Michelle Yeoh Says the 'Older You Get' Hollywood Sees Actresses by Age Rather Than 'Capability'

Robin L Marshall/Getty

Michelle Yeoh did not think an opportunity like Everything Everywhere All at Once would come her way at this stage in her career.

In a new interview with CBS Sunday Mornings, Yeoh said it was "amazing to think" she would land such a stellar role, which has landed her nominations and wins this award season.

"It's like the older you get, they see you by your age rather than see you by your capability," Yeoh, 60, said of Hollywood.

During the interview, the actress praised Everything Everywhere's directors Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, calling it "joyful" that they "thought she can do this — if anybody can in our industry — who can fight, who can be funny, who can be dramatic and sincere and all those kind of things."

"To receive that, you don't know how ... joyful [it feels] when someone gives you the opportunity to show what you're capable of," Yeoh said.

RELATED GALLERY: Michelle Yeoh's Career in Photos

Moviestore/Shutterstock Stephanie Hsu, Michelle Yeoh and Ke Huy Quan in Everything Everywhere All at Once

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

Yeoh answered affirmatively when asked whether she thought she would never be cast in a lead role such as Everything Everywhere's Evelyn Wang, a role that features her as an unassuming laundromat owner who taps into several differently-skilled alternate versions of herself to save the universe.

"I've had a spectacular career. But you don't want it to just slow down or end because you have gotten to a certain age," she said. "And you start getting scripts where the guy, the hero, is still in his 50s, 60s — some even more. And then they get to go on the adventure with your daughter."

"Then you go, like, 'No, c'mon guys, give me a chance,' " Yeoh added. "Because I feel that I am still able to do all that."

During the interview, Yeoh also spoke to the inspirational impact her role — and the movie at large — has had on the Asian community since its release last March.

Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty

RELATED: Michelle Yeoh on Inspiring Younger Generations of Asian Actors: 'We Deserve a Voice'

"What I found so beautiful was it was giving a voice to a very ordinary woman," she said. "[An] aging, immigrant woman who's never really had a voice before."

"It's hard being, looking like this, because I have a lot of Asians who come up to me and say, 'Thank you for doing this because now I see it's possible for us to be there,' " Yeoh added. "It is very important because what we're giving to all the Asian faces is that we're not invisible."