GCN sat down for an interview with some of the cast and crew of The Wedding Banquet, a bold reimagining of Ang Lee’s 1993 cult classic. Helmed by acclaimed director Andrew Ahn, this new version blends humour, heart, and honesty, capturing the evolving dynamics of queer family life today. Featuring an all-star cast including Bowen Yang, Lily Gladstone, Kelly Marie Tran, Han Gi-chan, Joan Chen, and Oscar-winner Youn Yuh-jung, the film promises to be a standout event of the season.

The story centres on Min, a gay man facing visa issues, who proposes a green-card marriage to his lesbian best friend. In exchange, he offers to help her pursue IVF. But when Min’s traditional Korean grandmother arrives expecting a full-scale wedding banquet, joyful chaos ensues. What unfolds is a celebration of chosen families, layered identities, and the beautiful messiness of love.

GCN sat down for an exclusive interview with The Wedding Banquet director Andrew Ahn and cast members Lily Gladstone, Kelly Marie Tran, and Han Gi-chan.

“For me, it was about exploring what it means to build a queer family today,” Ahn explains. “So much has changed since 1993, gay people can legally marry now. That freedom introduces a new kind of pressure, a burden of choice. The original film made sense in its time, but now we’re asking different questions: What do we want? Do we want children? What does commitment mean when the traditional path isn’t the only one?”

 

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Representation was central to the filmmaking process. “All films have a subliminal, meta quality,” Ahn notes. “And for a story this intimate, we needed the environment on set to be just as vulnerable as the film itself. That authenticity inspired the cast not only creatively, but personally.” He shares that Kelly Marie Tran came out publicly during the making of the film, a moment he describes as “deeply moving.”

Lily Gladstone reflected on the film’s timely themes: “Each of us had our own journey with queerness. We didn’t realise at first how urgent the conversation around queer families would become again, in the US.” 

Kelly Marie Tran went on to explain that because the groundwork was already laid and because queer characters have fought for visibility for decades, the cast had the space to make these characters fully fleshed and deeply human. 

And perhaps the film’s message is best summed up by Tran’s words: “Love and family can look like whatever is right for you.”

The Wedding Banquet reimagined is not just a tribute to a classic; it’s a vibrant, affirming portrait of where we are now. And, like any great banquet, everyone is invited.