For Children Ruin Everything it was a few rounds of auditions before I booked the role of Jean-Luc. I actually got the call that I booked the role of Jean-Luc on my birthday. It was a great gift! I remember explaining to my grandmother in Chinese that the process of auditioning and callbacks is like doing deathmatch exams. This is where the people you’re competing with get better each round until it could be down to just two people for the role.
Being part of this production is amazing. Getting to work with the same people over the course of a few months is like being with a family. It’s so fun, and although the hours can be long it was always a blast working with the cast and crew of the show.
You’re an accomplished voice actor known for working on several animation projects. Do you prefer being on screen or simply lending your voice to a character?
That’s a tough question. I think because I started as a voice actor I prefer being enclosed in a soundbooth more. Perhaps it’s the magic you get when people can’t see you and I can shape my voice into a wide variety of characters such as a cute cartoon lizard that wants to fly to a scary Mongolian gangster. I do love being on screen as well though. I love the delicate storytelling you can do with a simple glance. But I think my love for voicing cartoons tops everything.
What other projects are you currently working on?
I’m about to shoot my first supporting role in a romantic comedy feature film called Platonic. Besides that, I’m currently waiting on a number of shows to come out before I can reveal anything [laughs]. Be sure to hear/ look out for me on CityTV, HBO Max, Apple TV, Treehouse, and Nickelodeon.
Where can our readers find out more about you? ( Please share your website and social media feeds)
You can find my personal website at www.juliuscho.com, and you can follow me on Instagram at @chojuliuscho and on Twitter at @juliuscho1 .
Photos by Jacob Amenyo and stills are credited to Netflix (Wedding Season) and Bellmedia (Children Ruin Everything).
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