American television series with Asian leads/co-leads means a scripted American television series that features an actor of Asian ancestry as the series' leading actor portraying the series' protagonist or a main character. One of the earliest examples dates back to 1951 with Anna May Wong, a classic Hollywood-era movie star, with her TV show The Gallery of Madame Liu-Tsong.[1] Typically, the characters portrayed are Asian American, although the actor or actress may sometimes be Canadian, British, or Australian.
| Year | Title | Lead | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Gallery of Madame Liu-Tsong | Protagonist portrayed by Anna May Wong | ||
| –69 | Star Trek | Ensemble cast with George Takei | |
| –67 | The Green Hornet | Ensemble cast with Bruce Lee | |
| –80 | Hawaii Five-O | Ensemble cast with Kam Fong, Gilbert Lani Kauhi | |
| –72 | The Courtship of Eddie's Father | Main character portrayed by Miyoshi Umeki | |
| –75 | Kung Fu | Co-leading characters portrayed by Philip Ahn and Keye Luke | |
| The Amazing Chan and the Chan Clan | Protagonist portrayed by Keye Luke | ||
| –84 | Happy Days | Ensemble cast with Pat Morita | |
| –82 | Barney Miller | Ensemble cast with Jack Soo | |
| Mr. T and Tina | Protagonist portrayed by Pat Morita | [2] [3] | |
| –83 | Quincy, M.E. | Ensemble cast with Robert Ito | |
| –83 | Bring 'Em Back Alive | Ensemble cast with Clyde Kusatsu | |
| –87 | Sidekicks | Protagonist portrayed Ernie Reyes Jr. | |
| –87 | Gung Ho | Protagonist portrayed by Gedde Watanabe | |
| –88 | Ohara | Protagonist portrayed by Pat Morita | |
| –91 | 21 Jump Street | Ensemble cast with Dustin Nguyen | |
| –93 | Saved by the Bell | Protagonist portrayed by Mark-Paul Gosselaar | |
| –90 | Island Son | Ensemble cast with Clyde Kusatsu | |
| Space Rangers | Ensemble cast with Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa | ||
| –95 | Mighty Morphin Power Rangers | Ensemble co-lead played by Thuy Trang | |
| –97 | Protagonist played by Dean Cain | ||
| –95 | All American Girl | Protagonist portrayed by Margaret Cho | [4] [5] [6] |
| –2009 | ER | Ensemble co-leads played by Ming-Na Wen and Parminder Nagra | |
| Vanishing Son | Protagonist portrayed by Russell Wong | ||
| –2001 | Ensemble co-lead played by Garrett Wang | ||
| –97 | The Single Guy | Ensemble cast with Ming-Na Wen | |
| –96 | Ensemble cast with Joel de la Fuente | ||
| –99 | The Mystery Files of Shelby Woo | Protagonist portrayed by Irene Ng | |
| –2001 | Nash Bridges | Ensemble cast with Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa and Kelly Hu | |
| –97 | The Burning Zone | Ensemble co-lead played by Tamlyn Tomita | |
| –2000 | Martial Law | Protagonist portrayed by Sammo Hung | [7] |
| –2002 | V.I.P. | Ensemble cast with Dustin Nguyen | |
| –99 | Protagonist portrayed by Paolo Montalban | ||
| Crusade | Ensemble cast with Daniel Dae Kim | ||
| –2002 | Relic Hunter | Protagonist portrayed by Tia Carrere | |
| –present | Ensemble cast with BD Wong | ||
| –05 | Jackie Chan Adventures | Protagonist portrayed by James Sie | |
| –05 | Ensemble co-lead played by Linda Park | ||
| –02 | Off Centre | Ensemble cast with John Cho | |
| –08 | Ensemble cast with Lauren Tom | ||
| Black Sash | Protagonist portrayed by Russell Wong | ||
