Earlier this month, several First Nations Australian and Indian-Australian actors from Neighbours came forward with shocking allegations of racism while on the set.
WATCH: Looking Back With… Remy Hii
Sharon Johal, who left the Aussie soap last month, claimed that she had experienced a “painful” four years of “direct, indirect and casual racism” from her fellow cast members.
Meanwhile Shareena Clanton, a Wongatha,Yamatji, Noongar and Gitja woman, claimed that another employee repeatedly used the ‘n’ word on set, after she had confronted them about it.
Now, Remy Hii, 35, who played Hudson Walsh on Neighbours before going on to star in Hollywood blockbusters such as Spider-Man and Crazy Rich Asians, has said that not only was he aware of the allegations, but that it would be a very serious matter if the same situation happened in the US.
“I’ve worked in America a lot, and if anything like this came to light there, my god, heads would be rolling,” Remy told The Guardian.
“You’re talking about a ‘burn the institution down’ kind of reaction, there is no way anyone would be able to get away with it.
Remy continued: “It’s actually crazy seeing the kind of general public response. People who have tried to sweep it under the rug go like, ‘it’s not that big a deal, get over it.’
“If this happened in America, the repercussions would be swift and they would be severe.”
Remy, who is of Chinese-Malaysian and British heritage, added that while “this kind of behaviour does exist in the industry and we do need to call it out,” it’s also important when people do come forward with allegations like this that they don’t feel like they’re alone.
“It’s a really terrifying thing to do to speak your truth to power, because of that fear of a backlash or you might be blacklisted or labelled difficult and end up losing work because of it.”
“In audition room after audition room I was being called on to put on an Asian accent, without even any details of what type of ‘Asian’ accent’ that might be,” he said.
“It’s still a case in Australia the only time [a character of non-Anglo appearance] can exist on our screens is if they’re playing some kind of a cultural stereotype.”
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In a statement provided to our sister site, New Idea, Fremantle and Channel Ten responded to the claims.
Fremantle Asia Pacific said: “Fremantle is committed to providing an environment where employees and others in the workplace are treated fairly and with respect, and are free from unlawful discrimination, harassment, victimisation and bullying. We do not tolerate behaviour that does not align to our Anti-Discrimination, Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO), Harassment & Bullying Policy and take all complaints very seriously, investigating all allegations fairly and thoroughly. We have asked Campfire X, creative leaders in Indigenous Cultural Protocols, to conduct an independent review of Neighbours and the production process.”
A Network 10 spokesperson also responded to the claims saying: “Network 10 does not tolerate discriminatory or racist behaviour in any form. We work closely with all our production partners to ensure everyone has access to a diverse, inclusive and safe working environment. We support ongoing education and dialogue in the fight against racism and discrimination. We will work with Fremantle, and all cast and crew, to investigate and ensure Neighbours continues to foster a fully inclusive environment.”
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