KEY POINTS

  • Jean Yoon said the show had "racist" storylines
  • The actress slammed its co-creator, Kevin White
  • The fifth and final season of the show aired in April

After Simu Liu, Jean Yoon has opened up about her experience working on the sitcom "Kim's Convenience," which aired its final episode last week. The actress on Monday defended Liu's allegations that the Korean-Canadian show lacked diversity and that it had "racist" storylines.

Liu, in a Facebook post on June 2, criticized the creators of the show for ending it abruptly. He also alleged that there was a lack of diversity in the writers' room.

"As an Asian Canadian woman, a Korean-Canadian woman w [with] more experience and knowledge of the world of my characters, the lack of Asian female, especially Korean writers in the writers' room of Kims made my life VERY DIFFICULT & the experience of working on the show painful," Yoon tweeted Monday.

Yoon's response comes after television critic John Doyle, in a now-deleted tweet, noted how the non-Asian characters in the show got a spinoff series but not the Asian actors. Doyle also said Liu's claims regarding the lack of diversity were true.

In her tweet, Yoon explained why the cast members collectively expressed their concern regarding the script for Season 5, which they received before filming due to the COVID-19 situation. She said the cast members discovered that the storyline was "overtly racist."

Yoon further explained the difference between Ins Choi and Kevin White's leadership. Both of them were the show's co-creators.

"Under Mr. Choi's leadership, S5 restored many of the core values of the original show, and most offensive 'jokes' were removed," she added. "To give you an idea of what we are talking about, here is one scene from the original S5 drafted under Mr. White's leadership. Pastor Nina comes to the story to pick up Mrs. Kim for a Zumba class. Mrs. Kim is wearing NUDE shorts, and Pastor Nina is too embarrassed to tell her she looks naked from the waist down. Mr. Kim enters, and the joke is that if you're married you can say anything."

She noted that the scene was later removed at her request.

The show's creators are yet to respond to the allegations.

In March, the creators announced that the show will conclude with season 5. It was previously announced that "Kim's Convenience" would continue for two more seasons.

The news surprised the cast members. Liu took to Twitter on March 9 and noted that the decision left him "heartbroken."

The producers of the show shared a statement explaining the cancellation decision at the time.

The Korean-Canadian family drama started airing its 5th and final season in April on the CBC network. The show's last episode aired on Netflix on June 2.

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Kim's Convenience Cast Getty Images