| –09 | My Life as a Teenage Robot | Protagonist portrayed by Janice Kawaye | |
| –09 | Battlestar Galactica | Ensemble co-lead played by Grace Park | |
| –10 | Lost | Ensemble co-leads played by Daniel Dae Kim, Yunjin Kim, Naveen Andrews, and Ken Leung | |
| –07 | Protagonist portrayed by Dante Basco | [8] | |
| –08 | Ensemble cast with Dante Basco and Mako | ||
| –08 | The Suite Life of Zack & Cody | Ensemble co-lead portrayed by Brenda Song | |
| –present | Grey's Anatomy | Ensemble co-lead played by Sandra Oh | |
| –06 | The Life and Times of Juniper Lee | Ensemble co-lead portrayed by Amy Hill | |
| Inconceivable | Protagonist portrayed by Ming-Na Wen | ||
| Vanished | Ensemble cast with Ming-Na Wen | ||
| –10 | Heroes | Ensemble co-leads portrayed by Masi Oka and Sendhil Ramamurthy | |
| –19 | The Big Bang Theory | Ensemble co-lead played by Kunal Nayyar | |
| –08 | Aliens in America | Ensemble co-Lead portrayed by Adhir Kalyan | |
| Cashmere Mafia | Ensemble co-lead portrayed by Lucy Liu | ||
| –09 | Lipstick Jungle | Ensemble co-lead portrayed by Lindsay Price | |
| Samurai Girl | Protagonist portrayed by Jamie Chung | ||
| –10 | Aaron Stone | Ensemble co-lead portrayed by Tania Gunadi | |
| –15 | Parks and Recreation | Ensemble cast with Aziz Ansari | |
| –15 | Glee | Ensemble co-leads portrayed by Jenna Ushkowitz, Harry Shum Jr., and Darren Criss | |
| –15 | Community | Ensemble cast with Danny Pudi and Ken Jeong | |
| Eastwick | Ensemble co-lead portrayed by Lindsay Price | ||
| –20 | Modern Family | co-lead Aubrey Anderson-Emmons | |
| –10 | FlashForward | Ensemble co-lead portrayed by John Cho | |
| –11 | Stargate Universe | Ensemble cast with Ming-Na Wen | |
| –17 | Pretty Little Liars | co-lead Shay Mitchell, Janell Parrish | |
| –13 | Nikita | Protagonist portrayed by Maggie Q | [9] |
| –13 | Pair of Kings | Main role Kelsey Chow | |
| –20 | Hawaii Five-0 | Ensemble cast with Daniel Dae Kim, Grace Park, and Masi Oka | |
| –11 | Outsourced | Majority of cast is Asian | |
| –22 | The Walking Dead | Ensemble cast with Steven Yeun | |
| Marry Me | Protagonist portrayed by Lucy Liu | ||
| –13 | Supah Ninjas | Protagonist portrayed by Ryan Potter | [10] |
| –12 | Fairly Legal | Protagonist played by Sarah Shahi | |
| –15 | Falling Skies | Ensemble cast with Moon Bloodgood and Peter Shinkoda | |
| –15 | Jessie | Ensemble cast with Karan Brar | |
| –14 | Sullivan & Son | Protagonist portrayed by Steve Byrne | |
| –13 | Go On | Ensemble cast with John Cho | |
| –17 | The Mindy Project | Protagonist portrayed by Mindy Kaling | [11] |
| –19 | Elementary | Protagonist portrayed by Lucy Liu | |
| –16 | Beauty & the Beast | Protagonist portrayed by Kristin Kreuk | [12] |
| –14 | Twisted | Protagonist portrayed by Avan Jogia | |
| –15 | Hemlock Grove | Ensemble cast with Joel de la Fuente | |
| –17 | Liv and Maddie | Ensemble cast with Tenzing Norgay Trainor | |
| –20 | Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. | Ensemble co-leads portrayed by Chloe Bennet and Ming-Na Wen | |
| –14 | Once Upon a Time in Wonderland | Ensemble cast with Naveen Andrews | |
| –20 | The 100 | Ensemble co-lead portrayed by Bob Morley | |
| –19 | Silicon Valley | Ensemble cast with Kumail Nanjiani, Jimmy O. Yang | |
