Constance Wu, a Taiwanese-American actress known for her role as Jessica Huang on ABC’s “Fresh Off the Boat,” spoke at Graham Chapel as a part of Student Union’s Trending Topics series Sunday, Oct. 29.

Her speech focused on her experiences as a minority in Hollywood and learning to embrace her ethnicity, which she never thought would help her land a role in a film. After her talk, students were given the chance to meet Wu, ask her questions, take pictures with her and get autographs.

Jiyoon Kang | Student Life

Constance Wu takes students questions on Oct. 29 after delivering a speech in Graham Chapel for Trending Topics. The actress is known for her role on the ABC series “Fresh Off the Boat.”

According to Wu, many Asian actors in Hollywood actually refuse to play Asian roles.

“Before I could even sit down, the agent would look at me and say, ‘I know what you are going to say. You don’t want to play any Asian roles.’ They heard that so many times from so many Asian actors,” Wu said in her talk.

Wu, however, used her Taiwanese-American heritage to her advantage. She has accepted roles where being Asian is a major part of her character, such as her role as Captain Jane Lee in the television series “Dimension 404.”

“We try to celebrate our Asian heritage. We have storylines where being Asian is crucial,” Wu said.

She encouraged students to set big goals and not to be afraid of sadness or anger when their goals are challenged.

“Everything is impossible until you try it. You are the expert on yourself,” Wu said. “They are not setbacks; they are just part of your story.”

The Chinese Student Association (CSA) was responsible for hosting Wu and had been planning the event since the beginning of the semester.

According to speaker chair of CSA and sophomore Lisa Xiao, CSA worked alongside Student Union to make the event a success.

“The process was much more difficult than we thought,” Xiao said, “We had to work very closely with Student Union and get their contracts, schedules, rooms booked and funding.”

During the initial planning phases, CSA put together a list of Asian-Americans that have had major impacts in the areas of acting, writing and politics.

CSA wanted Washington University to hear about an Asian-American’s experiences while having a job in the United States, and Constance Wu seemed fitting due to her background.

“Constance Wu was up there, and [miraculously] Student Union had enough money to fund her visit,” Xiao said.