To All the Boys movies enriched my Vietnamese identity: Lana Candor

Hollywood star Lana Candor expressed gratitude over portraying the role of a Korean character Lara Jean in the movie To All the Boys: Always and Forever.

In the movie, Lara takes a family vacation to Korea in a bid to reconnect with her late mother.

Similarly, Lana took a trip to her native country Vietnam with former First Lady Michelle Obama in 2019 to promote girls’ education.

"When we landed my skin, my hair, my vision, every part of my physical being felt it knew it was in the environment where I was born," she told People.

"My hair looked so good!"

Part of the trip included a visit to the orphanage where she and her older brother Artie were adopted from.

"We retraced our steps, my parents' steps to finding us. We went back to the orphanage and we met the manager of the orphanage. He's the one that gave Artie and I away to our parents," she recalls.

"We saw every part of our past life. And if it wasn't for To All the Boys, I don't think Mrs. Obama would have asked me [on the trip]."

"The people that come up to me, they share with me their experience in high school and about how they felt seen and represented in the movies," she says.

"My identity has deeply been enriched because of these experiences. I feel more connected to my community than ever before."