Angela Zhou – Hell On Wheels

A) “Hell On Wheels” has been keeping me very busy so I’m focused on that right now, but I’m excited to see what the future has in store!

A) The casting notice never revealed that the character was going to be in disguise as a boy. It simply said that Mei was a tomboy, one of the only female railroad workers, and a fighter at heart who is willing to stand up for what she believes in. It was only at the callbacks, after I signed a Non-Disclosure Agreement, that I knew the role required pretending to be a boy. 

 

A) It’s a wonderfully cinematic show with a great cast and crew. The writing uses action to forward the story, rather than dialogue, and explores the Chinese experience building the Transcontinental Railroad extremely thoroughly. I love how the Chinese characters are multidimensional and so incredibly strong. It’s not every day that you are presented such a great role that is meaningful to a community of people whose story has been historically bypassed by mainstream television.

A) Production has been so incredibly helpful and generous to me. When I first got the role, they sent over two books (Nothing Like It In The World and The Chinatown Wars) and a 3-part DVD series from PBS called “Becoming American: The Chinese Experience.” Then, when I got to Calgary, they hired a gender consultant for me. He spoke to me about his transgender experience transitioning from a female to male and even agreed to take me out on the night of a big hockey match to a bar in disguise as a boy. That was such an eye-opening experience and really gave me more confidence about pulling it off onscreen. 

A) After figuring out the make-up and wardrobe required to look more masculine, I asked the writers to add in Mei rubbing coal on her face to create a 5 o’clock shadow on her face. That has been very helpful in explaining how she transforms herself every morning before work. 

A) Binding is actually extraordinarily uncomfortable and too much of a hassle for 12-hour shooting days so I wear two sports bras instead. I did bind it properly during my night out at the bar and it completely transforms your body posture.

A) There are so many! It’s such an incredibly experience filming “Hell On Wheels.” I do love the scene where Mei and Cullen fall off the snow cliff. Onset, they built us these small sledges with GoPros attached and just threw us off the slope. It was so much fun!

A) I do! I love hearing from the fans and some have sent me incredibly heart-felt messages about how we are a part of their lives.

 
A) Thank you so much for watching and for taking the time to reach out to us. I feel very blessed indeed! You are all so amazing!