Lucy Liu Suggests Asian Representation Has a 'Long Way to Go' Amid Oscars Drama

The actress said she is '1000 percent' rooting for 'Everything Everywhere All at Once' at the upcoming Academy Awards.

We all know the Oscar-nominated film Everything Everywhere All at Once has been breaking ground with undeniable success since its release last March, but that doesn't mean Hollywood's job is done, according to Lucy Liu.

In a new interview with PEOPLE, Liu, 54, addressed the topic of diversity—or the lack thereof—in Hollywood, particularly when it comes to Asian representation. And while she said she's "excited" about what Everything Everywhere has been able to accomplish, she believes the industry still has a ways to go.

"I think it's the beginning," she said of the Michelle Yeoh-led film, which made Yeoh the second Asian woman to be nominated in the Best Actress category. "I understand that a lot of places have a check box and they have to meet a certain percentage, and sometimes that has to happen before it becomes the norm. So I still think we have a long way to go, but it is creating a space and hopefully some sense of normalcy to see that as it activates itself in hopefully a more natural way."

"It's interesting, and it's also scary, that studios are looking for the dollar sign oftentimes, right?," she continued. "And [the Everything Everywhere filmmakers] were doing something out of love and passion," she says. "I don't know that they thought, 'Oh, this is what we're doing, something incredibly creative, and we hope that we just break even.' That's so spectacular about the success of this movie."

The Shazam: Fury of the Gods actress—who admitted that she has "always had to fight for roles" throughout her career due to a lack of representation—said that she is rooting for Everything Everywhere "1000 percent" at the upcoming Academy Awards, where it is in the running for Best Picture.

Yeoh, who has already earned awards for her performance at the Golden Globes, SAG Awards and more, recently found herself at the center of controversy regarding the upcoming Oscars after sharing an article online that suggested her deservedness of the Best Actress title over her fellow nominee, Cate Blanchett.

The article by Radhika Seth, originally featured in Vogue, discussed the lack of diversity among Best Actress winners in the past, which have scarcely been women of color. The piece also mentioned Blanchett—who is up for the award for the film Tár—noting that she already has two Oscars.

Yeoh shared screenshots of the essay to her Instagram page this week, but quickly took it down after receiving backlash for speaking out about another nominee while voting was still open.

Many have since pointed to the Academy's official rules, particularly No. 11 "References to Other Nominees," which states, "any tactic that singles out ‘the competition’ by name or title is expressly forbidden."

The Academy has not yet addressed the situation, and the post has been deleted from Yeoh's account.

Tune in to the Oscars this weekend, airing live on Sunday, March 12 at 8 p.m. ET.