Despite his success in stand-up and television, Nico Santos still “can’t believe” it, and as we chatted via zoom, in the midst of his ongoing Cap City Comedy Club US tour it was easy to fall into a rhythm with him bonding over our shared love of Filipino culture and the immigrant experience. Though he is now an established name,his rise to the top was the result of years of hard work from performing at open mic comedy shows before landing his roles playing ‘Mateo’ in the NBC sitcom “ Superstore ” and as the snarky and fashionable ‘Oliver Tsien” in hit film “ Crazy Rich Asians ” and these career defining moments was something he had to make happen himself. “I grew up in Manila before moving to the US with my brother at 16.
Like many immigrants in my shoes, I had to deal with the culture shock that comes from living comfortably in the Philippines to a middle class lifestyle elsewhere. I was actually in the closet up until I moved but I was always one of those kids who couldn’t really hide being gay. I went through a phase of trying to fit in more.
But I just reached a point where I was like, “This is who I am. And I can’t hide or deny that part of myself. Engaging in art was one of the ways I felt I could reinvent myself.
“ Santos tells Vogue Philippines. Pursuing your dreams as a queer person of color means frequently getting told that you wouldn’t succeed and he is no stranger to hearing that. “ I studied theater in college but in my first .