Warrior star Andrew Koji says the tong's counterfeiting operation causes major problems in season 3

WARNING: This post contains spoilers from Warrior season 3, episodes 1 and 2, "Exactly the Wrong Time to Get Proud," and "Anything Short of a Blow to the Head."

Andrew Koji knew there was more life in Warrior, even after Cinemax canceled the series.

"At the time, it was sad because I felt the story was left unfinished," Koji says. "For an actor this is quite a rare thing to come about, not only having the legacy of Bruce Lee, but having an Asian immigration story, a period that's mostly not been told." Luckily for him, and for fans of the martial arts series based on writings from Bruce Lee, Max picked up Warrior for a third season.

In the new season, which has premiered its first two episodes, the action picks up a few months after the season 2 finale where Chinatown fought back and Ah Sahm (Koji) emerged a heroic figure, but the community is paying for the battle. The politicians and police are cracking down on Chinatown and the warring tongs while the various criminal entities fight it out on the streets. Despite the tension between Ah Sahm and the members of his tong stemming from the revelation that rival crime boss Mai Ling (Dianne Doan) is his sister, money needs to be made. For an influx of cash, Ah Sahm and Young Jun (Jason Tobin) start making counterfeit money after Chinatown's favorite black market merchant Wang Chao (Hoon Lee) stumbles on some money plates. What they don't realize is that the secret service is looking for those plates and have enlisted Richard Henry Lee (Tom Weston-Jones) to help them in the search. Only two episodes into the new season, the problems are stacked up higher than ever.

We spoke to Koji about returning to Warrior, how the counterfeit operation complicates things, Ah Sahm's new love interest, and more.

David Bloomer/Max Andrew Koji as Ah Sahm on 'Warrior' season 3.

ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: What do you remember about learning that the show was returning and playing Ah Sahm again?

ANDREW KOJI: [Creator] Jonathan [Tropper] asked me if I wanted to go back because it's a tough show to shoot, on my body and it's quite an exhausting schedule. This is a show that means something and I have learned so much from it. It was no question for me. It's been a couple of years so it felt surreal. We've always been an underdog show, but going back we had this new energy to go back in with all guns blazing in a way.

Ah Sahm is very uncomfortable with his new status as a hero of Chinatown. Why do you think he is bumping up against it?

The world he's in, it doesn't do him any favors even though it might serve his ego. It makes him a target for the polices, the rivals tongs, and it complicated things between Ah Sahm and Young Jun. Since season 1 he's been struggling. He's a great athlete and fighter, but not a true martial art warrior yet. He feels unworthy of that acclaim, so it's a multitude of different things put together.

Speaking of Yung Jun, he and Ah Sahm have been inching toward a clash for some time now. What can you share about where their dynamic is heading this season?

It's always a pleasure to work with Jason. What's fun is the nuance of it. It makes sense for them to be on the same side together because they do love each other deep down. Ah Sahm needs him because the tong provides protection and ironically he provides protection to the tong because he's the prize fighter. Season 1 is the brotherhood forming, season 2 is the brotherhood going through their struggles and season 3 is the brotherhood crumbling. It's been looking that way for a long time, but neither of them want it to happen.

This is a great season for Jason and Yung Jun. He gets to do some pretty powerful stuff and he knocks it out of the park.

David Bloomer/Max Andrew Koji as Ah Sahm and Jason Tobin as Yung Jun on 'Warrior' season 3.

People on the show often accuse Ah Sahm of having larger aspirations. From your perspective, what does he want at this point?

I've been trying to crack that since season 1 because as an actor it's one of the main things you ask. It changes over time and has changed each season. This season he wants to do the right thing and he's got a moral compass. He's one of the few characters that has a strong compass. He learns about the world and sees the atrocities and how people are treated; he wants to have a purpose in his world beyond his own fighting skills or how he can use his fighting skills to do the right thing. That doesn't necessarily include the tong. He's been trying to find his purpose since the beginning and I think he finds it in season 3.

One of the most layered dynamics is Ah Sahm and Ah Toy (Olivia Cheng). From your perspective, what are they to each other?

She's always been a bit of a mentor for him and she's a truth speaker to Ah Sahm. She's seen right through him from the beginning. They've got less to do with each other's lives because they are on wildly different paths this season. They're more like distant friends in a world where they both essentially don't belong.

How does making counterfeit money and the introduction of the Secret Service compare to what the tong has attempted in the past?

It's a bit of a naughty move. It's a very Yung Jun kind of move. It makes sense because they're at such a disadvantage in so many ways. There's the tongs fighting each other, the police putting pressure on Chinatown and the Asian community in this world. This is a way to even the playing field, especially with their own internal politics. The main conflict is that it brings attention from multiple different avenues.

Part of the counterfeiting operation is Ah Sahm working with their printer, with whom he already has a charged dynamic. What can you tease about what's next for them?

As opposed to his previous romance, they are both Asian in this world and she is not in a position of power. He feels protective of an underdog and responsible for her. Also she, in some ways, blames him for bringing this problem to her father's store, which he feels guilty about. They understand each other on a deeper level and she's probably one of the few people that fires back at Ah Sahm and matches him in terms of wit and smarts. He sees potential in her and that's where a lot of the chemistry comes from.

Between Lee working with the Secret Service, Mai Ling (Dianne Doan), Dylan Leary (Dean Jagger), and the local authorities, Ah Sham and the tong have a lot of adversaries. Which would you consider the biggest threat? 

The biggest threat is the consequences of the money printing because it draws attention in so many different ways. The political situation has always been an issue, but this time they're cracking down big time. It's hard because there's stuff going on inside the tongs and is a threat to Ah Sahm personally and other threats coming from outside Chinatown.

Warrior airs Thursdays on Max.

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