| –17 | The Night Shift | Ensemble cast with Ken Leung | |
| Selfie | Protagonist portrayed by John Cho | ||
| –18 | The Librarians | Ensemble cast with John Harlan Kim | |
| –16 | Marco Polo | Majority of cast is Asian | |
| –19 | The Man in the High Castle | Ensemble co-leads played by Joel de la Fuente and Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa | |
| –20 | Fresh Off the Boat | Ensemble co-leads played by Hudson Yang, Constance Wu, Randall Park, Forrest Wheeler, and Ian Chen | [13] |
| –21 | Good Witch | Protagonist played by Catherine Bell | |
| –19 | Mr. Robot | series regular BD Wong | |
| –present | Bunk'd | Ensemble cast with Karan Brar and Nina Lu | |
| –17 | Ensemble cast with Booboo Stewart and Dianne Doan | ||
| –18 | Quantico | Protagonist portrayed by Priyanka Chopra | [14] |
| –17 | Dr. Ken | Protagonist portrayed by Ken Jeong | |
| –19 | Crazy Ex-Girlfriend | Ensemble co-lead played by Vincent Rodriguez III | |
| –21 | Master of None | Protagonist portrayed by Aziz Ansari | [15] |
| –19 | Into the Badlands | Protagonists portrayed by Daniel Wu and Aramis Knight | [16] |
| –present | Chicago Med | Ensemble co-lead played by Brian Tee | |
| –20 | The Magicians | Ensemble cast with Arjun Gupta and Summer Bishil | |
| –19 | Bizaardvark | Protagonists played by Madison Hu and Olivia Rodrigo | |
| The Night Of | Protagonist portrayed by Riz Ahmed | ||
| –20 | The Good Place | Ensemble co-leads played by Manny Jacinto and Jameela Jamil | |
| –2017 | The Exorcist | Ensemble cast with John Cho | |
| Brown Nation | Majority of the cast | [17] | |
| Powerless | Ensemble co-leads played by Vanessa Hudgens and Danny Pudi | ||
| –19 | Legion | Ensemble cast with Navid Negahban and Lauren Tsai | |
| –18 | Iron Fist | Ensemble co-lead played by Jessica Henwick | |
| –20 | 13 Reasons Why | main role Ross Butler | |
| –19 | Andi Mack | Protagonist portrayed by Peyton Elizabeth Lee | |
| –22 | Claws | Ensemble co-lead played by Karrueche Tran | |
| The Defenders | Ensemble cast with Jessica Henwick and Élodie Yung | ||
| –present | The Good Doctor | Ensemble co-lead played by Will Yun Lee | |
| Inhumans | Ensemble cast with Ken Leung | ||
| –19 | Runaways | Ensemble co-lead played by Lyrica Okano | |
| –present | 9-1-1 (TV series) | Ensemble co-lead played by Kenneth Choi | |
| Ensemble co-lead played by Darren Criss | |||
| –23 | The Resident (TV series) | Ensemble co-lead played by Manish Dayal | |
| –21 | A.P. Bio | Ensemble cast with Mary Sohn and Aparna Brielle | |
| Here and Now | Ensemble cast with Raymond Lee | ||
| Champions | Ensemble co-leads played by Josie Totah and Mouzam Makkar | ||
| –present | The Terror: Infamy | Majority of cast is Asian | |
| Alex, Inc. | Protagonist portrayed by Tiya Sircar | ||
| –22 | Killing Eve | Protagonist portrayed by Sandra Oh | |
| –19 | Five Points | Protagonist portrayed by Hayley Kiyoko | |
| –present | Yellowstone | main role Kelsey Chow | |
| I Feel Bad | Protagonist portrayed by Sarayu Blue | ||
| –20 | Coop & Cami Ask the World | Ensemble cast with Albert Tsai | |
| –23 | Titans | Ensemble co-lead played by Ryan Potter | |
| Origin | Protagonist portrayed by Sen Mitsuji | ||
