The Stars of "House of Ho" on Bringing Affluent Asian Americans to Reality TV (Video)
In this episode of Multicultural TV Talk we are joined by three stars of HBO Max’s House of Ho -- siblings Washington and Judy and Washington's wife Lesley -- to discuss the upcoming second season of the hit reality series, which has joined the likes of Bling Empire in bringing affluent Asian American families to the unscripted TV space. While the first season dealt with sibling rivalry, marital problems and a divorce, the second season sheds some light on Washington's recovery and sobriety, as well as the family’s growth since the series' inaugural season in 2020.
"I saw the success of the Kardashians and thought, 'My family is pretty interesting, too!'" Washington says when speaking about the origins of the series. "I had a few friends in Hollywood that were producers, made a few phone calls and they said, 'You might have something here.' Then Crazy Rich Asians came out and showed me that there was a market for this."
"I didn’t believe him until the cameras actually showed up!" Judy chimes in with a laugh. "And even after we filmed, I didn't believe it until I saw the marketing for it on HBO Max. Not all of Washington's ideas work, but when they work they're home runs."
When revealing the biggest lesson he has learned, Washington delves into the varying generational and cultural depictions of masculinity. "Vulnerability is courage," he says. "Being an Asian male, I thought vulnerability was weakness, but having to be on-camera, being honest, and being my authentic self has really changed my life for the better."
Season two of House of Ho premieres August 25 on HBO Max.
You can watch the full interview above or listen wherever you download your podcasts, includingApple, GooglePodcasts, iHeartRadio, Pandora, Stitcher and TuneIn.
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Juan Ayala
Juan Ayala is a Brooklyn-based writer, podcaster and columnist at MediaVillage. He covers programming aimed toward diverse, multicultural and LGBTQ+ audiences under his Multicultural TV column. His love for TV and film ranges from workplace comedi…
