Quite possibly the most talked about movie on the planet right now is Crazy Rich Asians, the much-awaited film adaptation of Kevin Kwan’s bestselling novel.

SUPERSTORE’S Santos plays Oliver Tsien, cousin of Nick Young played by Henry Golding (left), who is in love with Wu’s Rachel Chu. The film, presented and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, is touted as the first major Hollywood production in 25 years to feature an all-Asian cast. It quickly became the number one blockbuster in the United States and Canada on its opening weekend and has already recouped its $30-million budget.

Directed by Jon M. Chu and also starring Constance Wu, Henry Golding, Michelle Yeoh, Gemma Chan, Awkwafina and Ken Jeong, Crazy Rich Asians opened in Philippine cinemas nationwide yesterday, 22 August.

In last week’s cover story for Time international news magazine, the film has been touted as a Hollywood game changer as it “signals a major step forward for representation — and for the industry.”

Its Asian cast also includes Manila-born Filipino-American international star

Nico Santos. The openly gay actor shot to fame playing Mateo Liwanag in the NBC hit sitcom,

In an exclusive interview with this writer, Santos talked about his role in the film as Oliver T’sien, a fashion designer who regards himself as the “rainbow sheep” of his family, how he got the part, why everyone should watch this film and his brief encounter with the other Filipino cast member, no less than the actress dubbed as the Queen of All Media, Kris Aquino. Excerpts:

How did you become part of the film’s cast?

A friend of mine was meeting with the director about possibly being in the movie. She later called me up and asked me if I’m familiar with the book Crazy Rich Asians that will be turned into a movie. (She said) there’s this part Oliver that’s just perfect for you.

So, I devoured the book and read that Oliver was portrayed as a guy in his mid-30s, is gay, loves fashion and wears glasses. I said, “Oh, my God, I got to play this part!” so I got an audition and I guess they liked me enough because after a month or so, I was on a plane to Malaysia [to shoot my scenes in the film].

Santos in a scene with Michelle Yeoh. What was your character like and how did you portray him?

Oliver is kind of like the fixer of the family. He’s kinda like their errand boy, [the one who] gets them whatever they need, whatever they want. He’s not as rich as the other members of the family and he’s queer so he’s an outsider in his own family, which is why his heart goes out to Rachel (played by Constance Wu) so he wants to help her out when he sees her and makes sure that she’s taken care of.

How did I play him? I want to stay true to the book so I worked with a dialect coach to make sure I got Oliver’s British accent correct. He sort of has these airs about him so he’s kinda like a little more snobby and sounds a little more posh than the other cousins.

What was it like working with your fellow Asian actors? Who became your closest friends?

Everybody was a dream to work with. We just bonded right away and became this one big happy family. I’m close with everybody and we still have a WhatsApp chat group which has been going on since Day 1 of filming. And I was so excited for the premiere of the movie as we got to be reunited with some of the international cast who we haven’t seen in a year.

Did you get to meet and talk to Kris Aquino who we read has a cameo role in the film?

We did have one scene together but it was the wedding scene. It was a very large scene with a lot of moving parts so I only met her very briefly. I talked to her for a few seconds but, unfortunately, I did not have much time to interact with her.

NICO Santos is one of two Filipinos in the hit movie Crazy Rich Asians. What’s next for Nico Santos after Crazy Rich Asians?

I would love to do more movies so hopefully Crazy Rich Asians would open more doors, more acting opportunities for me. I hope that with movies like this, actors like myself would be part of more authentic stories. I hope to continue playing interesting, three-dimensional characters and I hope this movie has allowed me to do just that.

What major takeaways or lessons audiences can learn from watching this film?

That all the stuff that we go through is universal. Yes, this movie is about an Asian story but the feeling of not being good enough, the fear of trying to be accepted by your partner’s family, the feeling of wanting to be loved, wanting to move up in life. These are all universal themes and you don’t have to be Asian to get these human experiences. I just hope that people see that we are more alike than we are different.