Rodney To Is More Than Just Jo Koy’s Uncle in Easter Sunday
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Easter Sunday cast photo: Jo Koy, Melody Butiu, Tia Carrere, Lydia Gaston, Rodney To, Joey Guila, Eugene Cordero, Elena Juatco
The hypercritic will point out the incongruity of Rodney, who’s two years younger than Jo Koy, in the role of his uncle. It also baffled Rodney during auditions. “Under normal conditions, it takes a lengthy time to get cast for a movie. Covid made it even longer,” Rodney recalls. “I originally auditioned for another part. It took months before I was asked back to audition for the part of Jo Koy’s uncle. While I knew that Nicole (Abellera), the Casting Director, was a fan of my work, I didn’t think it made sense.”
Rodney didn’t have expectations as he went about his normal life as a full professor in the School of Dramatic Arts at the University of Southern California (USC). “When I got the call that it was happening, I had less than a week to get my visa, pack my bags and fly to Canada.” And he’s happy he did.
Easter Sunday is a crowning achievement that follows a career that began with a B.A. in Theatre from Marquette University, followed by an internship at the Milwaukee Repertory Theatre and 11 years in New York City.
Rodney To, doing theater work for The Romance of Magno Rubio at Victory Gardens Theater, Chicago
His big break came when, “Sides: The Fear Is Real,” a play he cowrote and performed in won Best Ensemble in the New York International Fringe Festival in 1997. The off Broadway run at the Culture Project took him to Los Angeles to perform with East West Players. This initial exposure to Hollywood eventually brought him back in 2008 for The American Mall, his first TV movie, by the producers of High School Musical. Rodney became a face people recognize in public through recurring roles as Typhoon Montalban from 2013 to 2015 in “Parks and Recreation” and last year as Henry in seven episodes of “Good Girls.”
Rodney To with Nick Offerman on “Parks and Recreation”
Of Easter Sunday, he says, “It was the most fulfilling part I’ve had. We were all Filipinos so there was no need of explaining our histories. We knew the culture. This was a movie that has never happened before at the feature level.”
Rodney calls Jo Koy “the most generous human being in some ways he’ll never reveal.” He says it was a testament to the impact Jo Koy has had on the careers of his peers that the celebrated comic Tiffany Haddish didn’t hesitate to endure two weeks of quarantine to do Easter Sunday.
A USC Professor Who Happens to Be a Hollywood Actor
Rodney was born and grew up in Chicago’s Northside. He and brothers Jake and Darwin were raised by their mother, Jean Gestoso To, a native of Davao City.
Despite his movie and television successes, Rodney’s accountant mother does not view his acting as a full-time vocation. “My mom was more excited about my becoming a professor at USC than anything else I’ve done. She sees it as a steady job where you work and get paid. Even my brothers breathed a sigh of relief when I joined the USC faculty four years ago because it gives me something stable I can tether to keep afloat as an actor.”
Family photo: Darwin To, Rodney To, Jean To, Jackson Jake To
Witness to Oscar History
Rodney’s family members and students aren’t the only ones who respect his work as a professor. The USC affiliation led directly to his stint as an Oscar trophy presenter at the 94th Academy Awards. Show producer Will Packer decided that the ceremony would eschew the usual models and offspring of actors to hand off awards to announcers and recruit people in the industry who are teaching future filmmakers.
It's regretful that 2022 Oscar night is best remembered for “the Slap” Best Actor winner Will Smith handed to comedian Chris Rock. Rodney enjoyed reminiscing with Chris about his early work in an episode of “The Chris Rock Show” on HBO. Rodney’s personal highlight was speaking with his idol Sir Anthony Hopkins.
Rodney To at the 2021 Oscars.
The Bounty of Audition Waiting Rooms
Rodney has worked with a cavalcade of famous actors and will soon play the prominent role of Detective Mark Rizal alongside the esteemed Michelle Yeoh in “The Brothers Sun,” to air on Netflix in 2023. He especially cherishes the friendships he’s made with fellow Fil-Ams in audition waiting rooms. The names include Nico Santos (Crazy Rich Asians and “Superstore”), Alec Mapa (“M. Butterfly” on Broadway), Eugene Cordero (“Star Trek: Lower Decks” and “Tacoma FD”) and Dante Basco (The Fabulous Filipino Brothers and “Avatar: The Last Airbender”).
As a unifying figure within Hollywood’s Filipino community, Rodney has set his sights on bringing his brothers and sisters opportunities in all levels of filmmaking. “My goal is to become a showrunner. My writing partners and I are making strides toward putting ourselves in the position to control the image of Filipinos that’s put out there. I’ve met some great showrunners throughout my career, and I’m ready to create opportunities for another generation of Filipino actors and storytellers.”
As a college professor and mentor, Rodney has advice for beginning actors. “I understand it’s much harder to be a Filipino actor because even family members don’t get it. Surround yourself with people who get it at all costs. They’re the ones who are working at the Oscars or handing out flyers to shows. This isn’t a job but a vocation. You have to train, train, train. You can be an actor for free. The wait for a role can be mitigated by actually working.”
Anthony Maddela is a staff correspondent for Positively Filipino who’s based in Los Angeles. He enjoys being around family, friends and birds.
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