FRIENDS Actor Stephen Park Recalls Racist Incident on Set: 'Nobody Felt the Need to...'

Stephen Park, who appeared in two episodes of Friends, recently spoke about a racist incident he witnessed on set in the 1990s. Read on to know what happened.

Written by Sakina Kaukawala , Entertainment Journalist

Published on Mar 06, 2025 | 05:44 AM GMT | 9.4K

Friends (via IMDb)

Actor Stephen Park, known for guest-starring in two episodes of Friends, recently opened up about a racist incident he witnessed on set in the 1990s.

Speaking on the Pod Meets World podcast, Stephen Park described the environment as toxic and shared that a crew member used racist language when referring to fellow actor James Hong.

“It was at the time; I felt it was kind of a toxic environment,” Park said. He recalled an assistant director calling Hong to set and saying, “Where the f--- is the Oriental guy? Get the Oriental guy.” The comment left Park shocked, but he noticed that no one spoke up.

He said that this was not the first time it had happened. “But this is the environment where this is business as usual in Hollywood in 1997. And nobody felt the need to correct this or say anything about it,” he added.

Park felt compelled to take action and reported the incident to the Screen Actors Guild (SAG). However, their response was not what he expected. Instead of addressing the issue directly, he was advised to write an article to the L.A. Times as per the Hollywood Reporter.

Hoping to raise awareness about the discrimination Asian actors faced in Hollywood, he began drafting a statement about his experience.

Although the L.A. Times sent reporters to interview him, they never published his story. Frustrated by the lack of response, Park took matters into his own hands and shared the statement with people on his email list.

His letter quickly gained attention, spreading across the country as various publications requested permission to reprint it. Looking back, he stated that it had gone viral before the term 'viral' was even widely used.

Park’s open letter addressed not just the incident on Friends but also the larger issue of discrimination in Hollywood. He stated that if it had been an isolated event, he might not have felt the need to speak out. However, he saw this kind of behavior as a common problem in the industry, which pushed him to write the statement.

Park also addressed that negative portrayals of Asians in the media contributed to real-life discrimination. He stated that hate crimes against Asian Americans were on the rise and believed that harmful stereotypes in entertainment only made the problem worse.

The experience left a deep impact on Park, leading him to step away from acting for a time. He shared that his frustration had made him hyperaware of racial issues, to the point where he saw everything through that lens.

It left him feeling trapped, without a sense of freedom. Uncertain about his next steps, he ultimately decided to leave the industry.

After a year-long hiatus, Park slowly returned to acting. Over the years, he has appeared in projects like The Mindy Project, Ghosted, Law & Order, and Asteroid City.