| –21 | PEN15 | Protagonist portrayed by Maya Erskine | |
| –23 | Miracle Workers | Ensemble co-leads played by Geraldine Viswanathan and Karan Soni | |
| –present | What We Do in the Shadows | Protagonist portrayed by Kayvan Novak | |
| –23 | Warrior | Ensemble co-leads played by Andrew Koji, Olivia Cheng, Jason Tobin, Dianne Doan, Joe Taslim and Hoon Lee | |
| –22 | Ramy | Ensemble co-leads played by Mohammed Amer, Hiam Abbass, Dave Merheje, May Calamawy, and Laith Nakli | |
| –22 | Amphibia | Protagonist portrayed by Brenda Song | |
| –20 | Pandora | Ensemble cast with Banita Sandhu and Akshay Kumar | |
| Wu Assassins | Majority of cast is Asian | ||
| Sunnyside | Ensemble co-leads played by Kal Penn, Joel Kim Booster, and Poppy Liu | ||
| –present | Saturday Night Live | Featured cast member Bowen Yang | |
| –23 | Protagonist portrayed by Olivia Rodrigo | ||
| –21 | Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist | Ensemble co-leads played by Alice Lee and Kapil Talwalkar | |
| –present | Awkwafina Is Nora from Queens | Protagonist portrayed by Awkwafina | |
| –23 | co-lead played by Isa Briones | ||
| –present | Mythic Quest | Ensemble co-leads played by Danny Pudi, Charlotte Nicdao, and Ashly Burch | |
| Devs | Protagonist portrayed by Sonoya Mizuno | ||
| –23 | Never Have I Ever | Protagonist portrayed by Maitreyi Ramakrishnan | |
| Dash & Lily | co-lead played by Midori Francis | ||
| –21 | Saved by the Bell | Ensemble cast with Josie Totah | |
| WandaVision | Major starring character portrayed by Randall Park | ||
| –present | Invincible | Protagonist portrayed by Steven Yeun | |
| –23 | Kung Fu | Protagonist portrayed by Olivia Liang | |
| –22 | Rutherford Falls | Ensemble cast with Jesse Leigh | |
| –23 | Shadow and Bone | Protagonists played by Jessie Mei Li and Amita Suman | |
| –22 | Kevin Can F**k Himself | Ensemble cast with Raymond Lee | |
| –23 | Sex/Life | Protagonist portrayed by Sarah Shahi | |
| –23 | Gossip Girl | Ensemble co-lead played by Evan Mock | |
| –23 | Doogie Kameāloha, M.D. | Protagonist portrayed by Peyton Elizabeth Lee | |
| Cowboy Bebop | Protagonist portrayed by John Cho | ||
| –23 | Human Resources | Ensemble cast with Randall Park | |
| Moon Knight | Major starring characters portrayed by May Calamawy, F. Murray Abraham | ||
| Ms. Marvel | Protagonist portrayed by Iman Vellani | ||
| –24 | Quantum Leap | Protagonist portrayed by Raymond Lee | |
| Blockbuster | Protagonist portrayed by Randall Park | ||
| Beef | Protagonists played by Ali Wong and Steven Yeun | ||
| –present | Izaac Wang, Ming-Na Wen, BD Wong, James Hong | ||
| American Born Chinese | Majority of the cast is Chinese | ||
| –present | My Adventures with Superman | Lois Lane is voiced by Alice Lee | |
| –present | Mech Cadets | Majority of voice cast is Asian | |
| –present | Ahsoka | Major starring characters portrayed by Natasha Liu Bordizzo, Eman Esfandi | |
| –present | One Piece | Ensemble co-lead played by Mackenyu and Taz Skylar | |
| –present | Blue Eye Samurai | Protagonist portrayed by Maya Erskine | |
| Mr. & Mrs. Smith | Ensemble co-lead played by Maya Erskine | ||
| –present | Avatar: The Last Airbender | Protagonist portrayed by Gordon Cormier | |
| Shōgun | Majority of the cast is Japanese | ||